UK Donates £5 million to Sierra Leone
The United Kingdom has announced that they have donated £5 million in aid to Sierra Leone, after the West African country was devastated by severe floods and mudslides last week.
The floods and subsequent mudslides were triggered by torrential rain, and on Tuesday last week, the Sierra Leone government announced that at least 312 people have been killed.
According to officials in the country, that number has risen significantly.
The United Nations confirmed that 409 bodies have been pulled from debris thus far, and that the number of fatalities is expected to rise as rescue missions continue. They also confirmed that over 600 people have been reported missing.
Sierra Leone’s capital of Freetown was hit the hardest by the mudslides, with the government saying that over 3000 people in the capital have lost their homes.
The United Kingdom’s International Development Secretary, Priti Patel, called on other countries to help Sierra Leone during this time..
“This tragedy comes shortly after the Ebola crisis which Sierra Leone has worked so hard to recover from…Britain was at the forefront in tackling that deadly disease and we remain shoulder to shoulder with Sierra Leone today after these devastating events…Our new support will provide basic life-saving supplies like food, water, shelter and clothing to people who have lost everything. The international community must follow our lead and step up to the plate,” Patel said.
The Sierra Leone government has issued warnings of further mudslides and floods this week, as more rain is expected to hit the country.
Image credit: Floods & mudslides in Sierra Leone (2017) [online image] sourced on 21 August 2017 at https://www.reuters.com/article/us-leone-mudslide-idUSKCN1AU15Q
