Volta Lake Boat Disaster: Survivor Recounts Harrowing Ordeal
JHNews || Another tragic chapter on Volta Lake exposes a predictable pattern: lives lost, communities devastated, and little change. Until Ghana treats water‐transport deaths as the crisis they are, these nightmares will keep repeating.
HENRY GERCHI 
An accident on Ghana’s largest man-made lake has left multiple deaths and survivors traumatised, as a passenger recounts the terrifying moments when a passenger boat capsized on the Volta Lake.
The boat, carrying at least 24 people, departed from Okuma Island in the Krachi West District heading to Debu in the Oti Region. Among the passengers were a mother, her two children and niece.
According to interview with survivor Belinda Ayikpa, her six-month-old baby boy clung to her as the boat tilted and flipped, throwing everyone into the lake. She said her brave grandfather, who was also onboard, grabbed her and the infant and held onto the overturned hull until another boat arrived to rescue them.
Tragically, Belinda watched her mother, sister, brother and niece perish. The official death toll is still being verified, but reports say at least 15 people died, including 11 children.
The disaster has reignited scrutiny over safety conditions on the lake: overloaded vessels, lack of life jackets, inadequate regulation and poor rescue infrastructure.
