The Irrigation Department has extended the flood warning for the Kuda Ganga Sub-Basin of the Kalu Ganga River Basin for a further 48 hours, urging residents and motorists in vulnerable areas to exercise extreme caution.

The warning, originally issued at 9.30 am on September 20, followed considerable rainfall in the upstream catchment areas of the Kuda Ganga Sub-Basin and concerns over rising river water levels.

According to the original warning, an analysis of rainfall conditions and water levels at hydrological stations along the Kalu Ganga indicated the possibility of a minor flood situation in low-lying areas of the Kuda Ganga and Maguru Ganga valleys.

The areas identified as being at risk are located within the Bulathsinhala, Madurawala and Palinda Nuwara Divisional Secretariat Divisions.

The Irrigation Department also warned of a high possibility of roads passing through the floodplains of the Kuda Ganga and Maguru Ganga becoming inundated.

With the warning now extended for another 48 hours, people living in the affected areas and motorists travelling through them have been advised to exercise extreme caution, particularly when using minor roads. (Newswire)

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The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the purchase of small‑scale machinery for the Sri Lanka Land Development Corporation (SLLDC) to strengthen its capacity in managing urban drainage systems and mitigating flood risks.

The corporation plays a vital role in minimizing inundation in urban and lowland areas, maintaining canals, and carrying out urgent operations during flood events. 

According to the government, the new machinery will be used to clean small canals, which significantly contribute to urban flooding.

The procurement will be carried out at an estimated cost of Rs. 1,233 million, funded through an equity contribution of Rs. 625 million from the General Treasury and additional allocations from the corporation’s own resources.

The Cabinet has approved the proposal submitted by the Minister of Transport, Highways, and Urban Development. (Newswire)

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The Irrigation Department has extended flood warnings for the Kuda Ganga sub‑basin of the Kalu River and the Gin Ganga basin for another 24 hours, citing continued rainfall and rising water levels in the affected regions.

The Department said the warnings, originally issued on September 20 under reference No. DI/Hydro/103(V), remain in force due to persistent risks of flooding. 

Residents living in flood‑prone areas and motorists traveling through these regions, particularly on by‑roads, have been strongly advised to exercise extreme caution.

Flood warning for Kuda Ganga:

The flood warning (Notice No. 01), issued under my reference No. DI/Hydro/103(V) at 9:30 a.m. on September 20, 2026, for the Kuda Ganga sub-basin of the Kalu River, is hereby extended for the next 24 hours.Residents in these areas, as well as motorists traveling on the roadways within this region (particularly on by-roads), are strongly advised to exercise extreme caution regarding this situation.  Disaster management authorities are requested to take the necessary measures in response to this extended warning.

Flood warning for Gin Ganga:

The flood warning (Notice No. 01), issued under my reference No. DI/Hydro/103(V) at 12:30 p.m. on September 20, 2026, for the Gin Ganga basin, is hereby extended for the next 24 hours. Residents in these areas, as well as motorists traveling on the roadways within this region (particularly on byroads), are strongly advised to exercise extreme caution regarding this situation. Disaster management authorities are requested to take the necessary measures in response to this extended warning. (Newswire)

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The Irrigation Department reports that significant rainfall has been recorded across much of the wet zone, including the districts of Galle, Matara, Kandy, Nuwara Eliya, and Matale districts and the Western, North Western, and Sabaragamuwa Provinces. 

Director of Irrigation, L. S. Sooriyabandara said that although rainfall has slightly reduced compared to previous days, showers continue. 

He further said that as of this morning, the upper areas of the Kelani River received between 100 mm and 125 mm of rain, while many other river basins recorded 50 mm to 80 mm during the past 24 hours.

Heavy rainfall exceeding 200 mm the previous day caused water levels in the upper reaches of the Gin River and Nilwala River to rise, creating a risk of minor flooding in Baddegama, Udugama, Akuressa, and Thalgahagoda. 

