The torrential downpours this week brought it crashing to the ground. It was a symbol of freedom for centuries.
The leader of Sierra Leone said that the Sierra Leone suffered a “great blow” after the iconic Cotton Tree fell in the storm.
For about 400 years, the giant tree towered above Freetown. Its physical size of 70m tall and 15m wide was only surpassed by its significance as a national icon.
The trunk was a huge attraction for the crowds that gathered at the heart of the capital.
President Julius Maada Bi said that the early settlers in the West African nation, which was founded by American slaves who were freed from slavery, viewed the monument as a symbol for freedom and liberty.
Twitter: “The Cotton Tree was not just a simple tree,” bio stated. It was a link between the past, the present and the future.
On its site, the Ministry of Tourism and Cultural Affairs of Thailand said that the great shade of the Cotton Tree offered freed Black slaves arriving by boat a place to rest and pray.
It was “damaged beyond repair,” said Zebek International, a press agency working with Sierra Leone’s government. Zebek International a media agency that works with the Sierra Leone government said it was “damaged beyond repairs”.
Its trunk was ripped off just a few metres above the ground.
Zebek stated that the magnitude of the loss is comparable to the fire in Paris that destroyed Notre Dame Cathedral in 2019.
