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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| S Leone boat tragedy 'kills 50' | S Leone boat tragedy 'kills 50' |
| (21 minutes later) | |
| At least 50 people have reportedly died after a boat capsized in a storm off the Sierra Leone coast. | At least 50 people have reportedly died after a boat capsized in a storm off the Sierra Leone coast. |
| More than 100 people are said to be missing after the Amunafa encountered bad weather at the mouth of the Great Scarcies River near the Guinea border. | More than 100 people are said to be missing after the Amunafa encountered bad weather at the mouth of the Great Scarcies River near the Guinea border. |
| The AFP news agency says the boat had sailed from the capital, Freetown, and was powered by outboard motors. | The AFP news agency says the boat had sailed from the capital, Freetown, and was powered by outboard motors. |
| Two people are said to have survived, while seven bodies have been recovered from the water. | |
| "Members of the Sierra Leone navy, backed by some members of the boat association, left in the early hours for the disaster scene to join local fishermen who have been searching since the tragedy took place," a spokesman for the local boat owners' association, Michael Asuman, told Reuters news agency. | |
| But Sierra Leone's police chief Brima Acha Kamara says he is not aware of the reported accident. | But Sierra Leone's police chief Brima Acha Kamara says he is not aware of the reported accident. |
| August is the height of the rainy season in West Africa and violent storms are common. | August is the height of the rainy season in West Africa and violent storms are common. |
| The BBC's Umaru Fofana in Freetown says many people, especially traders in Sierra Leone have little choice except to use dug-out canoes to get around and transport their goods. | The BBC's Umaru Fofana in Freetown says many people, especially traders in Sierra Leone have little choice except to use dug-out canoes to get around and transport their goods. |
| He says these are often overcrowded, with little care for passenger safety. | He says these are often overcrowded, with little care for passenger safety. |
| In June, at least 19 people died when a helicopter crashed taking passengers to the airport from Freetown. | In June, at least 19 people died when a helicopter crashed taking passengers to the airport from Freetown. |