Heavy rain lash Sri Lanka, 6 dead

Six people were killed as heavy rain and strong winds have lashed Sri Lanka since the weekend, triggering floods in several areas of the island nation, the Disaster Management Centre (DMC) said.

The DMC said that 13 districts were affected by the heavy downpours which triggered the evacuation of 891 people to safer areas, reports Xinhua news agency.

A landslide warning had also been issued in 10 districts, including in some areas in the capital Colombo, the DMC said.

The Meteorology Department said that further rains were expected in several regions of the country in the coming days and people were urged to be cautious as it could cause floods in low-lying places.

The Sri Lanka Navy said it had deployed relief teams to flood-prone areas for search and rescue operations in the event of a weather-related disaster - IANS