The Pentagon Community, located along Lumley–Regent Road in Kamayama, western Freetown, has long suffered from a series of devastating events. From the deadly 2017 mudslide to the ravaging effects of the Ebola outbreak, followed by the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing land-grabbing disputes, the residents of Pentagon have continually lived through pain and hardship. Now, another tragedy has struck—this time in the form of a catastrophic building collapse that claimed the lives of two young men.
On Sunday, June 1, 2025, at approximately 2:15 AM, a three-storey building under construction at the main junction of the Pentagon collapsed, trapping six people under the rubble. Among those trapped were contractor Mustapha Bunduka (alias Obameyang), Tejan Bangura (co-landlord), Momoh Koroma, Sorie Sesay, Ibrahim Kanu (tailor), and another unnamed worker.
The structure, reportedly owned by Manoh Bangura, who resides in the United States, was being overseen by his brother, Tejan Bangura, on the ground. Multiple eyewitnesses from the community confirmed that concerns were previously raised about the building’s weak structural foundation, including undersized pillars and visible cracks in the walls and staircase, but those warnings were reportedly ignored.
Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) Ahmed Karamoh Kabbah, the Local Unit Commander (LUC) of the Lumley area, was the first official to arrive on the scene. He wasted no time in spreading the word and contacting his superiors. Unfortunately, it took over four hours before the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) called in soldiers from the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF) Engineering Unit to assist in the rescue mission.
Due to the lack of available machinery, the initial rescue efforts were painfully manual, conducted with shovels, hammers, sticks, and bare hands. The police, RSLAF officers, and courageous community youth began digging through the rubble in hopes of saving lives.
By 4:30 PM, four of the six trapped individuals—including Tejan Bangura, Momoh Koroma, alias Obameyang, and the tailor—had been rescued alive and transported to the Emergency Hospital for treatment. However, Mustapha Bunduka and Sorie Sesay remained unaccounted for, with fears mounting that they were buried deep beneath the collapsed structure.
Chief M.S. Conteh, a community elder from Riverside Drive in Pentagon, shared his account: “I heard the crack and saw the roof going the other way. I saw Mr. Tejan coming down with the house… the blocks were hitting him.”
According to Chief M.S. Conteh, no government agency responded in the critical first hours, with rescue efforts driven solely by community members, the police, and a few media bloggers who were already on the scene.
Eyewitness Ibrahim Kanu, who was on-site during the construction, described repeated warnings he and others gave the contractor about the fragile state of the structure. “The pillars were too small,” he recalled. “We told Mustapha (the contractor) several times, but he didn’t listen. Even when the house started to crack, and the steps became unstable, he dismissed our concerns.”
Another survivor, Momoh Koroma, described the moment of collapse. “We were six people inside—three upstairs and three downstairs. Suddenly, we heard cracking sounds. I saw the staircase fall apart. The next thing I knew, blocks were raining down. I was lucky to get out.”
Despite early involvement by the police, government agencies, including the Office of National Security (ONS), were visibly absent in the early stages. By 5:30 PM, NDMA Director of Relief and Response Sinneh Mansaray and later NDMA Executive Director, Rt. Lt. Colonel Brima Sesay, arrived to coordinate and assess the situation.
According to Colonel Sesay, he had been informed of the incident around 3 PM by AIG Sylvester but was attending a funeral at the time. He tasked Sinneh Mansaray to lead the immediate response. They confirmed that efforts were underway to involve Gento Group of Companies, whose excavators could facilitate faster and safer debris removal.
By 8:00 PM, Mohamed Gento Kamara, accompanied by SLRA’s ING Alfred J. Momodu, arrived with excavating machinery. However, the equipment was initially held back when signs of a possible survivor—Sorie Sesay—were noticed beneath the rubble.
Sadly, hopes were dashed shortly after when Sorie Sesay was recovered lifeless, covered on a stretcher, and taken away in an ambulance around 9 PM. His elder brother, Momodu Barrie, who had brought Sorie from Magburaka to Freetown for work, lamented, “He left me to work for Mustapha. Now he’s gone.”
Rescue operations continued into the night, and around 12:30 PM, the final trapped victim, Mustapha Bunduka, was also found dead.
Speaking after the rescue operation, Director of Relief and Response Sinneh Mansaray of NDMA praised the local community’s efforts, stating, “The people of Pentagon were the first responders. Without them, we might not have recovered even the four survivors. We later joined with the military, the police, the Red Cross, and Gento Group to complete the mission.”
He confirmed that two fatalities—Sorie Sesay and Mustapha Bunduka—had been recorded, while four others had survived. He noted the operation would now shift focus to clearing the remaining rubble and stabilizing the surrounding area.
The collapse has left the Pentagon community grieving and furious, calling for immediate investigations into the structural flaws of the building and the lack of enforcement of building regulations. Many also demand quicker government response systems in emergencies, especially in high-risk and vulnerable communities like the Pentagon.
This tragedy adds to the long list of hardships that have befallen Freetown, once again underscoring the need for robust urban planning, emergency preparedness, and proper building oversight.
Locals’ estimates suggest that over 100 million Leones’ worth of property was destroyed in the collapse. Several vehicles and household belongings remain under the debris.
As the Pentagon mourns the loss of Mustapha Bunduka and Sorie Sesay, the community continues to rally around the survivors, praying for their recovery and demanding that no such tragedy ever occurs again.
By: Tejan Macavoray
