The drowning of a-14-year-old boy in the Kwasu-Abena River has thrown the Fiapre community in the Sunyani Municipality into a state of grief and mourning.
During a visit, the Ghana News Agency (GNA) learnt that the heartbreaking incident happened around 1500 hours on Wednesday February 04, when the deceased Matthew Mahama, together with his five friends went to swim in the river along the Fiapre-Catholic University stretch.
GNA learnt that the friends of the deceased attempted to rescue him but could not, and the incident had since spread like wildfire and had remained the major topical issue in the town.
Some officers of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) were informed, and they were able to retrieve the body from the river and handed it over to the police to be deposited at the Sunyani Teaching Hospital Mortuary for preservation and autopsy.
Mr Kofi Mahama, the father of the deceased, told the GNA after the body was retrieved that the incident had left the family in emotional pains, and advised children to obey their parents.
Nana Fosu Gyeaboa, the linguist of the Fiapre Traditional Authority, said the community would perform some rituals to pacify the river, and asked contractors to always engage the chiefs and queens whenever they intended to execute community projects.
Contractors working on a steel bridge and drainage system project on the river told the GNA that the situation was worrying because many of the boys often come over to swim in the river.
Mr Kofi Kankam, the Site Engineer of the Kofi Job Construction Limited, the project executors expressed condolence to the bereaved family and urged parents to monitor the movements of their children.
GNA
Edited by Christabel Addo
05 Feb. 2026
Caption: Picture shows body
