The Ghana Burns Survivors Foundation (GBSF) has called for the designation of June 3 as a National Fire Safety Awareness Day.

It said the day should be set aside to promote public education on fire prevention and disaster preparedness across the country.

Mrs Nana Yaa Opon-Marfo, Vice President of the Foundation, said while June 3 remained a solemn day of remembrance for victims of the 2015 twin disaster, it should also serve as a platform for sustained public awareness and action to prevent similar tragedies.

“We acknowledge that June 3 is a memorial day on which we remember the victims of the June 3 disaster. Beyond that, we want the remembrance to be transformed into action,” she said.

Mrs Opon-Marfo made the suggestion at the 11th anniversary memorial of the June 3 disaster organised by the OneGhana Movement in collaboration with the Coalition of June 3 Victims at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle, Accra, on Wednesday.

The memorial, held on the theme, “June 3 – Where Is Justice?”, brought together survivors, relatives of victims, civil society organisations, legal practitioners, and members of the public.

Mrs Opon-Marfo said the country must move beyond annual commemorations and use the occasion to strengthen public education on fire prevention, emergency preparedness, and disaster risk reduction.

“We acknowledge that June 3 is a memorial day on which we remember the victims of the June 3 disaster. And, way beyond that, we want the remembrance to be transformed into action,” she said.

“Not just a day you come, and then people forget about it and go away. But we want it to be a continuous thing so that it saves more lives,” she said.

She said institutionalising June 3 as a national awareness day would help keep the lessons of the disaster alive and encourage citizens to adopt safer practices.

The call comes as many survivors continue to live with the physical, emotional, and economic consequences of the tragedy 11 years later.

The June 3, 2015, disaster occurred when torrential rains triggered severe flooding across Accra, while a fire outbreak at the GOIL filling station near Kwame Nkrumah Circle led to a massive explosion after fuel mixed with floodwaters.

The tragedy claimed 159 lives and left more than 200 injured, making it one of the deadliest peacetime disasters in Ghana’s history.