The Kuda River, a tributary of the Kalu River, has also risen at Millakanda, nearing minor flood levels. Meanwhile, water levels of the Kelani River at Hanwella, Lenkos, and Avissawella remain high.

Water levels of the Mahaweli River at Nawalapitiya and Peradeniya, as well as the Attanagalu Oya, have decreased, but all rivers remain close to risk thresholds. 

Sooriyabandara further noted that the total capacity of reservoirs under its management currently stands between 34% and 35%, with most reservoirs located in the dry zone where rainfall has been limited.

However, rainfall in the upper basin of the Mahaweli River has significantly raised water levels in reservoirs such as Kotmale and Polgolla.

The Director of Irrigation strongly cautioned the public against entering flooded areas for water sports or other activities, stressing that such actions are extremely dangerous. (Newswire)

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Heavy rainfall since early morning today (15) has left several roads around Colombo submerged, causing severe disruption to traffic and daily life.

Multiple areas have gone under water, with the Nugegoda–Nawala Road reported to be fully inundated, halting vehicular movement.

The Department of Meteorology has issued a special warning for heavy showers across the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central, Southern, and Uva provinces, as well as the Ampara and Batticaloa districts today.

The Met Department states that unstable atmospheric conditions in the lower atmosphere near Sri Lanka have led to cloudy skies in these regions, with intermittent showers and thunderstorms expected. Rainfall exceeding 100 mm is possible in some locations.

Authorities have urged residents in flood‑prone areas to remain vigilant as water levels continue to rise in several low‑lying zones. (Newswire)

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The Irrigation Department has cautioned that minor flood conditions could develop in the lower reaches of the Attanagalu Oya and Kalu Ganga if significant rainfall is recorded today.

Director of Irrigation, Engineer L. S. Suriya Bandara, said that water levels at Millakanda and Alagawwa monitoring stations are currently at their highest points.

He noted that while the Kelani River has not risen rapidly, a gradual increase is being observed. At present, however, there is no immediate flood risk.

According to Suriya Bandara, water levels in the lower areas of several rivers, Nilwala, Gin, Kelani, Kalu, Attanagalu, and Bentara, have already risen to some extent.

He added that depending on upcoming weather conditions, river levels could rise further. 

Residents living in low‑lying areas along these rivers have been urged to remain vigilant and cautious. (Newswire)

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The Cabinet of Ministers has approved a proposal by the President of Sri Lanka to donate one million US dollars to the Government of Nepal as humanitarian assistance following the devastating landslide disaster in the Rasuwa District of northern Nepal.

The disaster, which struck on August 26, claimed numerous lives, left many missing, and caused extensive damage to property and infrastructure. 

Nepalese authorities continue search operations for missing persons amid warnings of further flooding and widespread destruction of essential facilities.

Sri Lanka’s decision was framed around the deep cultural, religious, and longstanding ties between the two nations, as well as concern over the severe humanitarian and economic impacts of the tragedy. (Newswire)

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Rescuers struggled on Monday through mud and debris for a sixth day, as the number of missing people soared to nearly 4,500 since tsunami-like glacial floods roared down from the China-Nepal border, creating an “unimaginable” disaster.

The latest confirmed death toll surged above 900, with unidentified bodies buried in mass graves after DNA sampling.

The huge wave of freezing water, rocks and debris that smashed into villages and towns on Wednesday killed at least 939 people in Nepal and in Tibet, in China, with at least 17 bodies also pulled from rivers downstream in India.

Nepali Prime Minister Balendra Shah on Sunday called the disaster “unimaginable and heartbreaking”.

In Chitwan district, army personnel climbed out of rubber dinghies and carried dead victims in blue body bags up a river bank, placing them in a row along a dirt road.

Rescue teams are in a race against time in treacherous conditions to free around 100 hydropower workers believed trapped in multiple tunnels — digging, drilling and blasting through debris.

So far, three bodies have been pulled from two tunnels, and the teams have found routes blocked with mud.

