Jitong: Tragedy struck the Jitong community near Kupulima in the Sissala West District when two minors, male and female from the Jitong basic school, drowned in a flooded river while returning from the farm.
According to Ghana News Agency, the deceased, Mumuni Asibu, five years, and Mumuni Tasilima, seven years old, drowned between Jitong and Lan near Leo, en route to Burkina Faso. The unfortunate incident occurred after the children, who had accompanied their grandmother to the farm to plant rice, attempted to cross a flooded stream on their way home.
Mr. Katara Batong, the Assembly member for the Fialibelle electoral area, reported that the grandmother had left earlier with one of the children as it started raining, leaving the remaining four to return on a donkey cart. Unaware of the flooded stream, two of the children disembarked from the cart to assess the situation, while the other two stayed aboard and attempted to cross the river with the donkey. Unfortunately, the rushing waters submerged the donkey cart, drowning both children and the donkey.
The two surviving children, without knowing what to do, ran in the rain that night to a nearby community to alert them of the incident. A search party attempted to locate the children but proved unsuccessful that night. The morning after the rainfall, the bodies of the deceased were recovered and have since been buried according to Islamic tradition.
The incident has thrown the community into mourning and raised concerns about the safety of children during the farming and rainy season. Mr. Katara advised parents to ensure they make decisions for children and not leave them on their own anytime they go to the farm or engage in other activities. He also cautioned community members to avoid attempting to cross rivers during or after heavy rains.
