Freetown's Mayor Raises Alarm Over Rising Number of Corpses on the City's Streets

Freetown's Mayor Raises Alarm Over Rising Number of Corpses on the City's Streets

The Mayor of Freetown, in a letter addressed to the Minister of Internal Affairs, Hon. AIG (Rtd) Morie Lengor Esq., has raised alarm over a disturbing increase in the number of corpses being found on the streets of the city, reportedly linked to the consumption of Kush.

According to the Mayor, the Freetown City Council has historically taken responsibility for providing pauper’s burials for destitute individuals who die on city streets. However, since 2022, the frequency of such deaths has surged dramatically, moving from an occasional occurrence to a near-daily phenomenon.

Official records indicate that as of 13th August 2025, 142 corpses had been collected by the Council since the beginning of the year, of which 136 were male and 6 female. In less than a month, from 13th August to 11th September, an additional 32 bodies were collected, including 31 males and 1 female. The overwhelming majority of the deceased are young people, a trend the Mayor describes as “deeply troubling.”

The surge in street deaths has forced the Council to maintain a dedicated burial team, equipped with gloves, disinfectants, masks, body bags, and a fueled vehicle an unbudgeted expense placing further strain on the city’s limited finances.

Mayor Lengor emphasized the moral and societal urgency of the situation, calling for a coordinated government inquiry to investigate the underlying causes and implement measures to stem the loss of young lives. He warned that Freetown City Council may be forced to suspend the collection of corpses if no action is taken, stressing that the city “cannot continue to collect and bury our youth in silence.”

The letter serves as a stark appeal for immediate government intervention to address what the Mayor describes as an unprecedented public health and social crisis in Sierra Leone’s capital.