A heavy downpour has displaced at least 26,000 people in eastern Ghana, the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) confirmed. 

The downpour, which lasted several hours, also destroyed food crops, and schools have also been shut down after the two hydroelectric dams overflowed at Akosombo and Kpong.

Seji Saji, the deputy chief of NADMO, confirmed the incident and said the affected residents had been relocated. 

“We have moved most of the affected people to a safe haven. About 26,000, mostly women and children, have been displaced. “What they need is water, food and medicine, and we’re working with the government to take care of that,” Mr Saji told AFP. 

Ghana’s navy said thousands of people had been rescued in the Volta Region, bordering Togo, after the surge of water from the dams.

Although no death has been recorded, many residents said they had lost properties and belongings to the heavy downpour. 

Mercy Tamakloe, a 35-year-old food vendor and mother of two, said she lost all her belongings.

“Everything is gone. I don’t know how I’ll be able to recover, but at least I have life,” Mrs Tamakloe said. 

David Fui Banini, a farmer, said the deluge destroyed his four-acre maize farm and urged the state government to “consider compensating us because this is no fault of ours.”

President Nana Akufo-Addo has set up a committee to coordinate ongoing rescue efforts.

Ghana’s meteorological service has forecast more rains this year as the West African country experiences a marked increase in the frequency and unpredictability of weather events.

The forecast came amid warnings linked to climate change.