During the presentation, the Training Officer, SLRCS Sylvester Renner explained to the beneficiaries that the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, Office of National Security, Freetown City Council and SLRCS did an assessment to mitigate such problems in the future.

“We distribute the hygiene and sanitation kits because of what happened last year during the August 14 mudslide and flooding that affected seven communities,” Renner said.

He added that they agreed after the assessment to initiate a project for the people in these communities to be trained in First Aid; vulnerability capacity assessment and early warning system.

“The training was successful and part of the implementation was the slug project at the Kingtom Bomeh dumpsite,” Renner said, adding that they noted that the reconstruction of the slug site should have a drying floor for waste and faeces to be converted into manure for agriculture purposes.

After the training, according to Mr. Renner, they identified key hygiene and sanitation concerns in the community, disclosing that they decided to provide trash bins for them to deposit their garbage.

“We also gave them rain gears, protective goggles, hand gloves, wheel barrows, shovels, pick axes, caps, rakes, brooms among other items,” Renner said, adding that they did not want them to make excuse of not having equipment to clean their communities.

In Dworzak community, section Chief Samuel Pessima commended SLRCS for the laudable venture. He added that he will be mobilizing his youth to clean the community in order to avoid disaster, and disclosed that the reason why they were experiencing floods was because of drainage blockage.

“SLRCS told us that, they will give us things to clean our community so that we would no longer suffer from flooding,” Pessima said.