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Sri Lanka deploys army after 26 killed in monsoon storms

05 June 2024, MVT 16:41
Residents wade through a flooded street after heavy rainfall in Kaduwela on the outskirts of Colombo. Flash floods, mudslides and falling trees have killed 26 people in Sri Lanka as the island nation is battered by monsoon storms, the country's disaster centre said on June 2. -- Photo: Ishara S. Kodikara / AFP
05 June 2024, MVT 16:41

Heavy monsoon rains and mudslides in Sri Lanka have killed at least 26 people, the government said Tuesday, ordering the army to help tens of thousands displaced.

Another 42 people were injured, junior defence minister Premitha Tennakoon told parliament, with 130,000 people forced from their homes by the floods in 23 out of 25 districts across the island nation.

"We have deployed the military to assist the relief operations," Tennakoon said. "Boats have been deployed to help with the supply of relief."

Sri Lanka depends on seasonal monsoon rain for irrigation as well as hydroelectricity, but experts have warned that it faces more frequent floods as the world heats due to climate change.

Sri Lanka's main weather bureau forecast an easing of rains but said the threat of floods had not receded. Low-lying areas remain swamped.

The government had ordered all schools to remain shut on Monday after the weekend holiday, and several in the worst affected southern province remained closed on Tuesday.

© Agence France-Presse

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