An Indian army officer deployed as part of a specialised tunnel rescue team said rescuers were digging through “sludge”. He told AFP he was “still hopeful” there were survivors inside.

Nepal’s Home Affairs Ministry says 20,600 personnel have been mobilised, and that more than 3,100 people have been rescued from the disaster zone.

Army personnel were seen unloading bodies of victims from helicopters in Nepal’s Nuwakot and Rasuwa districts on Monday.

Amid the horror, there has been some hope; a six-year-old pulled out of the mud Friday was reunited with her parents after police found her crying for her mother.

“Her body was trapped in mud, but her head was outside,” Nepali Armed Police spokesman Netra Bahadur Karki told AFP. 

“She is out of danger and recovering at a hospital.”

‘Changing climate’ 

The disaster was sparked by a glacial collapse, the US Geological Survey said. 

Climate change is causing glaciers to melt worldwide, raising the risk of such disasters.

“The people of Nepal are one of the major victims of the changing climate and its impact,” Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal said. 

Scientists say the Himalayas, the world’s highest mountain range, are melting faster as global temperatures rise.

Aid needs are enormous after entire communities were swept away.

“This is an unfolding disaster,” UN children’s fund official Abiodun Banire told AFP, saying the needs of the tens of thousands impacted were vast.

Roads have been wiped out, power plants destroyed and dozens of bridges smashed.

“There are too many challenges,” said police officer E. Hawadi in badly affected Nuwakot district.

Overflowing mortuaries 

With mortuaries overflowing, Nepal has begun burying some of the hundreds of bodies recovered — after taking DNA samples so families can later retrieve them.

In Chitwan district, mourning relatives cremated some of the dead, while in riverside villages like Devighat, survivors were struggling to salvage any remaining belongings from their devastated homes.

Kathmandu has appealed for international support, saying Nepal needed “more than a thousand” freezer units to store bodies.

Distraught families watch images of bodies on screens at community centres in a bid to identify their loved ones.

Among Nepal’s list of the missing are 592 foreigners, including tourists who had come for mountain trekking, as well as Hindu pilgrims seeking spiritual peace at Tibet’s sacred Mount Kailash.

In China, Tibet is largely inaccessible to foreign journalists, and Chinese authorities are the only source of information.

More than 2,000 personnel are part of rescue operations there, but they have faced intense challenges, and are slowly advancing towards the disaster’s epicentre.

China has said 16 people died in Tibet, with 546 missing. 

Tibetan advocacy groups in exile have questioned China’s account of the disaster.

Tencho Gyatso, president of the International Campaign for Tibet, called for China to disclose “complete and verifiable information about the damage and casualties”.

Beijing’s foreign ministry said Monday that the “release of information has been open, transparent and timely”, and rejected international reports that it is underreporting deaths. (FRANCE 24 / AFP)

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While several countries, including the US and China, have pledged support, India stands out for the speed of its aid delivery to Nepal.

At around 8:35pm on Wednesday, an Air Force C-130J aircraft took off from India carrying 10 tonnes of humanitarian and disaster relief assistance to Nepal, less than 12 hours after the ecologically fragile Himalayan nation was hit by a deadly flash flood. The first consignment reached Kathmandu that night. 

India’s swift action also fits into a broader pattern of the country’s growing humanitarian and disaster-relief efforts. 

The prompt response reinforces India’s position as a “first responder”, as New Delhi moved quickly to physically deliver relief to its Himalayan neighbour even as several other countries and international organisations, including China and the United States, were still mobilising assistance.

India’s swift action also fits into a broader pattern of the country’s growing humanitarian and disaster-relief efforts—from Covid-19 vaccines supplied to countries in Africa and elsewhere to relief and rescue operations in earthquake-hit Turkiye and Syria in 2023, disaster-hit Myanmar in 2024, cyclone-hit Sri Lanka in 2025, and earthquake-hit Venezuela in 2026, among others.

On Wednesday evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Nepal’s Prime Minister Balendra Shah, conveyed his condolences, and said India was ready to provide all possible humanitarian assistance. He also said Indian teams were coordinating closely on rescue and relief efforts. 

