KELANIYA: Sri Lanka's death toll from Cyclone Ditwah climbed to 212 with 218 missing, officials said on Sunday, as flood waters breached a dam and rescue operations continued into a fourth day. Nearly a million people are impacted by heavy rains and floods that swept through large parts of the south Asian island nation, forcing nearly 200,000 people into 1,275 shelters, the Disaster Management Centre said in a statement.
Record rains lashed the country from last Thursday, causing multiple landslides in the hilly central region while overflowing rivers submerged entire towns nationwide.
Over 24,000 police, army and air force personnel are still trying to reach families stranded by floods, authorities said. More than 120 people were airlifted to safety in helicopters by the air force after water breached the dam of the Mavil Aru Reservoir in the eastern part of the island. About another 2,000 people were moved to higher ground for safety, the military said in a statement. Dozens of families are trapped in their homes by flood waters in the commercial capital of Colombo, which is one of the worst-affected places. — Reuters
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