The group of passengers who were trapped on the roof of a flooded bus in Kala Oya, Anuradhapura have been rescued and are currently receiving treatment at Nochchiyagama Hospital.
One of the survivors recounted that the bus, which was travelling from Pulmudai to Colombo, entered heavily flooded waters despite warnings. Passengers had urged the driver not to proceed, but their protests were ignored, he said.
The bus eventually stalled as water levels rose, forcing passengers to seek safety on the roof. Three Navy personnel reached the bus and assisted the group onto the roof, before guiding them to the top of a nearby house with asbestos roofing sheets.
“We were stuck on those roofing sheets for 29 hours until morning,” the survivor said. “Other asbestos sheets were being swept away by the water, but somehow the one we were on held, and that saved our lives.”
He said that around 70 people were onboard the bus at the time. Among the group was one foreign national. At one point, three individuals were swept away by the floodwaters, but were later rescued, the survivor, a resident of Ginigathhena recalled.
Rescue operations were complicated by the wind turbulence caused by helicopters, which risked dislodging the fragile asbestos roofing and thrusting the group into deep water, he said, which took a longer time for rescue boats to reach the group.
All rescued passengers are being treated at the Nochchiyagama Hospital. (Newswire)