By Mohamed T Massaquoi
Flooding has left over 2,000 people displaced in the southern Sierra Leone district of Pujehun, a report by the District Disaster Assessment Team reveals. They include 750 women, 937 children and 622 men.
It notes that 378 households were affected, leaving millions of leones worth of property damaged.
The affected chiefdoms were Kapak, Barri, Mano Sakrim, Sorogbeima, YKK, Kpanga Krim and Kpanga Kabondeh.
Some of the affected people in Jendema in the Sorogbeima chiefdom called for immediate intervention by government and humanitarian organizations.
Councilor Francis Ngellay of Ward 325 of Sorogbeima chiefdom told Politico that some communities were surrounded by water, making it difficult to reach his people.
He said that constituted a “a serious potential threat” to lives.
Mohamed Kamara in Jendema, who identified himself as Immigration officer, said they lost office stationeries and computers to flooding.
The Jendema Immigration post has experienced recurrent flooding, by virtue of its low lying position.
Kamara said this year`s was the worst flooding they`d experienced.
Ibrahim Swaray, Communication Officer District Disaster Management Committee of Pujehun, said some humanitarian organizations like World Vision and Save the Children had made some immediate intervention in Barri, Mano Sakrim and Kpanga kabondeh chiefdoms in terms of donations in the form of cooking oil, foam mattresses, bathing soap, rice, bed sheets, buckets, cups, tarpaulin, among several other items.
Swaray called for more support. But he also encouraged communities that had experienced flooding and fire disaster in the district on several occasions to consider relocating in other to avoid future disaster.
He called on the central government to consider establishing a storage facility in the district for immediate response at district level before external intervention.
He warned against people and organizations seeking to take advantage of the situation to enrich themselves.
(C) Politico Online 29/09/15
