COLOMBO, May 16 (NNN-XINHUA) – At least four people died and over 42,000 others affected, by days of strong winds and heavy rains, which lashed Sri Lanka, due to the formation of a super cyclone in the Bay of Bengal, the country’s Disaster Management Centre (DMC) said.
According to the DMC, the deaths had been a result of severe flooding.
Over 200 houses had been fully or partially damaged, while 175 people belonging to 42 affected families were housed in temporary shelters.
The National Building Research Organisation (NBRO), also issued a landslide warning for several districts in the country, including the capital, Colombo and the south. The NBRO requested people living in high-risk areas to move to safer grounds.
The army dispatched rescue teams in several affected districts and has rescued several people who were trapped by the rising water levels.
The Disaster Management Centre officials were also deployed in the worst affected districts, setting up facilities to accommodate those displaced by the adverse weather conditions.
According to weather reports, the powerful cyclone that formed in the Bay of Bengal is now headed directly for the India-Bangladesh border, bringing with it the potential for major destruction and upheaval.
Sri Lanka’s Meteorology Department, in its latest weather update, said that, more rains were expected over the country in the coming days and urged everyone to be cautious.– NNN-XINHUA
