Two Nigerian Students Drown in Volta River, Accra ,Ghana

Two Nigerian students schooling at Knutsford University College, a private university at East Legon in Accra, on Friday drowned in the Volta River at Akosombo, a popular tourist destination in the Eastern Region.

The bodies of Edward Alele (left) and Charles Honesty (right)

The Nigerians, identified as Edward Alele, 22, and Charles Honesty, 20, were among 200 third-year students who had visited Akosombo as part of the school’s SRC Week celebrations...

According to sources, after their normal tour of some important tourist sites at Akosombo, the students converged on the Afrikoko Hotel at Akosombo for lunch.

The source explained that some of the students had wanted to use the hotel’s cruising boats, but after being told that each passenger was to pay GH¢10 for the cruise across the Volta River, the students thought it was too expensive and therefore abandoned the plan.

They therefore found an ingenious way to satisfy their curiosity by contracting a fisherman operating a canoe nearby to ferry them across the Volta River.

According to the source, five students allegedly paid the fisherman GH¢5 for him to ferry them across the river.

It was not clear whether all the five students who hired the canoe for the adventure were Nigerians, but the quintet, including Edward Alele and Charles Honesty, got into the canoe and midway through their adventure, the canoe capsized due to the weight, and the lone fisherman tried to save them.

The boat, daily guide learnt, was meant for a single passenger. The source explained that the fisherman managed to call for help from other colleagues who came to help save three of the students.

According to the report, it was difficult to trace Alele and Honesty and since it was getting dark at the time, they had to abandon the rescue mission and continue on Saturday.

According to the reports, after a long search, the two bodies were retrieved.

The bodies are said to have been deposited at the Police Hospital morgue in Accra while the Akosombo Police have launched investigations into the unfortunate incident.