As the first aircraft was dispatched, foreign minister S Jaishankar said on X that India had sent 10 tonnes of humanitarian assistance, adding that “India stands with Nepal and its people”.

Other global players have also pledged or begun providing assistance to Nepal.

China, which has historically competed with India for influence in Nepal, has coordinated emergency supplies and cash assistance, according to China’s ambassador to Nepal. The formal mechanism for transferring the money and delivering physical supplies was still being worked out, according to local media.

South Korea, the United Kingdom, the European Union, the US, the United Nations, the World Health Organisation, and the World Bank have also offered or mobilised various forms of assistance. The US has committed $500,000 and a disaster-response adviser; the UK has pledged £5 million ($6.79 million) and emergency responders; and the World Bank has indicated it could provide up to 25 billion Nepalese rupees ($163.55 million) in emergency assistance.

But what stands out in India’s response is the speed of its physical relief delivery. On Thursday, New Delhi sent a second consignment, including medicines and food packets, taking the total delivered by air to 47.5 tonnes. By Friday afternoon, India had sent a total of 62 tonnes of relief material.

The August 26 disaster in the Nepal-Tibet border region is believed to have been triggered by a massive glacial collapse that sent a torrent of ice, rock, mud and water down mountain river systems, destroying villages and sweeping away roads, bridges and other infrastructure. Satellite imagery and geological assessments have since shed more light on the sequence of events, though scientists are continuing to study what caused the disaster. 

As of Friday afternoon, 469 people had died in Nepal and three in Tibet, taking the death toll across the border to 472. Nearly 1,000 people were reported missing in Nepal, while 558 remained unaccounted for in Tibet. (Hindustan Times)

A second flight has just taken off, carrying 37.5 tonnes of HADR material, medicines & food packets for Nepal.

India remains in close and continuous touch with the Nepalese authorities. We will continue to strongly support the ongoing relief efforts.

pic.twitter.com/4m46leqfkC

— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) August 27, 2026

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More than 390 bodies have been recovered, and more than 1,500 people are missing across Nepal and China’s Tibet region after a huge collapse of mud and rock into a Himalayan river triggered catastrophic flooding across local towns and valleys, authorities have said.

Rescue teams waded through mud on Thursday, searching for the missing, as authorities in Nepal said at least 389 people have been killed there.

At least three people have died in the neighbouring Tibet region.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang visited the mudslide site in Tibet on Thursday afternoon to “guide emergency rescue and relief work” a day after the disaster, state media reported.

Nepal’s Department of Tourism said in figures released on Thursday that 668 tourists from 34 countries had been out of contact since Wednesday morning, most of them on trekking expeditions.

Among them are at least 177 from India, 90 from the United States, 34 from Australia, 33 from the United Kingdom, and 25 from Canada. Beijing’s foreign ministry also said 100 Chinese nationals were among the missing in Nepal.

In Tibet’s Gyirong county, 558 people are reported missing, including 260 foreign nationals, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.

Search and rescue operations are proving to be a “massive challenge” as simply “getting to the affected areas … to try and recover the survivors” is proving to be extremely difficult, because the roads and bridges there have suffered extensive damage, said Al Jazeera’s Minelle Fernandez, reporting from the Nepalese capital, Kathmandu.

A mix of government and private helicopters have “been drafted to fly into the areas to try to bring as many survivors as possible” to hospitals to receive treatment for injuries that doctors say include broken ribcages and skin burns, said Fernandez. 

Rescuers in Nepal have deployed helicopters to search for survivors and drop emergency supplies to thousands of people cut off in a rugged mountainous area popular with trekkers and pilgrims travelling between Lhasa in Tibet and Kathmandu.

Video footage from Wednesday, verified by news agencies, showed rapid torrents of water and debris sweeping away dozens of people at a border crossing in Gyirong, while downstream in Nepal, homes, roads, and power infrastructure were destroyed.

