Weija Drowning : 13 Year Old Who Narrowly Escaped Death Speaks For The first Time

Enyonam Ekpe, the sole survivor of the Weija drowning incident, described how she narrowly escaped death while eight others did not.

On Wednesday, May 10, 2023, the loss of eight school children in Accra's Weija Gbawe municipality triggered a period of mourning.

Their canoe capsized in a river at Wiaboman, causing their deaths.

Thursday, 13-year-old Enyonam disclosed to JoyNews that the tragedy could have been avoided if the canoeist had followed her advice.

According to the adolescent, there was a shortage of canoe riders on that fateful day at 5:40 p.m., so she hired a juvenile paddler along with several other children.

Upon ascending the canoe, she informed the paddler that the vessel was unable to accommodate the number of commuters.

She said, "I told him that there are a lot of people in the boat, so he must let some off and pick them up later."

But according to Enyonam, the young paddler, whose identity is presently unknown, disregarded her advice and embarked on the journey.

It appears that until that point everything was in order. Enyonam was too traumatized to recall precisely when the canoe lost its balance and capsized; all she could recall was that she lost hold of her traveling brother at that precise instant.

Enyonam was able to cling to a portion of the canoe until she was rescued by a good Samaritan, whereas the others were unable to maintain their buoyancy.

The bodies of the deceased children have been recovered, except for one whose whereabouts are unknown. Rescue efforts are currently underway to locate the missing individual.

This is not the first time this year that students have perished while pursuing a formal education in disquieting conditions.

Eight students from the Atikagome Community in the Sene East District of the Bono East Region perished in the Volta Lake on their way to school in January of this year.