Seismic risk in Ghana: efforts and challenges

Abstract

In 1939, Ghana experienced its severest earthquake with a local magnitude of 6.5. It resulted in the death of 17 people and caused significant damage to property. Since then, there have been reported occurrences of earthquakes, though the region is generally considered a stable continental area with few active tectonic features. This seismic region is generally characterized by a major active fault line which stretches from the McCarthy Hill area in Accra westwards towards Kasoa-Nyanyanu in the Central Region and eastwards towards the Akwapim Ridge all the way to the Volta Region. The epicenter of the 22 June 1939 earthquake is located 25 km off the coast of Accra near Kasoa-Nyanyanu in the west. An earthquake occurrence and observation survey was conducted in March 2019, following three earthquakes recorded in March and December 2018 and March 2019 with local magnitude ranging from 3.0 to 4.8. The events were mostly felt by residents in the southern part of the country, who were consequently thrown into a state of panic. The main objective of the survey was to assess the perception, experiences, and adaptation strategies to seismic events of randomly sampled residents of the area. Questionnaires were administered during the survey in the Awutu Senya East and Weija-Gbawe Municipalities. It was found that though the majority of residents are aware that they live in an earthquake prone area, they have put little to no measures in place to mitigate the seismic risk.