Coastal communities including Accra face ‘sudden and intense downpours’ as flood-prone areas placed on high alert

ACCRA – Southern Ghana has just days to prepare before the rainy season intensifies dramatically, the Ghana Meteorological Agency (GMet) has warned, with coastal communities including Accra expected to record some of the heaviest rainfall in the country starting late May.

The warning follows last Sunday’s heavy rains, which left parts of Sakumono, Klagon, Pokuase, and Adjiriganor flooded – a development the agency said could signal what lies ahead during the peak season between June and early July.

“The rainy season in southern Ghana is expected to intensify towards the end of May,” Principal Meteorologist Nana Kofi Opoku told The Ghanaian Times. He explained that coastal communities, including Accra and surrounding areas, were likely to record some of the heaviest rainfall in the country.

Uneven Distribution, Intense Downpours

Although the overall seasonal outlook points to near-normal to below-normal rainfall across most parts of the country, Opoku noted that the distribution could be uneven, leading to sudden and intense downpours in some areas.

Extreme weather events, including thunderstorms, flash floods, and strong winds, remain a major concern nationwide, he added.

In northern Ghana, rainfall is expected to remain generally low to moderate, although parts of the Upper East Region could experience above-average rainfall.

High-Risk Communities Named

Opoku identified flood-prone communities within the Volta Basin and low-lying urban centers as particularly vulnerable. In the Greater Accra Region, areas such as Kaneshie, Alajo, Adenta, Weija, Tema, and Ashaiman were singled out as high-risk zones due to poor drainage systems and rapid urbanization.

He urged residents in such communities to remain vigilant and take precautionary measures ahead of the peak rainfall period.

Improved Early Warning Systems

Opoku added that the agency had strengthened its early warning systems through satellite monitoring, real-time weather tracking, and improved forecasting tools to enhance preparedness. GMet is working closely with the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO), local authorities, and other agencies to respond promptly to weather-related threats.

“Weather updates and warnings will continue to be shared through radio, television, SMS, social media and community networks to keep the public informed,” he stressed.

Simple Actions to Save Lives

The meteorologist urged residents to clear drains, avoid building on waterways, and pay close attention to official weather alerts to help prevent disasters during the rainy season.

With just days before the anticipated intensification, the window for preventative action is rapidly closing. For thousands of residents in high-risk zones across Greater Accra, Central, Ashanti, and Eastern regions, preparation could mean the difference between safety and disaster.

A routine at-home DNA test revealed a biological bombshell: Michelle and Lavinia Osbourne are half-sisters, not full twins. The rare phenomenon known as heteropaternal superfecundation has only been documented about 20 times worldwide.

For 46 years, Lavinia Osbourne believed she and her twin sister Michelle shared something unbreakable, a bond forged in the same womb, born minutes apart, and raised as each other’s only constant in a childhood marked by abandonment and instability.

“She was the one thing that belonged to me, the one thing that I was certain about, the one thing that I was sure of,” Lavinia told the BBC. “And then she wasn’t.”

In September 2022, Lavinia clicked on an email containing the results of an at-home DNA test. She was filled with a sense of dread.

“Maybe subconsciously I knew,” she says.

The results revealed something astonishing: she and Michelle, non-identical twins born in Nottingham, England, in 1976, do not share the same father. They are half-sisters who happened to share a womb, a birth date, and a mother.

They exist because of an incredibly rare biological process called heteropaternal superfecundation. For it to happen, a woman must release more than one egg during the same cycle, both eggs must be fertilized by sperm from different men within a short window of time, and both embryos must survive the pregnancy.

Scientists have identified only about 20 such cases worldwide. Lavinia and Michelle are believed to be the only documented set of twins with different fathers in the United Kingdom.

A Childhood Without Roots

The twins’ mother was just 19 years old and vulnerable when she gave birth to them. She had suffered abuse at the hands of her stepfather and had spent much of her own childhood bouncing between foster care and children’s homes.

Whenever the girls asked who their father was, their mother always gave the same name: James. But James was never in their lives.

When the twins were five years old, their mother left for university in London — and left her daughters behind in Nottingham with her best friend’s mother, a stern woman they called “grandma.” The only stability the girls had was each other.

“Grandma was strict, not very emotional, not very cuddly. The one constant I had was Michelle,” Lavinia says.

