Five people escaped without injury after the car they were travelling in veered off the Nallathanniya–Maskeliya main road and fell into a canal near Mohini Falls shortly after midnight.
The group, residents of Vavuniya and Kilinochchi, had arrived at the Nallathanniya Police Station at about 11.00 p.m. on Wednesday and told officers they intended to climb Sri Pada. Police advised them against making the ascent at night because of the prevailing bad weather, and asked them to return in the morning.
The group accepted the advice. While they were driving back to look for accommodation, the car skidded off the road in the Mohini Falls area at around midnight and went into the canal.
Three men and two women were in the vehicle. All five got out unhurt, though the car was extensively damaged. Nallathanniya Police are investigating.
Off-season on the mountain
Sri Pada, also known as Adam’s Peak, draws large numbers of pilgrims during the season that runs from the Unduvap full moon in December to the Vesak full moon in May. Outside those months the route is unlit and unstaffed, the weather on the approach roads is often poor, and police routinely discourage night climbs.
The road between Nallathanniya and Maskeliya is narrow and winding, with steep drops and water courses running close to the carriageway. A three-wheeler accident in the same area killed two people in July. That was a separate incident involving a different vehicle.
