Severe Heavy Rain ● Active
Sierra Leone: Flash Floods - Aug 2026
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On the night of 3 August 2026, Freetown experienced approximately six consecutive hours of exceptionally heavy rainfall, triggering widespread flash flooding, severe soil erosion, and multiple slope and structural failures across several densely populated urban and peri-urban communities. [...] Unlike the localized flooding commonly experienced during the rainy season, this event affected 1,763 families (8,915 people), damaged or flooded more than 700 houses, including over 300 houses in Portor Community alone, caused four fatalities, displaced thousands of people, contaminated 18 community boreholes, damaged a community school, and disrupted livelihoods and access to essential services. [...] The crisis has been further compounded by continuous rainfall across Freetown and other parts of Sierra Leone from 4 to 7 August 2026, which has caused additional flooding in other communities and continues to increase pressure on drainage systems, waterways, and unstable slopes. ([IFRC, 18 Aug 2026](https://reliefweb.int/node/4226142/))
Measurements
| Coordinates | 8.5600, -11.7900 |
|---|---|
| Region | Sierra Leone |
| Reliefweb Status | ongoing |
| Reliefweb Type | Flash Flood |
Reported by
Disaster reports from ReliefWeb, a service of UN OCHA
This is situation reporting from a humanitarian organisation, not a warning issued to the public.
Not rated by source. ReliefWeb (UN OCHA) does not publish a severity for this; the level shown is our own classification.
View original reportThis event as JSON · API and licence
Source updated 11 minutes ago (Oct 19, 2026 19:44 UTC) · we last heard from ReliefWeb (UN OCHA) 11 minutes ago
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Official authorities in Sierra Leone
If you are there, these are the bodies whose instructions apply. This site is not an emergency service and does not issue warnings.
More for Sierra Leone →General safety information
No authority has issued instructions for this event. The guidance below is general background reading, not a response to it.
Flash flood risk awareness, urban drainage flooding, and staying safe during cloudbursts and monsoon downpours.
Open Extreme Rain & Flash Flood Safety →Nearby & related events
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