Earth tremors in Accra: Fear grips residents of Bortianor Hills

The triple tremors were felt in the early hours on Sunday, driving most residents out of their homes into open spaces for safety.
“We are out of our house because we don’t know what to expect next. That was three tremors in about 10 minutes. The last one was severe, not something we have really seen here before,” Wilhelm Ghansah, a resident of the Mile 11 area of the hill, said.
“It was a little scary because the last earthquake [tremor] was very strong. My house was shaking and I was scared. The first and second one was not serious but the last one [sic] shake my bed and the things in the room,” a lady resident who spoke on grounds of anonymity indicated.
The tremors
The first and second tremors, which lasted about two seconds each, were recorded around 7:38 and 7:40 GMT respectively.
However, the third, which was recorded at 7:51 GMT, lasted for about four seconds, making it one of the severe tremors to hit the area in recent times.
Attempts by The Finder to reach authorities to ascertain the magnitude of the tremors proved futile.
Ticking bomb for cliff dwellers?
The most disturbing side of the issue is the safety of residents, especially those living in homes perched on cliffs that were created by stone quarries operating in the area opposite the Weija Reservoir, about 500 metres to the Accra-Kasoa Tollbooth.
Residents here have for some time now lived with the fear of a possible landslide.
Large portions of the hills they have their homes built on have been weaned for stones, leaving the cliff created exposed to further erosions whenever there is a downpour.
“We really don’t know what to expect. This is becoming very scary by the day. Our house has been developing cracks because of these usual tremors and the people who break the stones have not also helped the situation,” Moses Arhin, a resident of the Broadcasting area, lamented.
Indeed, it is very interesting how the Ga South Municipal Assembly (GASMA) would give building permits to private developers to put up houses on the hill and at the same time give permits to companies and individuals to turn the foot of the hill into quarries.
The Finder could not speak to authorities at GASMA for their side of the issue as it was a Sunday (non-working day) at the time of filing this story.
New Bortianor
The Bortianor suburb, located on a hilly terrain at the western end of the Greater Accra Region, is prone to such tremors.
In fact, every year, the area experiences at least one mild tremor, which lasts about two seconds, according to residents.
But the residents are worried because they have not had the tremors in series like it happened yesterday, and the last of the three tremors that hit the area was quite severe, more than they usually experience.
It was reported that the aftershock of the tremor was felt in other parts of Accra.