Sri Lankan floods leave 1 million people homeless | Connect Asia

The government says 18 people are now been confirmed dead after another five victims were identified today. And about 200,000 people have lost their homes and more than a million people have been displaced.

Presenter: Kate Arnott

Pradeep Kodippili from the Disaster Management Centre in Colombo

ARNOTT: Sri Lanka's monsoon season is usually the lifeblood of the nation's agricultural industries but occasionally it destroys the lives of those who depend on it. This year, a huge area in the central and eastern provinces has been devastated by floods and mudslides. After days of torrential rain, the country's disaster management centre says one million people have been left homeless and an estimated 200,000 homes have been demolished.

KODIPPILI: 273,000 people displaced and they are temporarily accommodated in the 534 ID [internally displaced] camps.

ARNOTT: Thousands of people remain in danger and the death toll continues to rise. The military has been lifting the fortunate few to safety, and distributing food and medical supplies to dozens of isolated communities, which have been cut-off.

KODIPPILI: Especially air force and navy, they are doing transport and they are carrying all the things for the 11 location centres for the relevant areas. Army and all the police officers they are helping to coordinate and distribute the things to the people.

ARNOTT: Many schools remain closed, while 800 camps have sprung-up to deal with those who've been evacuated or fled. Torrents of water have made most roads dangerous or impassable and there's little relief in sight. The weather is so bad, that even the president had to abandon his planned journey to inspect the damage.

KODIPPILI: But hopefully if the weather, this weather conditions, follows up in the next two three days, all the conditions will get better.Editor's note: (February 21) This article originally reported incorrectly that Sri Lanka's economy was "predominantly agricultural".