At least 312 people have died and more than 2,000 are homeless after a series of floods and mudslides hit the outskirts of Sierra Leone's capital, Freetown.

President Ernest Bai Koroma declared a national emergency as the military, police and Red Cross were deployed in an effort to search for survivors.

A Red Cross spokesperson said the number of dead was likely to rise further as more bodies are recovered.

Storms swept through the capital of the West African country on Monday, leaving streets under water and causing landslips in rural areas.

Image: At least 312 people have died in the flooding. Pic: Society 4 Climate Change Communications Sierra Leone volunteers

TV pictures showed people using their hands to dig through mud to find their loved ones.


One of the worst mudslides occurred in the mountain town of Regent where a hill partially collapsed, according to local media.

Social media images showed bodies lying in the street being collected by emergency personnel as the rain continued to fall.

Image: Military personnel, police and the Red Cross have all been deployed

Save the Children said it was likely that dozens of children will be among the casualties and that whole families were missing.

"We are still in the rainy season and must be prepared to respond in the event of further emergencies to come," the charity's country director Sasha Ekanayake said.

The number of corpses brought in has overwhelmed Freetown's Connaught Hospital mortuary, according to staff member Mohammed Sinneh.

"I counted over 300 bodies and more are coming," he said.

The country's vice president, Victor Moh, has blamed the high number of deaths partly on illegal construction.

He said: "It is likely that hundreds are lying dead underneath the rubble.

"The disaster is so serious that I myself feel broken. We're trying to cordon (off) the area (and) evacuate the people."

Image: Morgues in the city were reportedly overwhelmed by the number of dead. Pic: Society 4 Climate Change Communications Sierra Leone volunteers

Deputy information minister Cornelius Deveaux said the government was still trying to compile accurate casualty figures.

The original estimate was that 21 people had died.

Many of Sierra Leone's poorest areas are close to sea level, making them vulnerable to flooding in the rainy season.

One resident, Fatmata Sesay, described being woken by rain beating on the mud house her family lives in, and escaping by climbing on to the roof.

"We have lost everything and we do not have a place to sleep," she said.

Image: Pic: Society 4 Climate Change Communications Sierra Leone volunteers

In January, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon announced a training programme for British forces in Sierra Leone to help "ensure stability in the region", and up to 700 UK soldiers were deployed in the response to the Ebola virus in 2014.

Heavy rains seasonally affect Sierra Leone and 10 people were killed by flooding in Freetown in 2015.

About 60% of the country's population live below the national poverty line, and it is ranked 179th out of 188 countries on the United Nations Development Programme's Human Development Index.