Heavy rains have been lashing Mannar for several days, causing a flood in the district.
Everyday life has been deeply affected by the deluge.
In particular, people in low-lying areas of some villages, including Santhipuram, Southbar and Jimron Nagar, are amongst the hardest hit by the rains.
Heavy rains in other parts of the district have also caused flash floods.
In August the UN appointed Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published its report which higlighted that the world would exceed a global temperature increase of 1.5°C, the stated target of the Paris climate agreement, during this century. The report further warns that unless steps were taken to reduce emissions to zero, global temperatures would likely surpass 2°C. At this stage, “compound” events, such as deadly heatwaves and killer droughts occurring at the same time in the same location, are more likely.
In recent years, the Tamil homeland has been the worst impacted by droughts and flooding. The impact on livelihoods has been further hampered by the increasing military encroachment across the North-East.
Read more here: Sri Lanka amongst the worst affected by climate change warns Environment Minister
