Heavy rains, strong gales cause havoc:

Commuters wade through knee-deep water

by Jayampathy Jayasinghe

Several areas in the Western and Galle Provinces were submerged following torrential rains accompanied by strong gales lashing out after the Vesak Poya Day. According to the National Disaster Management Centre several families residing in these areas were rendered homeless with eleven deaths being reported.

The deluge caused havoc in residential areas with Colombo North being inundated while the Gunasinghapura bus stand was submerged bringing transportation to a grinding halt. Commuters were seen wading through knee-deep water while others were trying to cling on to overcrowded buses to get back home early.

Several trains from the Fort Railway Station bound for Gampaha, Polgahawela and other areas were re-routed from the Maradana Railway station causing panic among commuters who had to rush to the Maradana Railway Station on Thursday evening. With long queues at the Maradana Railway Station there was a wild scramble to board trains.

According to eyes witnesses some women and children were heard screaming while being pushed and pulled around in the crowd. The Gampaha and Polgahawela bound trains were held up for nearly four hours due to the rail track at Ragama going under water.

With torrential rains over Colombo on Friday, around 8.30 a.m. the Galle road stretch near the Roxy Theatre caved in creating a big crater about 15 feet long and eight feet deep in the middle of the road bringing traffic to a standstill.

The Wellawatte Police had to re-route traffic proceeding in the direction of Mount Lavinia through the Marine Drive and Ramakrishana Road. Traffic proceeding towards Colombo had to be diverted through Kalubowila Road.

According to the National Disaster Management Centre 14,881 families were affected due to the flash flood situation in the country during the past three days. In the Thimbirigasyaya Divisional Secretariat 3,705 families were affected and 14,120 persons were displaced while one death was reported.

In other Colombo areas 275 families were affected while ten houses were partially damaged. In Maharagama 100 families were affected while 350 persons were displaced.

Two houses were damaged while one was partially damaged. In the Sri Jayawardenapura area 3,773 families were affected while 15,391 persons were displaced.

One million rupees have been allocated for families affected. In the Kelaniya area 1,548 families were affected while 7,740 persons were displaced. One death was reported while 14 houses were partially damaged.

In Wattala 6,028 families were affected while 5,475 persons were displaced. Thirteen houses were partly damaged. In Biyagama, 630 families were affected while 3,150 persons were displaced. Seven houses were partially damaged.

In Ja-Ela 40 families were affected while at Katana 45 families were affected. One million rupees have been allocated for families affected to provide cooked meals. In the Galle-Baddegama area 2,870 were affected while three deaths were reported.

Two persons sustained injuries while 52 houses were fully damaged. In Nagoda two deaths were reported while at Pothdela one death was reported. One million rupees have been allocated to provide cooked meals. One death was reported from the Kalutara area while 50 families were affected at Walallawita.

Six camps were set up at Gampaha and ten at Kalutara to accommodate flood victims. The Government has allocated Rs 1 million for Colombo, Gampaha and Galle AGA Divisions to provide cooked meals to flood victims. Rs 2 million has been allocated to the Gampaha Division.