Scores of passengers were left stranded on Thursday morning after a commuter train operating on the Tema–Accra rail line derailed following a collision with stray cattle near Avenor.
The incident occurred at about 7:30 a.m. on May 21, 2026, during peak rush hour, bringing rail transport along the busy coastal corridor to a halt and forcing passengers to evacuate the train for safety.
According to eyewitness reports and railway officials, the train had just departed the Avenor station and was heading towards Odaw when the driver encountered two cows on the tracks. Despite attempts to apply emergency brakes, the locomotive struck the animals at high speed, killing them instantly.
The impact caused a violent jolt that led to the front carriages derailing off the tracks and coming to a stop on the ballast, disrupting all services on the Accra–Tema line.
Passengers, many of them traders and workers heading to the central business district, were left stranded in the morning heat with no immediate alternative transport available.
The accident has renewed concerns over safety on Ghana’s urban rail network, particularly the Avenor stretch, which has long been associated with encroachment, informal settlements, and stray livestock along railway reserves.
Officials from the Ghana Railway Development Authority and the Ghana Railway Company Limited were deployed to the scene to assess damage and begin recovery operations.
Rail services on the line have been suspended pending full inspection and clearance of the tracks, while authorities have launched investigations into the incident and vowed to enforce stricter measures to prevent animals from straying onto active rail corridors.