Death toll rises from floods and mudslides in Sri Lanka
6 June 2021, 09:54
Ten people have died in floods while another four lost their lives in mudslides.
The death toll from floods and mudslides following heavy rain in Sri Lanka has risen to 14 with another two people missing, officials said.
Ten districts on the island have seen heavy rainfall since last Thursday, including the capital Colombo and suburbs where many houses, fields and roads have been inundated.
Ten people have died in floods while another four lost their lives in mudslides, according to the government’s Disaster Management Centre.
Among them was a family of four who died when a mound of earth crashed onto their house in the district of Kegalle, about 53 miles east of Colombo.
Two others remain missing.
Sri Lanka’s navy said it had deployed 33 teams to flooded areas, which so far have rescued 66 people stranded by the floodwaters.
The Disaster Management Centre said the extreme weather has affected some 245,000 people, and more than 4,300 remain displaced in emergency shelters.
More than 800 houses have been damaged.
