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Sierra Leone prepares for mass funerals after mudslides

Volunteers search for bodies from the scene of heavy flooding and mudslides in Regent, just outside of Sierra Leone's capital Freetown. Tuesday, Aug. 15 , 2017. Survivors of deadly mudslides in Sierra Leone's capital are vividly describing the disaster as President Ernest Bai Koroma says the nation is in a "state of grief." (AP Photo/ Manika Kamara) Volunteers search for bodies from the scene of heavy flooding and mudslides in Regent, just outside of Sierra Leone's capital Freetown. Tuesday, Aug. 15 , 2017. Survivors of deadly mudslides in Sierra Leone's capital are vividly describing the disaster as President Ernest Bai Koroma says the nation is in a "state of grief." (AP Photo/ Manika Kamara)

By Associated Press August 16, 2017 1 min read

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone (AP) – Sierra Leone’s government is urging family members to identify their loved ones’ remains following mudslides and floods in the capital that have killed more than 300 people.

In a statement Wednesday, President Ernest Bai Koroma’s office asked relatives to come to the city’s overwhelmed mortuary.

The statement says all unidentified corpses will be given a “dignified burial” in the coming days.

The death toll is expected to rise after mudslides and floodwaters in and around Freetown this week killed hundreds of people, many of them trapped as they slept.

Among the victims are more than 100 children.

The Red Cross estimates that 600 people remain missing.

The risk of further mudslides remains, along with the risk of disease.

The government has appealed for donations of equipment to help remove bodies.