Fire Cadets in Ghana

On 4th August, Audlem Online reported on the progress of the Cheshire Fire Cadets on their Ghana School Building Challenge. Sixteen Cheshire Fire Cadets and 6 staff raised over £43,000 between them over the last 12 months through fundraising and donations. They have travelled to Ghana to help build a school in the village of Adeklu in the Volta region of Ghana.

Cadet leader Isobel Sykes and Cadets Naomi Brown and Matthew Turner
from Audlem Cadet Unit are among the cadets and helpers in Ghana. Today, we update their story:

To Ho Fire Station, GhanaOn Monday 3rd August, we left the Volta region and Ho for the start of our cultural week and headed towards the coast to the resort of Ada.

Before leaving Ho, we paid a visit to Ho fire station where we were made very welcome and given a tour. The cadets were amazed at the lack of equipment, just as the fire fighters were that Issie had been a fire fighter and could drive a fire engine.

We were all amazed that the night shift sleep in the tower and that during this last quarter they have had only ten fire calls but attended over 200 rtc. (road traffic collisions)

After Ho we headed out to the village where we had during 2007 raised funds to give a bore hole. The cadets were taken to the area that was used to carry water before our intervention. Both staff and cadets were shocked that this was the supply that all the community washed, cooked and drank from. This stagnant water is the cause of a disease called Guinea Worm which ultimately can result in amputation of limbs.

On our journey south we stopped at a fishing village to see a different way of life; the sand was hot, the Atlantic was rough, but the setting was Paradise. We left the village with the mandatory football which was received with enthusiasm.

Lunch was an unusual setting – it was in a hospital and one cadet who had not been well on the journey woke up just as we went by the sign and insisted he was not that ill.

Joe's Rotary colleague is the administrator for the hospital in Sogakope and also has developed a project for young people that tackles sexual health issues through youth engagement in a more relaxed setting. There is also a well equipped library on site.

We finally arrived at the hotel in Ada and settled down for a relaxing night.

Trip down the Volta RiverOn Tuesday morning (4th August) after a good breakfast, the party took some gifts to a local fishing village and distributed school clothes, footballs and sports kit to the village school. The school was very basic with straw walls and roof, sand floor and simple desks.

All the toys, pens, rulers etc were quickly siezed on and passed around the children. The Cadets were quite taken aback at the level of need in the village and amazed at how cheerfull the children were.

The next event was an open boat trip down the Volta river to the Gulf of Guinea and the open ocean. The beautifull settings of the fishing villages set amongst the palm trees on sandy beaches were a stark contrast to the hard working lives of their communities.The Volta delta is quite beautiful.

The afternoon was spent by the hotel pool allowing some time for relaxation, and discussions among the party about the amazing things that the group have experienced. Some Cadets have admitted that they have been overwhelmed at times and some of the experiences have not yet sunk in. The Cadets confessed they are missing the village and the friends they made there.

Tomorrow we head west to the Cape coast via Accra

This article is from our news archive. As a result pictures or videos originally associated with it may have been removed and some of the content may no longer be accurate or relevant.