Meetotamulla death toll rises upto 10; 4 children among them

Meetotamulla death toll rises upto 10; 4 children among them

According to statistics, the death toll of Meetotamulla garbage dump landslide tragedy which took place last evening (14) has now risen to 10. Though this was the estimate available on calculations hitherto carried out, authorities have informed that a search for missing persons who have been covered by houses in the environment and walls that have collapsed etcetera are underway,

those who have died in the process are more.

Bodies of those who have died have been brought to Colombo National Hospital and there were 4 children of the ages of 12, 15, 14 and 11 among them, it is reported. 12 injured persons have been admitted to the National Hospital and 5 of them have gone back after treatment. Mr. Jasingha mentioned that of those who died, only 1 person had died while under treatment while the others had been already dead at the time they were admitted to hospital. A hospital spokesman said that the condition of several of those who were warded from among the 7, is serious.

As a consequence of the incident of a part of the garbage dump collapsing, 180 people have been inconvenienced. Minister of Disaster Management Mr. Anura Priyadarshana said that those so inconvenienced have been provided lodging at a vihara in the area. The Minister of Disaster Management further said that the President has advised him to take immediate action to rescue those who have faced this tragedy. Spokesman for the Army, Brigadier Mr. Roshan Seneviratna said that a team of 300 to 400 of the armed forces have been deployed to rescue persons trapped among the debris. The Army spokesman also added that an information centre has been installed at Meetotamulla Mihindu Vidyalaya to secure information about those who faced the tragedy. An announcement released by President's Office cautions the public to refrain from visiting the location of this catastrophe.