Ghana's defence and environment ministers are among eight killed when a military helicopter crashed, the government has said.

The West African country's military said the helicopter took off in the morning from the capital Accra and was heading northwest into the interior to the town of Obuasi when it went off the radar.

Footage of the crash site shows debris on fire in a forest as people circle around to help.

The cause of the crash was not immediately known. The military said an investigation was under way.

Defence minister Edward Omane Boamah and environment minister Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed were killed, along with the vice-chair of the National Democratic Congress ruling party, a top national security adviser and the helicopter's three crew members.

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