Sierra Leone facing crisis as mudslide death toll tops 400

The death toll from devastating floods in Sierra Leone has passed 400 while an estimated 600 others remain missing, the Red Cross says.

Men wait beside empty graves for the coffins of mudslide victims on August 17, 2017 at Waterloo cemetery near Freetown, Sierra Leone. Source: Anadolu

The death toll from devastating floods in Sierra Leone has passed 400, a senior Red Cross official said Friday.

"Today we are counting more than 400 people dead," the president of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent societies, Elhadj As Sy, told reporters in Geneva.

An unofficial morgue toll had previously put the toll at around 400 dead, but the figure had not been officially confirmed.

Sy said the government of the West African country was facing a crisis "way beyond (its) capacity" and appealed to the international community to significantly ramp up its support.

The displaced are still sleeping outside "because there are not enough shelters for everybody," he said.

Responding to the crisis that began on Monday will require "a combination of efforts from all people," he added.

The Red Cross said it will launch an emergency funding appeal later on Friday.