ISTANBUL

Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama on Thursday appointed Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson and Lands and Natural Resources Minister Emmanuel Kofi Armah Buah as acting defense and environment ministers, respectively, following a military helicopter crash that killed two Cabinet members and six others.

The Presidency said in a statement that the appointments came after the “tragic demise” of Defense Minister Edward Omane Boamah and Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed. Both acting ministers will retain their current portfolios while taking on the new roles until further notice.

According to the Ghanaian military, a Z9 helicopter belonging to the Air Force took off Wednesday morning from the capital, Accra, en route to Obuasi, but went off radar mid-flight.

The country’s chief of staff later confirmed that the helicopter crashed in the Ashanti region in central Ghana, killing all eight people on board, including the two ministers.

In response, the government ordered national flags to be flown at half-mast and declared three days of national mourning. President Mahama also suspended all official activities for the rest of the week.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation. The United Nations, the African Union, and several regional leaders have expressed condolences.

Reportedly, President Mahama escaped the crash after opting out of a mining program launch where he was scheduled to appear. He sent the two ministers in his place and attended a pastors’ retreat in the Central Region instead.