Natural disasters kill 15, displace 6,800. A couple buried in sleep as wall collapses on house

The death toll due to the prevailing adverse weather conditions affecting many parts of the country has shot up to 15 while two others are reported missing, according to the Disaster Management Centre (DMC).

Police spokesman SSP Ajith Rohana said that out of seven victims who had died due to the collapse of an embankment, in Matugama, three were children. They were identified as nine year-old Duddini Ishara of Dammage Watta, Kithulgoda, eight year-old Sanduni Nimesha of Polwattagoda and four-year-old K. V. Ruhiru of Polwattegoda, Kithulgoda. Others were 45-year-old Renuka Herath and 22-year-old Nadeesha Madushani of Dammage Watta, Kithulgoda and 57-year-old Shashiyage Punyasena and 47-year-old Uru Liyanage Kusumawathi of Omanta, Agalawatta.

The SSP said that two residents of Bulathsinhala had also died under similar circumstances and one was missing.

The missing person was identified as Susil Rajapaksa of Ambagahakanda, Mahagama and the deceased were 80-year-old K. Noiya and 54-year-old R. S. Piyasena of the same village.

A 73-year-old of Kudapahana, Meegahatenna in the Meegahatenna police area was killed by a landslide while a 38-year-old of Badugama, Matugama in the Welipenna police area died in floods. Five victims were being treated at the Wettewa hospital, the Police Spokesman said.

In another tragic incident in the early hours of yesterday in the Talangama North police area, a couple living on Dharmashoka road, No. 1080/01/D––73-year-old Premasiri Nawaratna and 62-year-old O. P. Premaseeli––were buried alive when a granite wall collapsed on their house.

The highest rain fall of 160 mm during last 24 hours ended at 8.30 am yesterday was recorded at Neboda in the Kalutara District and it was the worst affected area due to the overflowing of the Uyanwatta Weva.

DMC Deputy Director (Media) Sarath Lal Kumara yesterday told The Island that around 7,194 persons had been affected by floods in Kegalle, Kaluthara, Colombo, Gampaha and Matara Districts.

Ten deaths were reported from Agalawatte in the Kalutara District and two others from Kaduwela in the Colombo District due to collapsing embankments. Two persons had been reported missing in Agalawatta under similar circumstances and another one in Kelaniya due to floods, Lal Kumara said.

The DMC requested people living in the low lying areas to be cautious as several rivers including Kalu, Kukule, Gin, Bentrata and Nilwala were in spate and the threat of floods was imminent.

According to DMC several low lying areas in the country are already inundated.

Low-lying areas in the Agalawatta, Welipanna, Matugama, Paalinda Nuwara and Omatta Divisions in the Kalutara District have been affected by floods. Several main roads and byroads in Colombo, Kalutara and Galle also went under water yesterday.

Lal Kumara said that five teams from the Navy and Air Force had been deployed to rescue victims.

The Welipenna access to the Southern Expressway had gone under water by yesterday morning. But, officials said that the floods had not disrupted vehicle movement on the southern highway.

The Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) said that the power supply to flood hit areas such as Matugama, Kitulgoda, Bulathsinhala and Kukuleganga in the Kalutara District had been disconnected yesterday for public safety.

Meanwhile, a severe weather advisory issued by Early Warning Centre of the Meteorology Department states that due to the active cloudiness in the Western sea area, there is the possibility of sudden rough seas associated with sudden increase of wind speed (up to 70-80 km/ph) over those sea areas off the coast extending from Mannar to Pottuvil via Colombo and Hambantota. Heavy showers are also expected in the above sea areas, it says.

The rainy weather is expected to continue in the Colombo, Gampaha, Kalutara, Galle, Matara and Ratnapura districts, while heavy showers were also likely at some places (more than 100 mm of rainfall), according to the Met Department.

The Met Department has requested the naval and fishing communities to be vigilant.

Met Department Duty Meteorologist P.D. Ananda Perera said that prevailing rainy weather was expected to continue in the western, Sabaragamuwa and Central provinces and in the Galle and Matara districts. He added that the heavy falls were also likely (more than 100 mm) at some places. “Thundershowers will develop at several places in the Uva, North central and Eastern provinces during the afternoon or evening.”

Perera noted that fairly strong winds could be expected along the western slopes of the Central hills at times and there might be temporary localised strong winds during thundershowers.

The Met Department requests the public to take adequate precautions to minimise the damages caused by lightning.

The National Council for Road Safety (NCRS), Chairman Gamini Ekanayake, yesterday warned that there was a risk of the number of road accidents increasing due to heavy rains and, therefore, all drivers and motorcyclists should be extra careful due to slippery road conditions.

by Maheesha Mudugamuwa
Source: The Island (Sri Lanka)