Landslide early warnings have been issued for nine areas across five districts as heavy rain continues, with the alert running from 4.00pm on Tuesday until 4.00pm on Wednesday.
The warnings were issued by the National Building Research Organisation (NBRO), the Daily Mirror reported on Tuesday evening.
Amber — Level 2 (Warning)
Nine areas were placed on the higher of the two alert levels:
- Badulla District: Ella, Haldummulla, Haputale
- Kandy District: Udunuwara, Udadumbara
- Matara District: Kotapola
- Nuwara Eliya District: Nildandhahinna
- Ratnapura District: Kalawana, Godakawela
Yellow — Level 1 (Watch)
A wider set of divisions was placed on watch, adding two districts that do not appear on the amber list:
- Badulla: Welimada, Meegahakivula, Passara, Kandaketiya
- Kandy: Doluwa, Thumpane, Medadumbara, Yatinuwara, Minipe, Hatharaliyadda
- Kegalle: Aranayaka, Mawanella, Ruwanwella, Rambukkana, Yatiyanthota, Bulathkohupitiya, Kegalle
- Kurunegala: Rideegama, Ibbagamuwa
- Matale: Pallepola
- Nuwara Eliya: Kotmale West, Ambagamuwa, Hanguranketha, Walapane, Norwood
Context
The warning lands in a prolonged wet spell. The Met Department’s Tuesday forecast carried falls above 75mm at some places across several provinces, and reservoirs have been spilling for more than a week — eight gates are open at Deduru Oya and the Irrigation Department has issued a Kala Oya warning at Rajanganaya. NBRO had already extended warnings to four districts on 30 October.
Rambukkana, on the Kegalle watch list, is on the stretch of the Main Line where a tree fell on an evening train on Tuesday.
A note on the agency’s name
The Daily Mirror filing names the issuing body as the “National Building Research Institute (NBRI)”. The agency responsible for landslide early warnings in Sri Lanka is the National Building Research Organisation (NBRO), which is the form this desk’s earlier reporting uses and the form used here.
Not reported
The filing does not give rainfall thresholds that would trigger an upgrade, name any evacuation order, or report damage or casualties in the listed divisions. No second verified newsroom had carried this specific warning bulletin at the time of writing.