Shocking flooding videos at Ho amidst heavy rains

Shocking videos of flooding at Ho, the Volta Regional capital have been circulated following hours of heavy rains on Saturday, July 8, 2023.
The torrential rains which started around 2pm in the afternoon lasted for more than an hour.

It hit many parts of the town with cars stuck in  flood waters.
Choked drains and culverts overflowed with debris.
Some roads within the capital which severely flooded included Civic Center, Barracks Road, Asogli Palace Square, Ho Technical University junction, among others were captured in the shocking flooding videos,

At Civic Centre, a shop full of cloths was damaged and cloths swept away by the floods.

Ho is noted for its favorable topography, such that the place does not easily get flooded during rainfall.

However, this time round some vehicles that attempted to wade through the flooding waters were washed away.

As of the time of filing this report, there were no reports of casualties

Ho has experienced heavy rainfall this year as compared to previous years; and there are fears that the heaviest rains are yet to come.

Ho is gradually becoming a flood-prone area as 11 places have been identified as dangerous flood-prone spots.

These include Amegashie House Bridge, Barracks Road, C.K road, BNI-Powerhouse Road, YMCA Bridge on the Civic Centre road and Rabazey area.

Others are Tsikpota, the Asogli Palace Square drainage and bridge, Redeem-Down area on the Ho-Aflao Highway and Bulawayo, near Ho Technical University junction.

Data compiled by the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) has revealed that flooding in Ghana killed 510 people and injured 309 others between 2015 and 2020.

1,446 flood events

During the six-year period, Ghana recorded 1,446 flood events.

54,744 houses inundated, 136,563 acres of farmlands destroyed

During the same period, 54,744 houses were inundated and 136,563 acres of farmlands destroyed.

Ghana experiences flood disasters every year, resulting in loss of lives and property.

GH¢117.7m spent on drains in 6 years

The audit discovered that an amount of GH¢117 million (GH¢117,711,420.90) has been invested to construct and maintain drains and culverts in flood-prone areas in the country from 2015 to 2019.

One major flood disaster every year over the past 10 years

Despite the investments in flood protection structures, the problem of flooding persists, with the country experiencing at least one major flood disaster every year over the past 10 years, thereby resulting in the loss of lives and property.

Flood control measures not effective

The report indicted the Hydrological Services Department for implementing measures that have largely not been effective in controlling and mitigating flooding in the country.

Lack of coordinated development of drainage facilities

The report Hydrological Services Department did not produce Drainage Master Plans (DMPs) to guide the coordinated development of drainage facilities which affected department’s ability to plan the provision of flood control structures in a holistic manner.