The Clinical Auditor for the Southern Zone of the National Ambulance Service, Martin Ewuah Amoah, has disclosed that 127 out of the Service’s 318 ambulances are currently not operational.

Speaking in an interview with Bernard Avle on Channel One TV’s The Point of View on Monday, February 23, 2026, Mr Amoah said 191 ambulances are in commission, while 127 are out of commission.

“We have 318 stations, but, currently, we have 191 in commission [functional] and 127 out of commission [not working] for obvious reasons because an ambulance has a life span of 5-years. So, after five years, there should be some steps to replace them. Otherwise, like any vehicle, high maintenance issues will crop up if we’re not able to get a new fleet to replace old ones,” he explained.

His comments come in the wake of the death of 29-year-old Charles Amissah, who was involved in a hit-and-run accident at the Circle Overpass in Accra on February 6, 2026.

Mr Amissah, an engineer with Promasidor Ghana Limited, producers of Cowbell milk and other food products, was reportedly stabilised by Emergency Medical Technicians from the National Ambulance Service.

However, he was allegedly turned away by three major hospitals in Accra — Ridge Hospital, Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, and the Police Hospital — over a period of nearly three hours due to the unavailability of bed space. He later died.