At least 312 dead after Sierra Leone mudslide
Source: The Guardian
Hundreds of people are thought to have been killed in a mudslide on the outskirts of Sierra Leones capital, Freetown.
A hillside in Regent, a mountainous town 15 miles east of Freetown, collapsed in the early hours of Monday morning after heavy rains, leaving hundreds of people trapped. Morgues in the capital have been overwhelmed with bodies, while relatives have been left to dig through the mud in search of their loved ones remains.
Death tolls are unconfirmed, though the International Federation of Red Cross reports that 312 have been killed, and more than 1,000 affected. Disaster officials in Sierra Leone have estimated 2,000 people have been left homeless.
It is likely that hundreds are lying dead underneath the rubble, Victor Foh, the countrys vice president, told Reuters at the scene of the mudslide in Regent, adding that a number of buildings had been erected illegally in the area.
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/aug/14/deaths-sierra-leone-mudslide-regent
uppityperson
(115,678 posts)WinkyDink
(51,311 posts)Stuart G
(38,439 posts)Eugene
(61,938 posts)Source: The Guardian
Hundreds feared dead, thousands still missing and many more left homeless after mud engulfs houses near the capital, Freetown
Rebecca Ratcliffe and Cooper Inveen in Freetown
Wednesday 16 August 2017 00.26 BST
Sierra Leones president has appealed for urgent help to support the thousands of people affected by a devastating mudslide on the outskirts of the countrys capital.
A national emergency has been declared after the city suffered heavy flooding, thought to be the worst in Africa over the past two decades. Freetowns mayor, Sam Gibson, said 270 corpses had been recovered and were being prepared for burial, while the chief coroner told Reuters that nearly 400 bodies had been found. Estimates of the numbers missing vary: the Red Cross reported that 600 people have not been traced, while the countrys interior minister has said thousands are unaccounted for.
At least a hundred houses were hit when a hillside in Regent, a mountainous town 15 miles east of Freetown, collapsed in the early hours of Monday morning.
Search and rescue efforts have continued throughout Tuesday, hampered by the countrys dangerous terrain and the sheer scale of the tragedy. The mudslide, which trapped residents while they were sleeping, is thought to have travelled for two miles.
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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2017/aug/15/sierra-leone-mudslide-flooding-freetown-national-emergency
Judi Lynn
(160,598 posts)Behind the Aegis
(53,975 posts)I think a mudslide must be terrifying.
Judi Lynn
(160,598 posts)Clarence Roy-macaulay, Associated Press
Updated 10:50 am, Wednesday, August 16, 2017
FREETOWN, Sierra Leone (AP) Sierra Leone's government urged family members to come to the capital's overwhelmed mortuary Wednesday to identify their loved ones' remains as the West African nation prepared to bury hundreds of mudslide and flood victims.
Crews continued the grim work of extracting bodies from tons of debris after fierce storms left impoverished, low-lying areas of Freetown buried in mud from the city's hilltops. Volunteers have been digging with pick axes and, at times, only their hands.
More than 300 people are confirmed dead a third of them children and Red Cross officials estimate some 600 others remain missing more than 48 hours after the storm hit. Thousands of people have lost their homes.
President Ernest Bai Koroma's office asked relatives to come to the city's morgue, saying that all unidentified corpses will be given a "dignified burial" in the coming days. He had called for seven days of mourning starting on Wednesday.
More:
http://www.chron.com/news/world/article/Sierra-Leone-prepares-for-mass-funerals-after-11822713.php