Death toll from floods and mudslides in Sri Lanka rises to 132, with 176 people still missing
-
Click here to listen to this article - Share via
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — The death toll from heavy floods and mudslides caused by Cyclone Ditwah in Sri Lanka rose to 132, with 176 people still missing, authorities said Saturday.
Nearly 78,000 people have been displaced and are in temporary shelters, the South Asian country’s disaster management center said.
The death toll is expected to rise further. Social media posts Saturday showed several areas affected by overnight mudslides that authorities have yet to reach.
Sri Lanka has been battered by severe weather since last week. Conditions worsened Thursday, with heavy downpours that flooded homes, fields and roads and triggered landslides mainly in the tea-growing central hill country.
The government closed schools and offices and postponed examinations.
Most reservoirs and rivers have overflowed, blocking roads. Authorities stopped passenger trains and closed roads in many parts of the country after rocks, mud and trees fell on roads and railway tracks.
By Friday, water flowing downstream from severely affected areas began to inundate areas around the capital, Colombo, which experienced comparatively less rainfall.
Authorities say that Ditwah, which developed in the seas east of Sri Lanka, is likely to move toward India’s southern coast by Sunday.
India dispatched two search and rescue teams, comprising 80 rescuers, and sent aid to support ongoing operations, the country’s embassy in Colombo said Saturday.
Francis writes for the Associated Press.
More From the Los Angeles Times
Podcasts
Reggie Bush was the face of USC football’s glory years — and one of the figures at the center of its collapse. But behind the saga was a group of men trying to build a sports agency around Bush, and in the process, said they provided him and his family with the benefits that would ultimately bring the NCAA down on USC.
How do you get more people to care about climate change — and tell riveting stories along the way? Boiling Point explored that question at a live event during this year’s New York City Climate Week at Columbia University’s Climate School.
On screen, Errol Flynn played a series of daredevils, fortune hunters, and suave romantics. Off screen, he lived a life of outsize debauchery and recklessness, including a persistent interest in underage girls. In 1943, at the height of his fame, he faced trial in Los Angeles on charges of statutory rape.
