Sierra Leone’s symbolic Cotton Tree falls during storm in Freetown

Centuries-old Ceiba pentandra marked where formerly enslaved people had prayed upon arrival in west Africa

A centuries-old tree that served as a historic symbol in Sierra Leone has been felled during a storm, the government has said.

The 70-metre (230ft) Ceiba pentandra - known by Sierra Leoneans as Cotton Tree - lost all of its branches on Wednesday during torrential rains and high winds, with only the base of its enormous trunk still standing. The tree, which was in the capital, Freetown, was about 400 years old.