Colombo [Sri Lanka], December 7 (ANI): Sri Lankan authorities issued fresh landslide warnings on Sunday as relentless rains continued to batter regions already devastated by Cyclone Ditwah, pushing the nationwide death toll to 627, Al Jazeera reported.
Other parts of Asia are also facing widespread destruction, with combined casualties across the region now exceeding 1,800.
The Disaster Management Centre (DMC) warned that ongoing monsoon storms were making hillsides increasingly unstable, particularly in the central highlands and northwestern midlands. Officials said the extreme weather has intensified the suffering of more than two million people — nearly 10 percent of Sri Lanka’s population — affected by last week’s climate crisis-driven floods and landslides caused by the island’s worst cyclone this century, according to Al Jazeera.
With many communities cut off by landslides, helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft were deployed on Sunday to deliver emergency supplies to isolated areas in the central region. The Sri Lanka Air Force confirmed that Myanmar had sent a planeload of relief materials, marking the latest international assistance to arrive.
According to the government, 627 deaths have been confirmed so far, including 464 in the central tea-growing belt. Another 209 people remain missing, Al Jazeera reported.
The DMC said the number of displaced residents in state-run camps has fallen to 100,000 from a peak of 225,000 as floodwaters gradually receded. Damage assessments indicate that more than 75,000 homes have been affected, with nearly 5,000 destroyed. Early estimates from senior officials suggest that recovery and reconstruction could cost up to USD 7 billion.
On Friday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said it was reviewing Sri Lanka’s request for an additional USD 200 million to support rebuilding efforts. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake told parliament that while the economy had made a significant recovery, it was not strong enough to withstand the latest shock on its own.
Elsewhere in Asia, the death toll from floods and landslides on Indonesia’s Sumatra island has risen to more than 900, authorities said. (ANI)
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