Accra, March 29, GNA – Ghanaians on Wednesday witnessed the rare occurrence of a solar eclipse amidst excitement, singing of songs of praise to God and prayers to Allah.
As darkness began to fall after 0800 hours, when the moon started creeping between the earth and the sun, many people rushed out of their offices and homes with their special solar eclipse goggles to watch the event.
Slowly, the moon covered the sun until it did so completely at about 0910 hours in Accra.
The siren at the Post Office sounded and street lights came on. Drivers still on the road put on their headlights. Accra experienced a total eclipse for about three minutes. The last time Ghana experienced such an event was in 1947.
The National Planning Committee had sensitised the public about the eclipse and on how to ensure an incident-free event.
It also created awareness of the importance of protecting the eyes, as observing an eclipse with the naked eye could cause irreversible eyes damage.
Ghanaians from all walks of life equipped, with their eclipse goggles, X’ray films, welders’ glasses and other viewing devices poured out of their offices, homes, shops, classrooms onto the open to watch the total eclipse of the sun on Wednesday with fanfare, serenity and uncertainty of post-eclipse developments.
President John Agyekum Kufuor joined the millions of Ghanaians and foreigners, who observed the eclipse of the sun in Accra, describing it as “a great experience”.
As the path of the sun got completely blocked, leading to total darkness, which lasted for about three minutes, the obviously overjoyed President Kufuor was seen clapping.
President Kufuor said this was the second time he was witnessing the phenomenon. His first experience was in 1947 when he was nine years old and then a school child.
“Today, close to 60 years later, it is happening. It shows the beauty and wonders of nature;” he said.
He said unlike 1947 when the event was a mystery and people thought world was coming to an end, there was now a scientific explanation. Hundreds of tourists also came to Ghana to watch the event. Hotels were fully booked as the Ghana Tourist Board took full advantage to sell Ghana.
A tour of some parts of Accra by Ghana News Agency team minutes before, during and after the eclipse revealed that in spite of the educational campaign, most people were sceptical about the event as they expressed doubts and a wait and see attitude. Others were simply not bothered about the event.
The usually busy streets, especially during the rush hours of 0700 hours to 1000 hours, were virtually empty with few vehicular traffic while hawkers, who normally took advantage of the heavy traffic to sell their goods were absent on most of the major streets. The first communities to observe the event were the coastal settlements between Assini and Busua in the Western Region with Busua Beach Hotel being one of the best places in the neighbourhood for tourists to get more than three minutes of experiencing the twilight darkness.
Other areas were Agona, Sekondi-Takoradi, Ho, Cape-Coast, Koforidua and Asikuma.
The event was also experienced at Atobiase, Bogoso and Prestea, all in the Western Region and across the Volta Lake through Jasikan and Pampawie in the Volta Region.
The South Limits started at 4.5 degrees north in the Gulf of Guinea through Saltpond, Winneba, Accra, Tema, Ada, Woe, Keta and Dzodze. Along the coast, some high grounds offered some advantages – two spots on high hills at Anomabo, McCarthy Hill overlooking the Densu Plain, Shai Hills and Aburi Hills at Peduase.
Ms Beatrice Asamani, a journalist at the Agency, said it was an awesome and a lifetime experience which she would forever remember. “Indeed I want to keep my shades as a souvenir for posterity.” While some clapped with joy, others sang praises to the Lord and danced to their own music and songs. Others were also offering prayers requesting that there should be no accidents or catastrophe. Mr Kofi Ayou, 42, said: “I’m excited to be a witness to this event. Initially, I didn’t believe it will happen but as of now, I see that God is really wonderful. This is the time we should believe in God. God can do anything with the world at anytime.”
Some Moslems prayed and worshipped Allah saying that during the life of Prophet Mohamed he lost his son Ibrahim during an eclipse and called for a prayer of eclipse “rakat”, that is, to prostrate twice and recite a long verse from the Koran.
Imam Ali Umar Kuriba of the Islamic University College said the rakat was one of prayers set aside for happenings such as the eclipse. He said the event showed that Allah was really the greatest. School children were in school by 0730 and were given a final briefing before the event by their teachers, who organised them to watch the event in groups to share the special goggles with one another. The early hours of the day at Tema, the industrial hub of Ghana, lost its usual business as people hid in their rooms while others went to work and school earlier than usual.
The town was unusually quiet as few vehicles and people were seen on the roads.
Almost all human activities in the twin-city of Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis came to a standstill as thousands of curious people from all walks of life came out of their homes, offices and workplaces to observe the eclipse.
They were seen in groups along streets, beaches, parks in front of the various offices, schools and other open spaces viewing the rare celestial phenomenon.
