The actual number of people that were killed by the mudslide at Regent, Sugar-Loaf, Motormeh, Kanigo, Kamayama, Dworzak, New England, Mountain Cut, George Brook, Big Wharf and Wellington communities in the east and west of Freetown could not be ascertained up to press time, due to the inflow of corpses by the emergency respond team comprised the country’s military personnel, the police, the Office of National Security and the Ministry of Health and Sanitation officials to the Connaught hospital mortuary on Lift Foot Boston street in Freetown.
Our investigations further revealed that, many corpses were still buried under the rubble and most of the dead bodies conveyed to the Connaught hospital mortuary for safe custody were badly disfigured and the whole disaster resulting into the death of hundreds of innocent civilians is unprecedented.
The assistant coroner at the Connaught hospital mortuary, Sinneh Kamara told AYV that the disaster was immensurable, unprecedented and nothing good to write home about.
He added that he could not ascertain the number of people killed by the torrential rains as the respond team continued to convey dead bodies to the Connaught hospital mortuary from different disaster zones within the country’s capital Freetown.
Sinneh intimated that his entity was working round the clock to receiving dead bodies brought in by the respond team and various government officials, civil society and human rights advocates converged at the Connaught hospital mortuary to have a personal glimpse of the level of damaged caused by the August 14 2017 torrential rains.
Houses, properties and lives have been destroyed at the Kamayama, Pentagon communities during the flooding and mudslide that occurred yesterday as a result of heavy down pour of torrential rain.
Relatives and friends at the two mentioned communities were probing for their respective relatives and friends as most of the houses in that part of the country were completely destroyed.
An eye witness at the Kamayama community, Sheku Kargbo said he woke up at around 3am on Monday as a result of the torrential rain.
Sheku further explained that he was informing his fellow community residents together with Hill Station residents about the severity of the rain; however he said that many people neglected his goodwill message and continued with their sleep. He mentioned he was able to rescue two children during his informing process.
The military personnel were vigilant in the aforementioned communities, helping survivors and collecting the dead, transporting them to hospitals and to safe places.
A resident who’s house and properties were destroyed, John Conteh said when he woke up the water had taken his whole compound. He added “all what I was seeing was body part and the length of the drainage had expanded, destroying houses I was able to escape with my life but I lost everything in the water.”
In September 2015, Torrential rains in Sierra Leone have caused heavy flooding and extensive damage to homes and property in the capital, Freetown. Telephone communication has been disrupted.
At the moment, the government encouraged the general public to stay calm and report everything related to the flooding and landslide incidents to the following emergency response number-119 or 117, in all network.
