FLOODING IN CEYLON
WATER INVADES COLOMBO MANY thousands evacuated COLOMBO, Aug. 17. Floods resulting from heavy rainstorms now ‘'menace Colombo city itself, as the result of a 12-foot rise in the river Kelani. Over 10,000 people have fled from Colombo’s suburbs. Government canteens are feeding them. Thousands in the provinces are homeless. At least 23 lives were lost. High Government officials meet to-night to advise relief measures. The floods have caused vast destruction to the paddy crops. Radio warnings have been issued to conserve food for at least three weeks. Between 15,000 and 20,000 were evacuated from the flood areas in Colombo, after the river Kelani burst its banks above the city, and flooded parts of the city to a depth of 42 inches. The river is not expected to drop below danger point until to-mor-row morning.
Permanent link to this item
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/ODT19470819.2.56
Bibliographic details
Otago Daily Times, Issue 26543, 19 August 1947, Page 5
Word Count
137FLOODING IN CEYLON Otago Daily Times, Issue 26543, 19 August 1947, Page 5
Using This Item
Allied Press Ltd is the copyright owner for the Otago Daily Times. You can reproduce in-copyright material from this newspaper for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons New Zealand BY-NC-SA licence. This newspaper is not available for commercial use without the consent of Allied Press Ltd. For advice on reproduction of out-of-copyright material from this newspaper, please refer to the Copyright guide.