Colombo’s municipal authorities convened an emergency meeting on Saturday morning to agree urgent measures after Friday evening’s flooding, as the Department of Meteorology forecast a further 100mm of rain and issued a severe lightning advisory covering 22 of the country’s 25 districts.
The drainage system was built for a quarter of what fell
Mayor of Colombo Vraie Cally Balthazaar said the city’s drainage system is designed to handle rainfall of roughly 30 millimetres, but that Colombo received nearly four times that amount, NewsFirst reported. She described the result as an exceptional situation and acknowledged the significant disruption caused to residents.
That ratio is broadly consistent with the Met Department’s own measurement of 129mm at its Colombo station on Friday evening, which is about 4.3 times the 30mm design capacity the Mayor cited.
Representatives of the police, the Tri-Forces, Divisional Secretariats, the Governor’s Office, the Sri Lanka Land Development Corporation and the Urban Development Authority were expected to attend. The Mayor said the Colombo Municipal Council intends to work with those bodies on immediate solutions, with the discussion focused on improving drainage and addressing the city’s canal network and road infrastructure.
More rain on the way
Meril Mendis, Director of the Met Department’s Forecasting Division, said showers or thundershowers could be expected in several areas from about 1.00 p.m. on Saturday, with heavy falls above 100mm in several parts of the island, NewsFirst reported.
He said the cloud formations are expected to develop over the next two to three days, with heavy rainfall likely particularly towards the fourth or fifth day — placing the heaviest conditions around the middle of next week rather than this weekend.
Hiru News reported the Met Department naming the specific areas at risk of falls above 100mm on Saturday: the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central and North-Western provinces and the Galle and Matara districts. Hiru added that misty conditions could prevail in the early morning in parts of the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central and Uva provinces, and that the department asked the public to take precautions against temporary strong winds and lightning.
Lightning advisory covers 22 districts
The Met Department issued an amber advisory for severe lightning across 22 districts: Anuradhapura, Ampara, Kalutara, Kegalle, Kilinochchi, Kurunegala, Colombo, Gampaha, Galle, Nuwara Eliya, Puttalam, Polonnaruwa, Badulla, Batticaloa, Mannar, Kandy, Matara, Mullaitivu, Monaragala, Ratnapura, Vavuniya and Hambantota.
Mendis urged the public to follow forecasts and advisories closely in the coming days.
No casualties or evacuations had been reported by any of the newsrooms covering the flooding at the time of filing.
