Flash floods cripple Sri Lanka tsunami relief as toll mounts

Flash floods crippled relief work in eastern Sri Lanka dealing a double blow to tsunami survivors as another 14,000 people were reported missing apart from the nearly 29,000 confirmed dead.





Flash floods crippled relief work in eastern Sri Lanka dealing a double blow to tsunami survivors as another 14,000 people were reported missing apart from the nearly 29,000 confirmed dead. At least 15 tsunami refugee camps were flooded after heavy overnight rains dumped 330 millimetres (13 inches) of water over the coastal region which was the hardest hit in last week's disaster, chief local administrator Herath Abeyweera said.

Abeyweera, who was in Ampara 350 kilometres (218 miles) east of here, said most of the access roads to the coastal district had been cut off by flooding that has also damaged several key bridges.

He said a team of 20 Japanese medical staff was unable to move out to camps that were four feet (1.

2 metres) under water while all relief convoys were also held up by the river flooding.

The heavy rain forced 10,000 people out of their homes adding to the problem of caring for 160,000 tsunami refugees in Ampara district, he said.

Several bridges either coll