Soccer stampede leaves 100 dead
At least 100 people have died following a stampede at a packed soccer match in Accra, Ghana.
Accra Heart of Oak were leading 2-1 against Assante Kotoko with five minutes left in the game when Assante supporters began throwing bottles and chairs onto the field.
Witnesses said police fired tear gas, creating panic in the stands as spectators rushed to escape the gas.
The injured were rushed to surrounding hospitals, where officials said that at least 100 people died and many more were injured.
The Minister of Presidential Affairs Jake Obetsebi-Amptey, said: "It is a great national tragedy. Many people have died and many more are wounded and are bleeding."
"What is important now is to remain calm. It is a night for us to mourn and not a night to worsen an already bad situation with anger and impatience."
It was the fourth soccer disaster in Africa during the past month.
Forty-three people were killed April 11 at a stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Another stampede April 29 killed eight people in Lubumbashi, Congo, and on May 6, fighting broke out among fans at a soccer match in Ivory Coast, killing one person and injuring 39.