Nepal’s disaster authority said on Thursday that a lake, which formed at the site where the floods occurred, was rising and at risk of bursting.

Army spokesperson Raja Ram Basnet said helicopters were dropping tents, food, and medicine, provided by neighbouring India, into the hardest-hit districts. More than 5,000 army and police rescue personnel have joined the rescue effort, he said.

On Friday, Nepal News reported that the army had rescued 350 workers and residents trapped in a tunnel at the Upper Trishuli hydropower project, working in poor weather and high river flows.

India evacuated thousands of people from the states bordering Nepal, including Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand, as the floods threatened the Gandak River Basin.

Nepal’s Prime Minister Balendra Shah left by road for Bidur in one of the worst-affected districts of Nuwakot to assess the flood situation, his office said on social media.

Early reports from Nepalese officials suggested an earthquake in the area may have caused the lower section of a glacier to collapse, triggering the flash floods.

However, the US Geological Survey noted that the seismic event, initially recorded as a magnitude 4.4 earthquake, was actually the seismic energy generated by the sudden collapse of glacial rock and ice, followed by a huge debris flow.

Preliminary satellite imagery analysis by Planet Labs indicated that a landslide of ice and rock triggered a debris-laden surge down the Lhende River, approximately 20 kilometres (12 miles) northeast of the Rasuwagadhi border crossing between Nepal and China.

In the affected valleys, thick mud swathed homes, trees, and vehicles, while aerial footage showed collapsed houses, submerged cars, and a metallic bridge washed away by the torrents.

Nepal’s National Planning Commission and National Statistics Office are launching a study into the extent of the damage inflicted on the economy. The flood struck 15 hydropower projects and shut down an estimated 431 megawatts of generating capacity, with heavy damage to the Rasuwagadhi, Chilime and Sanjen plants.

“There is devastation everywhere we look,” said Tula Bahadur BK, a healthcare worker in Rasuwa. “The settlements next to the river have been completely swept away. Five of my own relatives are missing.”

Others caught in the disaster were on a pilgrimage to Mount Kailash and Lake Mansarovar, high-altitude sites in Tibet revered by Hindus, Buddhists, and followers of other faiths.

International response

The US Department of State announced it was dispatching a disaster response adviser and providing $500,000 in emergency aid.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney described the flooding as “devastating”, adding that Canadian officials were monitoring the situation closely.

Tom Fletcher, head of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, announced that $2m will be allocated from the UN’s Global Emergency Fund CERF for Nepal relief efforts.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had earlier confirmed that UN teams were delivering emergency supplies and support staff to Nepal’s affected communities.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese noted that gathering clear information from the remote area remained challenging due to limited local infrastructure and resources. Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Friday that Canberra would give $3.6m in aid to communities hit by the flooding along the Nepal-China border and send extra consular staff to the area. (Al Jazeera)

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The National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) says heavy rainfall has disrupted water supply in parts of the Kegalle District after water intake points supplying two treatment plants became blocked.

According to the NWSDB, the intake points serving the Asupini Ella and Mawanella water treatment plants have been obstructed due to the prevailing adverse weather, making it difficult to operate the facilities under normal conditions.

As a result, water supply to the Mawanella and Aranayake Divisional Secretariat areas has been completely suspended.

Meanwhile, consumers in areas from Mawanella to Karandana Junction and along the Mawanella–Rambukkana Road are experiencing a low-pressure water supply.

The NWSDB said work to clear the intake points and resume operations at the treatment plants will begin once weather conditions improve, with normal water supply expected to be restored as soon as possible. (Newswire)

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Sri Lanka Army personnel rescued residents stranded by floodwaters in Kotagala and the Blackwater area of Ginigathhena last afternoon as heavy rains continued to impact parts of the country.

Authorities continue to urge the public in flood-prone areas to remain vigilant and follow official safety instructions. (Newswire)

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The Department of Irrigation has issued a Red‑level flood warning for the Kelani River Basin, valid until 1:30 pm tomorrow (04), cautioning of a possible major flood situation within the next 24 hours.

