By Festus Trye
The Sierra Leone Broadcasters’ Association (SILBA) has appealed for urgent support after fires gutted two community radio stations in the country’s north, destroying equipment worth millions of leones and disrupting broadcasts.
In a statement, SILBA said Radio Bankhi-Solofara FM 93.7 in Kukuna Town, Bombali District, and Voice of Youth Radio FM 107.1 in Songo were both destroyed by fires on Jan. 9.
According to SILBA, the cause of the fire at Radio Bankhi-Solofara remains under investigation, while preliminary findings suggest the blaze at Voice of Youth Radio was caused by an electrical fault linked to the station’s solar power system.
The association said institutional records, office assets and broadcasting equipment, including computers, surge protectors and transmitters, were destroyed in the incidents.
“These unfortunate incidents, which occurred on the same day as we begin a new year of renewed hope in the broadcasting media landscape in Sierra Leone, are devastating,” SILBA President Stanley Bangura said in the statement.
He expressed sympathy with the management, staff and communities served by the stations, noting that the affected outlets play a critical role in local information sharing and civic engagement.
SILBA called on corporate bodies, media partners, development organisations and the public to provide urgent financial, technical and logistical support to help rebuild the stations and restore regular broadcasting.
SILBA, a national umbrella body for broadcasters, was established to promote cooperation, best practices and the collective welfare of media institutions in Sierra Leone.
