Geological Context and Statistical Assessment of the Impacts of Sugarloaf Twin Disasters, in Western Sierra Leone

Abstract

In the event of natural disasters, Sierra Leone like any other country loses lives as well as properties and natural resources. Despite notable occurrences of small disasters in the country, only on August 14th sugarloaf landslide and the resulting flash flood (twin disasters) which affected Regent and other communities in 2017 have captured both national and international attention due to their alarming impacts. To obtain a better knowledge on the nature of the disasters, this research considered the geological context of the landslide and focused on statistical analysis of the impacts of the twin disasters using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Geological field-based approach and self-administered questionnaires of both closed and open-ended questions, personal interviews and observations were adopted as research techniques. Descriptive statistics and qualitative analysis were used to analyze the data of the research. Relevant literature from books, journals, and newspapers was also consulted, including Radio, Television discussions and the internet. Slope destabilization that caused the Landslide was linked to the geology of sub-surface formation (highly weathered olivine gabbro), lineaments and the rate of weathering. Study showed remarkable economic, social and political impacts as a consequence of the twin disasters. Study also revealed that families assisted the most in both financial and non-financial ways to the victims, and renowned misappropriation of donated disaster funds. All variables tested using student t-distribution and chi-square test of independence accepted the hypothesis. Information obtained from this work could be fundamental for policy makers and development practitioners (Osuteye & Leck, 2017).