The 1939 Earthquake Was Not a Joke — 99-Year-Old Survivor Recalls the Day Accra Trembled

Charles Baako Kweku Nyatsui Moses, a 99-year-old spiritual leader and founding member of The Holy Church of God has shared a vivid account of surviving one of Accra’s most frightening natural disasters - the 1939 earthquake.

Mr Moses, who was a young boy at the time, said the tremor was a terrifying experience that left many residents confused and afraid.

“The earthquake was not a joke at all,” he said in an interview with broadcaster Kafui Dey.

“You are standing on the ground, the ground is shaking, your body is shaking.”

The earthquake, which struck Accra on June 22, 1939, remains one of the strongest recorded earthquakes in Ghana’s history. Historical accounts indicate that the earthquake caused widespread damage to buildings, killed several people and left many others injured.

Mr Moses said the shaking did not happen only once, explaining that residents experienced repeated tremors.

“It happened more than once. There was an occasion when I was at home and one, too… I forgot,” he recalled.

He said the fear forced some residents to abandon their homes and seek safety in open spaces.

“Some were running away from their homes,” he said.

According to him, his father and the Jamestown chief at the time, advised residents to move to a safer location.

“My father and the Jamestown chief, told all those who were staying there to come to the park for protection. So we all went and stayed there.”

Mr Moses said although some buildings developed cracks after the earthquake, he did not witness major destruction in some parts of Jamestown.

“Naturally, there were cracks in the buildings, but Jamestown, I didn’t see much crack there,” he said.

Nearly nine decades later, Mr Moses remains one of the few living witnesses who can recount the impact of the historic disaster and how Accra residents responded during the crisis.