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Thousands of Sri Lankans trek to safety for evacuation after landslides kill 17
Associated Press,
Sat January 13, 2007 04:19 EST .
KRISHAN FRANCIS - Associated Press Writer - PADIYAPELELLA, Sri Lanka - (AP) Air force helicopters on Saturday evacuated dozens of people injured during landslides in Sri Lanka - 's central tea growing region that left 17 dead and others feared trapped, officials said. The landslides triggered by heavy rains damaged at least 1,600 homes, leaving between 9,000 and 16,000 people homeless across 15 villages near Nuwara Eliya, a mountainous region in central Sri Lanka - known for its lush tea gardens and which is prone to landslides, the Defense Ministry said. In the farming village of Padiyapelella, about 1,000 residents took shelter in the local school when the mud slide threatened to damage their homes Friday. After spending the night there, most of them left the school Saturday for a safer location, trekking along slippery, rock-strewn paths. One man was seen carrying his old mother, who was too weak to walk. Women clutched their children while men carried whatever belongings they could take out of their abandoned homes. They headed for the safety of higher ground where two air force helicopters evacuated the first batch of 36 sick and wounded, said police officer A.M. Jayawardena. With road access closed, the air force dropped food packets. The military asked residents to lineup up for the air lift, as it was too dangerous to remain in the area. ``Our forces have redoubled efforts and we have rescued dozens of people,'' military spokesman, Brig. Prasad Samarasinghe said in the capital, Colombo. An official at the Disaster Management Ministry said the latest body count stood at 17 and that 15 villagers were missing. ``Seven homes have gone completely under mud,'' said Namal Rambukpotha. ``We have not been able to reach those homes yet,'' he said. Military spokesman Samarasinghe said the army had deployed military helicopters along with 100 soldiers to search for those feared trapped by the landslides. It was unclear how many people were believed buried. Poor road conditions were delaying relief reaching some of those affected . ``There are many places where there have been landslides,'' D.P.G. Kumarasiri, a senior bureaucrat in Nuwara Eliya district, 180 kilometers (117 miles) east of Colombo said Friday. Bad weather delayed relief and rescue efforts on Friday, but conditions improved Saturday with sunny skies. The National Building Research Organization has sent its people to the area to identify areas at risk of landslides and to evacuate people, said official Kumari Weerasinghe. Associated Press writer Bharatha Mallawarachi contributed to this report from Colombo.
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Published: Sat Jan 13 05:30:33 EST 2007
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