Ghana marks 16th anniversary of May 9 disaster today

Ghana will be commemorating the 16th anniversary of the May 9 Accra Sports stadium disaster today.

Over 127 soccer fans lost their lives in a stampede which occurred when Hearts of Oak clashed with Asante Kotoko in 2001  league game.

It has been described as Africa’s worst soccer disaster ever

Kotoko fans threw plastic seats and bottles onto the pitch after Hearts struck late to beat them 2-1 in a Ghana Premier League game.




Police fired into the crowd which caused panic and resulted in a stampede which saw over 127 passionate soccer fans perish.

Investigations later  blamed the police for acting prematurely which led to so many deaths. Reports also claimed that the medical staff had already left the stadium before the match was over and some of the exit gates were closed which increased the number of casualties.

Six police officers were later charged with 127 counts of manslaughter. The incident led to many stadiums in Africa undergoing strict security protocols before and after the matches.

Source:Starrfmonline