Sri Lanka fears disease outbreak
Spread of waterborne disease worries residents after days of heavy rains that have left 27 dead.
At least 27 people have been killed in Sri Lanka after days of heavy rain wreaked havoc mainly in the country’s eastern province.
The country’s disaster management centre said on Friday that the number of people reported missing stands at 12.
Heavier-than-normal monsoon rains since early January have caused dams and reservoirs to burst, swamped roads and set off mudslides.
More than a million people have been affected by the floods and mudslides, including 363,000 who have been forced from their homes.
The floods also caused sewage lines to overflow, sparking concerns about the spread of waterborne diseases, including typhoid.
Al Jazeera’s Minelle Fernandez reports from the eastern port city of Batticaloa, which has been hit the hardest, where people are taking refuge wherever they can.