A military helicopter crash in Ghana’s Ashanti region has killed all eight people on board, including Defence Minister Edward Omane Boamah and Environment Minister Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed. The Z9 aircraft vanished from radar just after 9:12 AM local time Wednesday during a flight from the capital Accra to Obuasi, a gold-mining town 200km northwest.
Rescue teams found the wreckage in the Adansi Akrofuom district, where graphic images showed charred remains amid the debris.
President John Mahama canceled all official activities and ordered flags flown at half-mast nationwide. Chief of Staff Julius Debrah called it a “national tragedy,” expressing condolences to families of the victims who died “in service to the country”.
The victims included five government officials and three aircrew members. Alongside the ministers, the crash killed Deputy National Security Coordinator Alhaji Muniru Mohammed (a former agriculture minister), Samuel Sarpong (vice-chair of ruling party NDC), and ex-parliamentary candidate Samuel Aboagye .
The crew, Squadron Leader Peter Bafemi Anala, Flying Officer Manin Twum-Ampadu, and Sergeant Ernest Addo Mensah, were experienced Ghana Air Force personnel.
The group was traveling to an anti-illegal mining event when the helicopter lost contact near Obuasi, a region battling environmental damage from gold extraction . No distress call was issued before the crash, leaving investigators puzzled about the cause.
The deaths create critical security gaps for Ghana. Defence Minister Boamah, a medical doctor turned politician, had recently strengthened border defences against Islamist fighters spilling over from Burkina Faso . Just three months ago, he led diplomatic talks with Burkina Faso’s military leaders amid rising arms trafficking along Ghana’s northern frontier.
Environment Minister Muhammed’s death also halts key initiatives against illegal gold mining, which has poisoned rivers and farmlands . The helicopter involved, a Chinese-made Z9 often used for medical evacuations, had no known prior mechanical issues.
This marks Ghana’s deadliest air disaster since 2012, when a cargo plane crash killed 10 in Accra. Ghana faces profound uncertainty as investigations begin. The Air Force has grounded all Z9 helicopters pending a probe into possible causes, from mechanical failure to weather or human error.
Security analyst Emmanuel Kotin warned: “Losing key leadership amid Sahel terrorism threats requires immediate acting appointments”.
Mourners gathered at the crash site, laying flowers where Ashanti Regional Minister Frank Amoakohene had rushed to the scene hours earlier . As night fell, President Mahama addressed the nation, pledging “transparent findings” and vowing the officials’ work “will not be abandoned”.
With funerals pending, Ghana observes seven days of national mourning for leaders whose final journey ended in flames above gold country.