At least 80 dead in Sierra Leone fuel depot explosion

Published on : 11/06/2021 – 11:47Modified : 11/06/2021 – 11:50

Sierra Leone mourns its dead after the explosion of a fuel depot on Friday (November 5th) in the industrial area of ​​Freetown. An explosion in which at least 80 people lost their lives.

“We recovered 80 bodies from the accident site last night with our ambulances,” a member of the Red Cross told AFP, adding that relief operations continued on Saturday morning.

Many serious injuries

A nurse at the hospital where the victims were taken confirmed the death toll to AFP, also specifying that he had received many women, men and children with “serious injuries”.

According to eyewitnesses, the explosion was caused by a vehicle that caught fire at a gas station after a traffic accident. The fire then spread throughout the neighborhood.

Several charred bodies were found in cars and on adjacent streets.

Sierra Leonean Vice President Mohamed Juledh Jalloh visited the site on Saturday morning, accompanied by a delegation.

With AFP