10 killed, hundreds displaced in Gambia storm

Ten people were killed and over 1,500 people were displaced in a storm that hit The Gambia on Wednesday night, the tiny West African state's disaster agency said on Thursday.

National Disaster Management Agency Chief Executive Officer Sana Dahaba told AFP that the government had housed 1,531 people displaced by the severe weather in mosques and other community buildings.

Ten people lost their lives during the storm and several others sustained injuries, he added, without offering further details.

Gambian President Adama Barrow convened an emergency meeting on Thursday to assess the damage.

The extent of the destruction remains unclear. However, the presidency said in a statement that the storm knocked out electricity and water services in parts of the country.

"The President urges good Samaritans to support in any way they can to ease the burden on affected families while his government assesses the needed support," the statement said.

The Gambia is a poor Muslim-majority country of around two million people -- and the smallest on mainland Africa, narrowly straddling the river that gives it its name.

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