FLOOD DISASTER AT JOHN COLLINS' BAPMAF ARCHIVES AND BOKOOR HOUSE,  ACCRA (GHANA)

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Professor John Collins,
Bokoor House & BAPMAF Highlife Music Institute 
Mile 8, Accra-Nsawam Rd.
South Ofankor, Accra.
P.O. BOX  LG 385, Legon,
Accra, GHANA

Date:  November  2011

Dear colleagues, supporters, fans, friends and well wishers,

As you know I have been operating the BAPMAF music archives since 1990 which was partly opened at my Bokoor House to the public in 1996 and more fully in 2007. However, devastation struck in the middle of the night of 26th Oct  2011 in the form of a flood. This occurred over many parts of Accra due to more and more people  building in or blocking water ways - so that rivers could no longer easily run into the sea. In our particular Taifa-Ofankor area this was compounded by the construction of a 3 mile section of the Kumasi highway  (from Achimota to Ofankor) without adequate gutters -  and also saw-millers who have been  dumping sawdust in rivers and wetlands.

We residents have complained to both the Ghana National Highways Authority and the Ga District Assembly (Council) over the years to no avail  Indeed the National Highways Authority told us residents that they had to build the road first before constructing the drains and that these 2 projects even fell under 2 different ministries. Furthermore, the saw-millers in the MUUS next to us, who are relative newcomer to the area,   did not allow space on their adjacent land to ours for a gutter. Infact   by dumping sawdust on the drainage river (Brenyah River) they re-directed part of this river though my house and garden – which broke my wall – they are even now claiming my garden is their ‘natural’ gutter.

The resulting flooding on the 26 Oct was unprecedented with almost 6 feet of water entering our land and 5 feet into the downstairs house and premises where some of the BAPMAF archival holdings are kept. I was in Mali at the time at an African popular music conference organized by the French Institute in conjunction with and the Malian Ministry of Culture. On returning to Ghana on the 29th I met my family perched upstairs in the BAPMAF exhibition space. They had escaped drowning by 2 minutes due to a timely call from a neighbor upstream who noticed the water build up  and got them to leave the house and flee upstairs.

Some of the losses are as follows

• Approx 10-20% 0f BAPMAF archival holding lost. Some we are still trying to dry and salvage.
• Loss of all electronic equipment including materials donated a few years ago to the BAPMAF archives by the German Goethe Institute for a digitization project.
• Loss of car, backup generator, various pumps  etc .
• Losses of masses of personal property of myself, my wife and son.

The house and area  is now too dangerous for human habitation (i.e. residential purposes ). All this due to the short sightedness of the government in not insisting the National Highways Authority build storm gutters alongside the highway they have been constructing for seven years (which incidentally also went under water on the 26th Oct).  And also the government’s   inability to stop individuals or saw-millers etc from building on or blocking natural water flows.

As this is not likely to be resolved in the near future I have no recourse but to remove myself and my family from the house  that  myself and my father before me have been living since the 1970’s – and  find rented property where we will not be drowned like rats,

So my immediate plans are as follows:

• Find temporary storage space for the BAPMAF archives so that at some point in the future these can become available again to myself and the general public
• Find new accommodation relatively near the university at Legon. If I can get a big enough place some the BAPMAF archives can be lodged there
• Build circa 200 feet of wall with gravel embankment to protect the Bokoor/BAPMAF proper from future flooding  
• Replace lost  equipment, computers, car, scanners, cameras, digital record player, stabilizers, chargers and 12 volt battery backup  system, slide projector  etc.
• At some point I will write to various individuals and organizations that donated general books,  videos and DVD’s and music materials to BAPMAF to send me , if possible, copies

To replace the broken wall and add an embankment  to it - or possibly even build  a wall and embankment closer to my house and the BAPMAF   premises . Even though I will lose my garden this will keep the building premises  intact -  so that in the future and the government demolishes obstacles to the water course, stops the saw-miller dumping saw dust in rivers and get the Highways Authority to build a storm drain alongside the Achimota-Ofankor Highway   - I could at least use the BAPMAF premises again.

If you have any suggestions as how I could proceed – including any agencies ,individuals , organizations who could assist financially or by replacing lost books and music this would be most appreciated. Letters of sympathy would also be most welcome

Yours sincerely,

John Collins (Prof)

Either send money via PayPal using this site http://bapmaf.blogspot.com/ (click 'Donate' at bottom of that page)
or Donate directly using PayPal. Learn more about this disaster
or send money to John Collins's bank account in London

NATWEST,  Tottenham Court Rd Branch
P.O.BOX 2EA
45  Tottenham Court Rd.
London WIT 2EA
Reward Reserve Account of E .J. Collins
Account number 26592258
Sort Code 56-00-31
Swift code NWBK GB 2L
IBAN number  GB16 NWBK  56003126 5922 58