Michelle felt the same: “It was her and I against the world.”

By their mid-teens, James reentered their lives. Lavinia tracked him down and felt she recognized herself in him. But Michelle never felt sure. Deep down, she had niggling doubts. By late 2021, their mother had developed early-onset dementia and could no longer answer their questions.

“I just thought, you don’t even look anything like me,” Michelle says. “So I bought myself a kit.”

The Bombshell Arrives

Michelle’s DNA results arrived on February 14, 2022 — the same day their mother died. James’s last name did not appear in Michelle’s paternal lineage. He wasn’t her father.

After weeks of investigation, Michelle discovered that her biological father was a man named Alex, the brother of a woman who had been friends with their mother. Relatives warned Michelle that Alex had struggled with alcoholism and drug addiction for years and was living on the streets.

But Lavinia still believed James was her father — until she decided to take her own test.

When she opened her results, she was devastated. James wasn’t her father either. And neither was Alex. Her twin sister was her half-sister.

“I was angry with Michelle for having me go through this, because I just didn’t want this reality,” Lavinia says.

Finding Arthur

Michelle was determined to find answers for her sister. Combing through Lavinia’s DNA results, she identified a man named Arthur as Lavinia’s biological father. The twins drove to meet him at his home in West London.

“He was a little bit nervous, but he’s got an exuberant character, like me,” Lavinia says. At the end of their meeting, she kissed Arthur on the cheek. “I just felt compelled, drawn to do it.”

The twins later asked Arthur what he knew about how they came to be conceived. His answer painted a picture of a young woman in crisis.

He said, “Your mother knocked on my door. She was very upset. She was crying,” Michelle recalls. “She went to him because she wasn’t safe, and she was in shock.”

Their mother is no longer alive to tell her side of the story. But the twins now understand that she was a traumatized young woman who turned to different men for comfort or safety within a very short window of time — resulting in the rare biological event that produced them.

Michelle was eventually able to meet her own biological father, Alex. He was clearly under the influence of drugs. The resemblance was undeniable — but so was the distance.

“He’s mine, I’m his, but I didn’t feel like he’s someone I need to take forward in my future with me,” Michelle says. “I just needed to know.”

Two Miracles, One Bond

The twins will never know whether their mother suspected they had different fathers. “It must have driven her crazy,” Lavinia says. “She must have seen something, felt something.”

“I think in the back of Mummy’s head, she knew, but she was in great denial,” Michelle adds.

Today, Lavinia and Arthur are close, seeing each other several times a month — often alongside Michelle, whom Arthur has told she can also call him Dad.

For Lavinia, the devastating revelation has led to an unexpected gift. “I feel like I’ve found a place to belong, and that place is with my dad,” she says.

For Michelle, the truth brought answers but not a new relationship. She has made peace with that.

“We’re miracles,” Lavinia says. “We’re always going to have a closeness that can’t be broken.”

“She’s my twin sister,” Michelle nods. “Nothing takes away from that.”

At least 14 people have been killed in a train collision in western Indonesia, with another 84 injured, according to the country’s train operator.

The collision between a commuter train and long-distance service happened late on Monday in Bekasi, just east of Jakarta, the country’s capital and the world’s most populous city.

Mohammad Syafii, the head of the country’s search and rescue agency, said during a news conference that it was a delicate process to rescue survivors from the mangled carriages.

“There are some victims who are alive to this minute, and we’re hoping to extricate them, but they’re still pinned by the train material,” he said.

Bobby Rasyidin, Chief Executive of state railway firm PT KAI, said the commuter train first collided with a taxi on the tracks and was then hit by the long-distance train, adding that a women-only carriage bore the brunt of the crash.

One passenger, Heriyati, said she initially intended to use the women’s-only carriage but opted for the one behind it.

She told Reuters she had been on a call with her husband, asking him to pick her up from the station when the collision occurred.

“I haven’t even finished with the call, and the trains collided,” she said.

Taxi operator Green SM Indonesia confirmed on social media the taxi involved was a part of its fleet and had sent information to authorities to assist in their investigation.

Indonesian president Prabowo Subianto said he had agreed to build a flyover near the tracks to help ease heavy traffic congestion.

He added that large parts of the country’s train network are not well-maintained.

Land transport accidents are common in Indonesia, with another train collision in West Java province in 2024 killing four people and leaving dozens more injured.