The headmaster of Wenchi Senior High School, Foster Boateng has revealed that the visit to the Kintampo Waterfalls was not part of the initially agreed field trip by students of the school which ended in a disaster.
About 15 students of the school died and several others sustained injuries when disaster struck while they were having fun with other revelers at the Kintampo Waterfalls on Sunday.
According to the headmaster, the students were given approval by the school authorities to embark on a two-day educational trip to the three northern regions. He also got approval from the Municipal Director of Education and the Brong Ahafo Regional Director of Education for the trip.
They left school on Friday, he said, to “learn of things they have learnt and reality on the ground”.
They went to the Upper West, Paga in the Upper East and concluded the sightseeing trip in the Northern Region, Mr. Boateng told TV’s Kofi Takyi on Monday.
He said when the students returned to the Brong Ahafo Region where the school is located, they decided to extend their excursion to the waterfalls.
“They decided to finish it all at the Kintampo Waterfalls, so some of the children decided to taste the swinging aspect of it.
“The trees started coming down so in an attempt to escape some of them fell and they were trapped by the trees. Those who succeeded in climbing the staircase up to pack into the bus got trapped…by other trees that had fallen down,” Mr. Boateng grieved.
The headmaster said all the 15 bodies were sent to the Wenchi Methodist Hospital morgue where parents were asked to identify their wards.
About 15 other students are now responding to treatment at the same hospital.
Meanwhile, Mr. Boateng said one student and a teacher of the school whose conditions were critical had been referred to the Okomfo Anokye Teaching Hospital.
In all 18 people were confirmed dead in the disaster including 15 from the Wenchi SHS.
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