Unprofessional handling of car crash victims by volunteer rescuers has been identified as a major factor leading to the death of many of these victims.

Mr James Baba Asalibanyina, the Ashanti Regional Fire Maintenance Officer, in charge of Road Traffic Collision (RTC), said the estimation is that 75 per cent of them are unable to survive because of poor and inexpert treatment.

He therefore appealed to people to call in the emergency services whenever there was an accident.

He was speaking at an annual fire week celebration held by the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) at Chirapatre in Kumasi.

In attendance were members of the public and students from some Senior High Schools (SHS) including Adventist Day, Technology and Kumasi High schools.

The week has been set aside to educate the people on fire safety to reduce the incidence of domestic, industrial and wild fires.

Mr Asalibanyina spoke of instances where some crash victims had suffered permanent spine damage and confined to wheelchairs all because they could not receive the right professional care. 

He gave the assurance that the GNFS was well-equipped to efficiently deal with emergencies.

Mr D.E. Ackah of the Safety Division counselled against overloading of switches with electrical gadgets.