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Death toll in Sri Lanka landslide surpasses 100

At least another 100 are missing and presumed dead.

By Ed Adamczyk
Humanitarian aid arrives in Sri Lanka, after landslides prompted by heavy rains last week killed at least 101 people. Photo courtesy of Sri Lank Red Cross Society/Facebook
Humanitarian aid arrives in Sri Lanka, after landslides prompted by heavy rains last week killed at least 101 people. Photo courtesy of Sri Lank Red Cross Society/Facebook

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, May 25 (UPI) -- More than 100 people died in last week's mudslides in Sri Lanka, officials said, as floodwaters recede and survivors return to their villages.

The Sri Lankan Disaster Management Center counted 101 deaths from landslides prompted by early monsoons. Another 100 are missing and presumed dead in the Kegalle district of the Central province, the country's hardest-hit area. More than 120,000 people, housed in temporary encampments across the country, have begun returning to their homes.

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In Siripura, one of three villages in central Sri Lanka completely buried in the landslide, survivors hoped to find lost relatives. A rescue official, Maj. Gen. Sudantha Ranasinghe, said, "There is no question of survivors here. It is now assumed all those missing are dead."

A resident, Kusumseeli Geekiyanage, 57, said authorities issued no warning of an impending disaster, despite days of heavy rain, and no evacuation orders were given.

"There is not a trace of our village any more. No trace of our homes, our people," she said, Al Jazeera reported. "There is no Siripura. It's completely gone."

The Sri Lanka Red Cross urged those returning to their homes to be aware of health issues. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said communities are at risk of water-borne and skin diseases as aftereffects of the disaster, adding early detection of dengue fever, measles and pneumonia symptoms is crucial.

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