A two-storey residential building collapsed around 2:00 a.m. in the Idun Amissah Ekyir area, killing a 74-year-old woman, Madam Ernestina Ndoum, and injuring her grandson.
According to residents, the collapse was preceded by a loud, thunderous noise that jolted the neighborhood. “We were all asleep when we heard a big crash,” one eyewitness recounted. “When we came out, we saw the house had collapsed. It was heartbreaking.”
Emergency teams from the Ghana National Fire Service and the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) swiftly responded to the distress calls. Rescuers pulled both victims from the rubble and rushed them to the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital. Madam Nduom, however, was pronounced dead on arrival. Her grandson is currently receiving medical care and is said to be in stable condition.
The tragedy marks the second deadly building collapse in Cape Coast within a week. Just five days earlier, a structure near London Bridge collapsed, claiming the lives of two elderly women and injuring three others. The spate of structural failures has triggered widespread alarm and renewed scrutiny over the integrity of aging buildings in the municipality.
Cape Coast Mayor, George Justice Arthur, visited the site and expressed his condolences to the bereaved family. He assured the public that swift measures are being taken to prevent further loss of life. “The safety of our residents is paramount,” he said. “We are commencing urgent structural audits of all potentially weak buildings across the city and will not hesitate to demolish any that pose a threat.”
He further urged property owners to comply with building safety codes and tasked the Metropolitan Assembly’s Engineering Department with intensifying inspections and enforcement.
In the meantime, NADMO has begun structural assessments of adjacent properties in the affected area to preempt similar disasters.
The two successive collapses have sparked outrage among residents and civil society groups, who are calling for stricter enforcement of building regulations, routine structural maintenance, and accountability from authorities charged with oversight.
