A total of 250 people partook in this year’s Kwahu Easter paragliding festival, which ended on Monday at the Odweanoma Mountains at Atibie-Kwahu.
Twenty-five foreign pilots flew the people from a height of over 2,000 feet above sea level on the Odweanoma mountains to the landing sight at Nkawkaw at a cost of GH¢80 per flight.
The Head of Public Relations of the Ghana Tourist Board, Mr Ohene Ayeh, disclosed this to the media at the take-off sight on the Odweanoma Mountain on Monday.
Mr Ayeh said a 38–year old Ghana based South African pilot, Mr Vorster Helgaard had an abortive flight when he was swayed to the rocks of the mountains.
As he could not land at Nkawkaw on Friday, he had to spend the night on the rocks till the following day before being rescued.
He said Helgaard was rescued by a 26-year-old volunteer, Samuel Sefa, who climbed the mountain, tied a rope to a tree and assisted him to descend to a point.
Mr Ayeh said a re-enforcement rescue team from the 64 battalion of the Ghana Armed Forces, National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO), the Police and Fire Service then took the victim through a walk-way into an ambulance which transported him into a helicopter at Mpraeso and later sent to 37 Military Hospital where he was treated and discharged.
In his closing address, the Director of Operations of the Ghana Tourist Board, Mr Frank Kofigah, acknowledged the success of this
year’s paragliding festival and commended the pilots for their hard work.
He called on Kwahu businessmen, cooperate bodies and other stakeholders to support the government to develop the paragliding festival to generate adequate revenue for the country and also promote domestic tourism in the area.
Mr Kofigah urged the foreign pilots to train the local people to undertake the exercise since they could not always rely on them to undertake the flights.