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Mémorial de la catastrophe aérienne de Sarakawa

Kara, Togo

Mémorial de la catastrophe aérienne de Sarakawa

On 24 January 1974, a Togo Air Force Douglas C-47 Skytrain carrying several notable political figures crashed at an isolated location near the village of Sarakawa in northern Togo. Gnassingbé Eyadéma, the President of Togo, was on board the aircraft, which was flying from Lomé to his native village,

Pya. As the C-47 descended for landing, it crashed near Sarakawa. According to one account, Eyadéma survived, but his French pilot and three other passengers died. Another account of the crash was given by survivor Pastor François Roux, who mentioned two pilots and more than seven passengers, including Yaya Malou and Alidou Djafalo, the ministers for education and health. Both ministers survived the crash. According to Roux, four people died instantly (including the two pilots), while three more would succumb to their injuries afterwards, bringing the total number of fatalities to seven. Eyadéma, who reportedly emerged from the crash with only minor injuries and refused medical treatment, claimed the aircraft had been sabotaged after he had reneged on an agreement with a French company over the use of a phosphate mine. Eyadéma attributed his survival to mystical powers and declared 24...

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