COLOMBO, Dec. 3 (Xinhua) -- The death toll from adverse weather triggered by Cyclone Ditwah has risen to 474 in Sri Lanka, the Disaster Management Center (DMC) said Wednesday.
Another 356 people remain missing, while more than 1.58 million people from 448,817 families have been affected nationwide, said the DMC, adding that 971 houses have been destroyed and over 40,000 have suffered partial damage.
The National Building Research Organization of Sri Lanka reported 215 severe landslides across seven districts. Geologist Laksiri Indratissa said failure by some residents to evacuate despite repeated warnings contributed to higher fatalities. ■