Ghana’s largest state power generation company, Volta River Authority (VRA), will today, Thursday, May 11, 2023, conduct a dam spillage simulation exercise with some emergency service agencies in the West African nation.
VRA operates the 1,020 Megawatts Akosombo Hydroelectric Power and Kpong Dams situated in the eastern part of Ghana.
The exercise is expected to take place in the Asuogyaman, North Tongu and East Ada districts where the impact could be severe in an unlikely event of a dam spillage.
The exercise will comprise state security agencies, the National Ambulance Service, the Ghana National Fire Service, the Electricity Company of Ghana, the North Dakota National Guard and the US Embassy which are providing technical support and training.
The exercise forms part of the VRA’s Emergency Preparedness Plan (EPP) for the Akosombo and Kpong Dams to enhance the readiness of the state agencies to respond to emergencies arising from the release of significant amounts of water from the dams.
Speaking at an official event ahead of the planned exercise, the Deputy Chief Executive of the Authority, Edward Obeng-Kenzo indicated that though excess spillage would likely not happen anytime soon, it was necessary to anticipate the implications of spillage and take the appropriate measures in a likely event.
He disclosed that the spillage would likely affect more than 300,000 residents living around the dam and so it was important to protect the lives and livelihoods of these people.
“We are conducting a spillage simulation exercise of the Akosombo Dam up to the tune of 10,000 cubic meters and that is a lot of water, and it has implications for all the districts downstream, and we have nine districts downstream of the Akosombo Dam and these districts will be affected if we spill and so it is our responsibility to ensure that those communities are safe during a spillage.”
The Director-General of NADMO, Eric Nana Agyeman Prempeh said disasters could be prevented through early warning systems such as simulation exercises and the building of efficient response systems.
He, therefore, commended the VRA for adhering to the constitution by establishing emergency preparedness and response plans by Law 216 (Act 927) which obliges all agencies to simulate their plans jointly with NADMO.
“Continued exercises of this nature will improve the preparedness and resilience of our local communities.
“Gaps in disaster preparedness and response will also be identified and the capacity of response agencies, including NADMO, to manage and reduce disaster risk will be increased,” Nana Prempeh added.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com