Two Brothers Drown in Tragic Rescue Attempt at Abandoned Quarry in Akatsi South
A family outing turns tragic as two brothers lose their lives while trying to save their younger sibling from drowning in a deep quarry pit.
- Two brothers died after trying to rescue their 9-year-old sibling from a quarry pit.
- The abandoned quarry is estimated to be 18–24 metres deep.
- Rescue efforts by divers and naval officers were hampered by poor visibility.
Akatsi South Municipality has been thrown into mourning after two brothers drowned in an abandoned quarry pit while attempting to rescue their younger sibling at Live Donorkope.
The victims, identified as 18-year-old Felix Dogbey, a BECE graduate, and 25-year-old Christian Dogbey, an employee at a food processing company in Asikuma, died after separate rescue attempts went tragically wrong.
According to the Akatsi South Director of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), National Disaster Management Organisation official Daniel Gidi, the incident occurred on May 15 around 4:00 p.m. when the family visited the area for a funeral and later went to the abandoned quarry pit for recreation.
The tragedy began when their nine-year-old brother, Eric Dogbey, started drowning in the water-filled quarry. Felix reportedly entered the water to save him and succeeded in rescuing the child but then struggled and drowned.
In a further attempt to save Felix, Christian also jumped into the deep quarry pit but was unable to survive the conditions and drowned as well.
Officials said the abandoned quarry is estimated to be between 18 and 24 metres deep, making rescue efforts extremely difficult.
Local divers initially attempted to retrieve the bodies but were unsuccessful. Officers from the Naval Training Command (Ghana) at Sogakope Nutekpor were later called in to assist but had to suspend operations due to poor underwater visibility.
The Akatsi South Municipal Chief Executive, Daniel Dagba, together with NADMO officials and other stakeholders, visited the scene to assess the situation.
Despite continued search efforts, the bodies of the two brothers were later discovered floating in the quarry on Sunday morning before naval teams resumed operations.
The Akatsi Police Command later retrieved the bodies and deposited them at St. Paul’s Hospital morgue for autopsy, while maintaining order at the scene.
The Assembly Member for the area, Moses Gadri, confirmed that the deceased were originally from Akatsi Alagbokope but were residing in Asikuma.
The incident has left the community in deep shock and mourning, with authorities expected to review safety concerns around abandoned quarry sites in the area.
