Seven fishermen from Ghana are safe after almost two weeks at sea. Their fishing canoe, Second Chance, lost its engine and drifted east to the waters of Benin. They arrived at the fishing harbour in Tema, Ghana, on 22 October 2026.
The navies of Ghana, Togo and Benin worked together in the search. The Ghana Navy says all seven men are in good condition.
What happened
The canoe left the fishing harbour in Sekondi, in western Ghana, on 9 October. The crew planned to fish off Axim, also in western Ghana. Then the outboard motor failed. An outboard motor is an engine fixed to the back of a small boat.
Without the engine, wind and currents carried the canoe east. It drifted past Togo and into the waters of Benin. One of the fishermen told the Ghanaian TV channel TV3 that the canoe drifted more than 120 nautical miles from the coast.
The canoe's owner reported it missing to the police in Sekondi on 18 October. The police, the Ghana Navy, the Ghana Maritime Authority and fishing communities then started a search.
How they were found
Late on 21 October, the canoe was found about 3 nautical miles off Grand-Popo, a town on the coast of Benin. Reports differ on who reached it first. Ghana's fisheries ministry said the Togolese Navy patrol ship OTI found it. The Ghana Navy said the navy of Benin found the men, with help from the Togolese Navy and local fishermen in Benin.
Early on 22 October, the Togolese Navy handed the fishermen to the Ghana Navy ship Aflao. This happened at the sea border between Ghana and Togo. On board, the men got food and medical care. Aflao brought them to Tema the same day.
Ghana sent three navy ships to search. Aircraft of the Ghana Air Force also flew patrols. Regional maritime coordination centres helped. The French Embassy also gave support.
At a press conference in Tema, the leader of the crew said they prayed while they waited. He said they threw their fish back into the sea to make the canoe lighter. A fisherman told TV3 they had little food. He said they ate their catch and boiled seawater to drink.
In Tema, the Ghana Maritime Authority and the navy gave the men food, water and other basic items. Each man also got a life jacket. The port authority arranged medical checks. The men were then going home to Sekondi.
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In the post above, the Ghana Navy explains the rescue. It says the men went missing on 9 October while fishing south of Axim.
Problems the search showed
A Ghana Navy officer said the search was harder because of gaps in equipment. He named three problems: distress signals, communication systems and night vision. He said the navy needs more suitable ships, fast boats and long-range drones.
The head of Ghana's Fisheries Commission said it has received offers for small tracking devices for fishermen. These devices would show a boat's position and send an alarm to the authorities. The commission is checking which devices work well and are cheap enough.
Safety advice from Ghana's fisheries ministry
After the rescue, the ministry asked all fishermen to:
Check the weather before you go to sea.
Wear a life jacket.
Carry communication equipment that works.
Follow official safety warnings for the sea.
The ministry said: "Safety at sea is non-negotiable." It added that no fishing trip is worth a human life.
Cover photo: Wooden fishing canoes at anchor off Jamestown, Accra, Ghana, in August 2024. Illustrative photo, not the canoe in this story. Photo: Zak Raha/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped).
Sources: Graphic Online: Seven missing Ghanaian fishers arrive at Tema Naval Command after two-week ordeal (22 Oct 2026), MyJoyOnline: Seven missing Ghanaian fishermen rescued in joint naval operation off Benin (22 Oct 2026), Ghana News Agency: Seven missing Ghanaian fishers rescued in Benin waters (22 Oct 2026), Ghana Navy on X: rescue of seven fishermen of the canoe Second Chance (22 Oct 2026).
