A 50-year-old carbide welder tragically lost his life when a liquid oxygen cylinder he was using for his work exploded at Suame magazine in the Ashanti region.
The incident, which occurred on Monday, 25th March 2024 around 4 pm has left artisans and other workers in a state of shock.
A day after the incident, the tragic demise of the 50-year-old welder continues to be a topic of discussion in the Suame enclave.
His colleagues, who are still in mourning, admit to living in fear following the incident.
They acknowledge the inherent risks of their profession and shared the likely mistakes that led to the fatal explosion.
Samuel Moni, a welder told Citi News in an interview on Tuesday “We are living in fear as welders, and this is not the first time such an explosion has happened. We are all scared, some of my colleagues are even contemplating on leaving the work but some of us are still encouraging them not to give up. The work is very risky, but we are cautious.”
“The mistake that led to the unfortunate incident is the fact that the gas cylinder was very close to the deceased welder. He should have placed the gas cylinder meters away from where he was working.”
Felicia Kobina, an eyewitness said “We were behind the incident scene when we heard the loud sound which happens to be the explosion. My husband drew my attention to it because my children were around the explosion scene, so I rushed to the scene and saw the part of the deceased body in the mud. The deceased had his body torn into pieces.”
The late Afriyie, whose body has since been laid to rest, is survived by a wife and five children who were in mourning when Citi News visited their home.
