Two brothers have drowned in an abandoned quarry pit at Live Donorkope in the Akatsi South Municipality after attempting to rescue their younger brother from the water.
The deceased were identified as Felix Dogbey, 18, and Christian Dogbey, 25.
According to the Akatsi South Director of the National Disaster Management Organisation, Daniel Gidi, the incident occurred on May 15 at about 4:00 p.m.
He explained that the brothers, together with several relatives, had travelled to Live Donorkope for a funeral and later visited the abandoned quarry lake for recreation without supervision from residents in the area.
Mr Gidi said the tragedy began when the brothers’ nine-year-old sibling, Eric Dogbey, started drowning in the water-filled quarry pit.
“Felix, after realising that their brother was calling for help, decided to rescue him but ended up drowning after rescuing his younger brother,” he stated.
He added that Christian also entered the water in an attempt to rescue Felix, but both brothers drowned in the process.
According to NADMO, the abandoned quarry pit is estimated to be between 18 and 24 metres deep.
Initial rescue attempts by local divers on Friday and Saturday were unsuccessful.
Mr Gidi said officers from the Naval Training Command at Sogakope Nutekpor were later contacted to assist with the operation but had to suspend efforts on Saturday evening due to poor underwater visibility.
“We called for help from the Navy officers, who decided to continue with rescue operations Sunday morning after experiencing poor visibility on Saturday evening inside the water,” he said.
The Daniel Dagba, together with officials from NADMO and other stakeholders, visited the scene to assess the situation.
Assembly Member Moses Gadri said the deceased hailed from Akatsi Alagbokope but resided at Asikuma.
The bodies of the two brothers were later seen floating on Sunday morning before the arrival of Navy personnel.
Officers from the Akatsi Police Command later transported the bodies to the morgue at St. Paul’s Hospital pending autopsy.
The incident has left the community in shock and mourning.
