Ghana helicopter crash kills defence and environment ministers

A military helicopter crashed in Ghana late on Wednesday, killing eight people on board including the country’s Defence Minister Edward Omane Boamah, Environment Minister Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed and two other top officials.

The crash was one of the worst Ghanaian air disasters in more than a decade. The country’s military said the helicopter took off from the capital, Accra, and was heading northwest towards the gold-mining area of Obuasi.

Shortly after entering the area in the Ashtani region, the aircraft went off the radar and the wreckage of the aircraft was later located. The military says the cause of the crash is not yet known and a probe has been launched to investigate the incident.

Vice-chair of the National Democratic Congress Samuel Sarpong and top national security advisor Muniru Mohammed were also killed in the crash along with four other crew members.

Ghana’s government described the crash as a “national tragedy”. Mourners gathered at the late defence chief’s residence, as well as the ruling party’s – the National Democratic Congress – headquarters in Accra to pay their respects.

State media reported that the ministers were on board a Z-9 helicopter, which is often used for transport and medical evacuations and is generally considered safe.

A video circulating online showed debris of the helicopter on fire, which appears to have crashed in a remote forest area, with people gathered around to help and look for survivors.

Ghana ranks among the highest in Africa in aviation safety. The country’s last air disaster happened in 2014 after three people were killed in a helicopter crash off Ghana’s coast.

In 2012, a cargo plane overran the runway in Accra and crashed into a bus full of passengers, killing at least 10 people.