Police have confirmed that 20 people drowned during the Sinhala and Tamil New Year holiday period from April 12 to 16, as two more deaths were reported on Thursday in separate incidents.
In Mihintale, a 55-year-old man from Maradankulama died after jumping into the Maradankulama Tank to save two drowning children aged 11 and 12. The children survived unharmed, but their rescuer could not be saved.
In a second incident, a 17-year-old from Lunugala, Badulla, drowned in the Seethawaka River at Hinguralakanda in Dehiowita while bathing at a relative’s home.
The drowning toll adds to the broader Avurudu holiday casualties. Road accidents during the festive period claimed 49 lives, with 44 killed in the first five days alone. Combined with the drowning deaths, the holiday period cost at least 69 lives across the island.
Authorities have repeatedly urged the public to exercise caution near waterways, particularly during the post-Avurudu period when family gatherings near tanks, rivers, and reservoirs are common. The earlier drowning incidents in the Mahaweli River and Habaraduwa area highlighted the same pattern of bathing-related deaths during the holiday season.
The Mihintale incident underscores the lack of lifeguard presence and safety infrastructure at popular bathing spots in irrigation tanks across the dry zone.