According to the Irrigation Department, significant, high‑intensity rainfall has been recorded in the upper and middle catchment areas of the basin, with forecasts predicting further heavy showers. 

Analysis of river gauge data indicates that water levels could rise rapidly, creating a high risk of flooding. The warning applies to low‑lying areas in the Divisional Secretariat Divisions of Dehiowita, Ruwanwella, and Yatiyanthota.

Residents in these regions, individuals using the river, and motorists traveling through the affected areas have been strongly advised to remain extremely cautious and highly vigilant. Disaster management authorities have been requested to take proactive measures to minimize risks. (Newswire)

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The Mahaweli Authority has announced that the spillway and sluice gates of the Kotmale Gamini Dissanayake Reservoir are being opened in sequence from 3:00 pm today to safeguard the reservoir and manage potential major flood conditions downstream.

It is reported that the move follows heavy rainfall in the upper catchment areas, with about 250 cubic feet of water per second expected to be released into the Kotmale Oya.

The Authority warned of flood risks in low‑lying areas downstream of the Kotmale Oya, including Nugawela, Riverside, and Mawathura, as well as along the Mahaweli River from Ulapane through Gampola, Waligalla, Gelioya, Peradeniya, Katugastota, and Polgolla.

Residents in these regions have been urged to remain highly vigilant and take necessary precautions as water levels rise. (Newswire)

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The Irrigation Department has extended the flood warning for the Kelani River Basin for another 48 hours, cautioning residents and motorists to remain on high alert.

The Amber‑level warning, issued this morning, will remain in effect until 11:30 am on Wednesday, August 5. 

The Irrigation Department states that continuous rainfall and rising water levels have heightened the risk of flooding in low‑lying areas.

The department urged residents and motorists in affected regions to exercise extreme caution and requested Disaster Management Authorities to take necessary measures to minimize risks. (Newswire)

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Traffic has been disrupted on several roads due to the heavy rains experienced in several parts of Sri Lanka today.

According to reports, traffic has been reported on the Colombo- Avissawella Road due to several areas being inundated as a result of heavy rains.

With heavy rainfall recorded in some areas of the Kelani River valley, flooding has been reported in certain areas from Avissawella to Hanwella, disrupting traffic.

Accordingly, the Colombo–Avissawella main road has been submerged at the Puwakpitiya Thummodara junction, the Seethawaka Botanical Garden, as well as some places in the Yatiyantota.

Vehicular movement has been disrupted on the Delgoda- Belumahara Road in the Udupila area due to flooding. 

The Gampaha Miriswatta road too has been obstructed for vehicle movement due to flooding.

Traffic has also been disrupted on the Divulapitiya–Mirigama road for light vehicle movement due to flooding in the Ullalapitiya area. (Newswire)

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The Irrigation Department has warned of a possible minor flood situation in low‑lying areas of the Kuda Ganga and Maguru Ganga, following considerable rainfall in upstream catchment areas of the Kuda Ganga sub‑basin of the Kalu River as of 8.00 a.m. today.

Hydrological station data from the Kalu Ganga indicate rising water levels, prompting concerns that roads running through floodplains in the Bulathsinhala, Madurawala, and Palinda Nuwara Divisional Secretariat divisions could be inundated.

Residents in these vulnerable areas, along with motorists using flood‑prone routes, have been urged to remain highly vigilant. 

Disaster Management Authorities have also been requested to take adequate precautionary measures to mitigate potential impacts. (Newswire)

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Train operations on the Puttalam railway line have been limited to Chilaw station after several sections of track near Thilladi were submerged by floodwaters, the Railway Department announced.

In a statement issued this afternoon, the department said adverse weather conditions had inundated multiple points along the line, forcing services to be curtailed. 

Rising water levels are expected to continue, prompting the suspension of trains beyond Chilaw for both today and tomorrow (May 14).