Ghana was one of eight African countries to experience the solar eclipse. The others include Togo, Benin, Chad, Nigeria, Niger, Libya and Egypt.
At a pond in Accra where there were wetland birds, the birds flew off to perch in nearby trees.
A herd of cattle that was grazing nearby started moving toward their kraal as darkness fell.
At a drinking bar, people raised their glasses to celebrate the phenomenon.
At the High Street, staffs of the Central Bank, who had been allowed a break, were seen outside watching the event. The Chorkor fishermen did not go to sea on Wednesday because of the event.
Mr Kofi Ayou, 42, a fisherman said: “I’m excited to be a witness to this event. Initially, I didn’t believe it will happen but as of now, I see that God is really wonderful. This is the time we should believe in God. God can do anything with the world at anytime.” The atmosphere at the congregation Grounds of the University of Cape Coast (UCC) could be likened to that of the aftermath of a victorious performance of the national team soccer team Black Stars as people cheered and shouted when they witnessed the total eclipse of the sun.
The youth especially could not contain their joy at experiencing the phenomenon that occurred between 0908 hours and 0912 hours as the sun totally became obscured.
By 0730 the auditorium of the UCC was filled to capacity with both participants of an on-going international scientific conference on Solar Eclipse and Cultural Africa and students of the UCC and of second cycle institutions.
Flight schedules at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) were not affected by today’s solar eclipse because the event did not affect visibility.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency, (GNA) in Accra Mrs Lawrencia Agyepong, Acting Head of Public Relations, Ghana Civil Aviation Authority, said all the necessary precautions were taken to ensure that events at the Airport, especially aircraft movement, went on.
She said two flights by the Bellview and Chan Changi Airlines landed at the airport during the period of the eclipse without incident, adding that the event could in no way affect aircraft movement. The bats at the 37th Military Hospital in Accra apparently interpreted the solar eclipse on Wednesday to be dusk and were airborne between 0905 hours and 0910 hours. They, however, went back to roost as soon as the phenomenon was over.
Ms Cynthia Owusu, a resident of the Switchback Road Government Flats, which is opposite the 37th Military Hospital, told the Ghana News Agency that the bats normally flew out at dusk and returned to roost at dawn. She said they seldom flew during the day unless they were disturbed by the tooting of horns or sirens by passing vehicles. However, during the eclipse they were all airborne.
The poultry were not left out as cocks crew and returned to roost. The doves cooed.
Some residents were heard praising God for the wonderful spectacle. Two baboons were seen mating at Shai Hills in the Greater Accra Region during the total eclipse of the sun.
Mr Ferdinand Ayim, Chairman of the National Planning Committee on the Solar Eclipse, told the GNA in an interview by telephone minutes after the total eclipse that Shai Hills had a unique experience looking at the animals’ reactions and how humans behaved.
“A lot of local tourists were at Shai Hills to observe the eclipse. It has really been a boost to domestic tourism,” Mr Ayim said. He said Shai Hills experienced the eclipse for two hours 20 minutes with three minutes and two seconds of total eclipse.
“It was fantastic, it was as expected,” Mr Ayim, who is also the Special Assistant to the Minister of Tourism and Modernization of the Capital City, said.
Most of the courts in the Accra Metropolis were virtually empty during the eclipse of the sun.
The Ghana News Agency observed that at the Cocoa Affairs cluster of courts staff of the Judicial Service were at post at about 0830 hours and few of the attorneys and parties were also present. The compound and the rooms that are usually crowded were sparsely populated.
At the Accra Regional Tribunal at 0835 hours the situation was no different. The few attorneys and the court clerks were in the open watching the event with their special sunshade.
Speaking to the GNA at his chambers, Mr Frank Manu, a Presiding Judge of the Tribunal, stated that he and the panel members were ready to sit but most of the parties listed for hearing were not present. Mr Manu attributed this to the curiosity of people who wanted to watch the scene at their homes before coming to court since that might be the first in their life.
“It is my fervent prayer that the event would be a peaceful and successful one without confusion”.
At the Community Centre housing the Accra District Court, Police prosecutors, the staff and litigants were patiently waiting outside to catch a glimpse of the eclipse of the sun.
Mr Chris Akumey, a legal practitioner, who arrived at the Community Centre after the event said he was at the James Town Magistrate Court during the total eclipse and the court moved into the judge’s chambers to complete the case.
Mr Akumey said the scene was an exciting one and that it was indeed a “night to watch”.
The usual jam of traffic on the road from GNA along Tema Station through the High Street in Accra was absent.
Source: GhanaWeb
