Unfortunate landslide death in Badulla

Body of nurse who phoned "I and baby stuck here! .... save us!" .... exhumed with baby huddled in her arms!

As a result of inclement weather conditions prevalent these days, environmental accidents have become a terrible problem for most people. Among those are reports of pathetic stories too.

When an upstair house was subjected to a landslide in Akkara 53, Rilapola, Badulla, a nurse attached to Badulla Hospital together with her 2 month old child died unfortunately in the process. What was even more pathetic to everyone was that during the initial stages of the said landslide the nurse had called out asking for assistance from the hospital staff on her mobile phone.

The nurse who called some colleagues in this manner over the phone had shouted out, "aney .... it's I, my baby and 2 younger brothers cornered here .... aney.... come to our rescue somehow or other!"

Though she had yelled this way continuously over the phone asking for them to be rescued, nobody was able to get anywhere near the spot concerned because it was a location difficult of access and also because there was a risk of the landslide occuring once more.

After a short while the same location was subjected to a landslide twice once again and there had also been no calls from her after that.

Army officers of the rescue team had strived to get to this place; but had to give up their attempt later. However, on excavations carried out as investigations done the following day after the landslide, dead bodies of the nurse who yelled out for help, her 2 month old child and one of her brothers were found. At the time the bodies were recovered, the sight of the mother hugging her baby brought tears to everybody's eyes. 

A photo taken on the day of the wedding of the deceased nurse is seen here. This landslide had occured after she had received her first appointment at Badulla Hospital when she had been to her mother's house having taken maternity leave and it was there that this mishap had happened when her 2 brothers too had been with her.

Her husband had been among the living and at the moment of the tragedy she had phoned her nursing staff members at the hospital where she worked, the matron in charge and her husband too.

There were 5 other dead bodies found from the place where her dead body was recovered while further search is on on the assumption that about 15 other dead bodies may be recovered.

Photos and information -- Vimukthi Sanjaya Perera (Rivira)