(introduction...)
Geography
Sierra Leone, with an area of 72,325 sq. km (27,925 sq. mi.), is
located in the eastern half of the West African littoral. It has a 340-kilometer
(210-mi.) Atlantic coastline, a southeast border with Liberia, and north and
northeast borders with Guinea. The capital city is Freetown (pop. 500,000);
provincial capitals are Bo (42,216), Kenema (33,880), Makeni (28,684).
Three types of terrain characterize Sierra Leone: a coastal belt
of mangrove swamps 96 kilometers (60 ml.) wide; stretches of wooded hill
country; and an upland plateau, with mountains of 1 220 to 1.830 meters
(4,000-6,000 ft.) near the eastern frontier. Bintumani Mountain in this range is
the tallest peak in West Africa.
Sierra Leone has a tropical climate. The average temperature is
26°C (80°F). Normal rainfall is heavy, and along the coast as much as
500 centimeters (200 in.) may fall in one year. A dry season lasts from November
to April and a wet season makes up the remainder of the year with the maximum
precipitation from July to September. Early in the rainy season, rainstorms
build up and finally break in late afternoon and evening; later in the season,
light rain falls all
day.
