A member of the Okudzeto Commission of Enquiry set up to investigate the happenings of the May 9th disaster, Ken Bediako, says the Accra Sports Stadium was a death trap based on the structure of the facility at the time.
126 people lost their lives after the game between Accra Hearts of Oak and Kumasi Asante Kotoko at the Accra Sports Stadium on May 9, 2001.
The incident began just some few minutes to end the game when Kotoko supporters began throwing bottles and chairs onto the field at the 45,000-capacity Accra Stadium, witnesses said.
Police responded by firing tear gas, creating panic in the stands as spectators rushed to escape, but the main gate was locked, witnesses said.
After the hour-long ordeal, it was found that 116 deaths resulted from compressive asphyxia and 10 fans died from trauma.
The Ghana Institute of Architects also called the stadium a “death trap.”
Speaking in an interview on Happy Sports with Ohene-Bampoe Brenya, he said, “The main idea was to find out the cause and also ensure that it never happens again. The structure at the stadium was not correct. It was a death trap. Looking at the staircase it wasn’t properly done. That was the main cause of death”.
He added: The seats at the stadium were of inferior quality and not durable. One of our recommendations was that the seat was of a low quality which enabled the fans to remove them easily and throw them onto the field”
“We also recommended that the Police shouldn’t go to the stadium with any lethal weapon”.
The Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Ghana Football Association marked the 19th anniversary of the May 9th disaster last Saturday.