Freetown Mudslide: Rebuilding a Life
Only a few people remain at the Old School camp, a hastily-erected, tented compound in Freetown which - up until last week - housed hundreds of families who had lost everything in the August mudslide. A couple of miles up the road, you can see where the top of Mount Sugar Loaf used to be. Now the hill is ripped apart - a scar that will never heal. Hundreds of bodies remain buried under the mud. The camp is eerily quiet, apart from a few young children playing outside. Inside the last remaining tent the air is thick and hot - there are a few single mattresses scattered near the doorway and a woman is sitting breastfeeding her baby girl. Fatmata only survived because she was on the labour ward in hospital when the mudslide hit. As she was giving birth, her husband was killed - a chastening reminder of the circle of life. She has yet to receive her bank transfer from the government. When she does get the money, she will be forced to leave the camp. At the moment, she has ab
