Israel in contact with Sierra Leone to coordinate mudslide aid

15 August 2017, 2:18 pm

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Israel’s ambassador in west Africa, Paul Hirschson, is in contact with Sierra Leone authorities about beginning to transfer aid to the country after it was hit by devastating mudslides Monday night.

Authorities say more than 300 pepole were killed in and around the capital Freetown on Monday following heavy rains. Many victims were trapped under tons of mud as they slept.

Rescue workers carry the body of a victim from the site of a mudslide in Regent, east of Freetown, Sierra Leone, Monday, August 14, 2017. (AP/ Manika Kamara)

Initial Red Cross estimates have said as many as 3,000 people are left homeless and the figure is expected to rise.

Israel will begin purchasing food to distribute to survivors of the mudslide and will follow that up with medical aid in cooperation with local authorities, a Foreign Ministry statement says.

As there is no embassy in Sierra Leone, Israel is coordinating its aid via its embassy in Senegal.