Extreme Weather: Heavy Rain Forces Train Halt, Cripples Major Road Network

COLOMBO (News 1st); The Department of Railways says that all night mail trains, except for the Jaffna Train scheduled to run tonight, have been cancelled.

Railway spokesperson, Asanka Samarasinghe, says that this decision made considering the prevailing situation in the country.

Meanwhile, vehicular movement on 83 roads has been disrupted as a result of the situation.

According to the Road Development Authority (RDA) this includes:

The Colombo - Ratnapura - Wellawaya via Batticaloa A4 road.
The Kandy - Mahiyangana - Padiyatalawa A26 road.
The Peradeniya - Badulla - Chenkalady A5 road.

Additionally, the following roads are also included:
The Maradankadawala - Habarana - Thirukkondiyamadu A11 road.
The Colombo - Kandy A1 road.
The Padeniya - Anuradhapura A28 road.
The Kandy - Jaffna A9 road.

The Karaitivu - Ampara A31 road as well as the Siyambalanduwa - Damana - Ampara A25 road have been obstructed due to floods and landslides.

The Road Development Authority announced that teams have been deployed to clear these obstructions.

Meanwhile, Power outages are also being reported across many areas as a result of the heavy rain and strong winds.

Minister of Energy Engineer Engineer Kumara Jayakody, stated that work to restore the broken connections have begun.