As a result, the Puttalam office train and all other scheduled services will operate only between Colombo Fort and Chilaw today, while tomorrow morning trains will commence journeys from Chilaw station.

The Railway Department added that updates on train operations between Chilaw and Puttalam will be provided depending on weather and track conditions. (Newswire)

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A new United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) assessment released on Wednesday reports that nearly all communities affected by Cyclone Ditwah in Sri Lanka suffered damage to homes, roads and other critical infrastructure.

The report further underscores the scale of recovery needs and the urgency of accessible financing for the most vulnerable.

The qualitative assessment, based on key informant interviews with 510 local officials, business leaders, and community representatives across 85 divisional secretariat divisions in the 22 most affected districts, found that 95% of respondents reported damage to residential, transport, industrial or community infrastructure within their area, with housing and roads most frequently cited.

Cyclone Ditwah struck Sri Lanka on 26 November 2025 and is the country’s deadliest disaster since the 2004 tsunami. An initial UNDP geospatial analysis released in December 2025 estimated that floodwaters inundated nearly 20% of the country’s land area, exposing approximately 2.3 million people. 

Building on this analysis, the qualitative assessment findings point to deep and widespread recovery needs, with many communities lacking the materials, labour, and financing required to rebuild.

“We commend the Government of Sri Lanka’s announcement on plans to provide LKR 95 billion in support to MSMEs, including a 3% concessional loan scheme, which is a crucial step in accelerating recovery. At the same time, it is essential that we prioritize support for the many that operate outside formal systems—those who often remain unseen yet form the backbone of the local economy,” said Azusa Kubota, UNDP Resident Representative in Sri Lanka.

“The RAPIDA assessment underscores the importance of moving beyond short-term humanitarian assistance toward a comprehensive approach to early recovery and resilience-building. This is vital to ensure vulnerable populations do not fall back into poverty and get trapped in the cycle. Investing in recovery efforts that strengthen local economies—including targeted support for the informal sector—will be central to building disaster resilience and secure sustainable livelihoods for all.”

UNDP’s assessment highlights widespread economic fallout. A large majority of respondents (93%) reported that livelihoods had been affected in their area, citing crop and livestock losses, job losses and business closures, including in the informal sector, which employs a large share of Sri Lanka’s workforce. Key recovery needs include support for micro enterprises, access to low-interest loans and capital for small businesses to rebuild their infrastructure and stocks.

More than half of those interviewed reported that vulnerable groups, such as older people, persons with disabilities and female-headed households, were among those affected. The most common coping mechanisms included government aid or support (reported by 76% of respondents), followed by assistance from international organisations at 45%, and informal lending at 40%. These patterns point to rising household debt stress, with implications for both household welfare and the pace of recovery for micro and small enterprises.   

Respondents also identified shortages of construction materials, limited availability of skilled labour, and funding constraints as obstacles to rebuilding damaged infrastructure, while citing delays in approvals and weak coordination between institutions as slowing recovery efforts.

Environmental and health risks emerged as additional concerns, with local officials reporting water contamination, soil erosion, and damage to ecosystems, pointing to longer-term climate and public health impacts.

Sri Lanka, like other countries in South Asia, is increasingly exposed to extreme weather events linked to climate change, including floods, cyclones and prolonged droughts.

UNDP said the findings highlight the need for continued support to restore infrastructure and livelihoods, particularly for informal workers and small businesses, while strengthening the climate and disaster resilience of enterprises and industries as the country transitions from emergency relief to recovery and reconstruction. (Newswire)

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The Department of Irrigation says the Department of Meteorology has forecast heavy rainfall in river basins located within the Uva, Eastern, Central, North Central, and Northern Provinces.

The department says, as such, there is an increased risk of flooding in the river basins of the districts of Ampara, Batticaloa, Polonnaruwa, Anuradhapura, Trincomalee, Vavuniya, and Jaffna.

Accordingly, residents living in low-lying areas along river valleys and in close proximity to rivers within the said districts are advised to remain vigilant. (Newswire)

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