Hunters and wildlife officers exchanged fire, and a hunter is in the hospital.

Following a shootout in the Rathmal Wewa area of Lunugamwehera National Park, an injured poacher has been admitted to Debarawewa Hospital, while wildlife officers have succeeded in arresting another individual along with firearms and the carcasses of hunted animals. This incident was reported when a group of wildlife officers from the Lunugamwehera National Park's Kalu Palama Wildlife Office conducted a sudden raid on the afternoon of the 11th, and retaliated against gunfire from a group of poachers.

Two locally manufactured firearms and the carcasses of two hunted spotted deer were taken into wildlife custody from the 44-year-old resident of Tissamaharama who was arrested. The suspect was subsequently remanded after being produced before the Tissamaharama Magistrate's Court in accordance with the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance.

Investigations are underway to apprehend the other poacher who fled during the shootout, and no wildlife officers were harmed in the incident. A team of wildlife officers, including Wildlife Ranger Randis Senaratne, Wildlife Assistant A. Ratnayake, and Field Assistant W.G. Soweera, are conducting further investigations into this matter.