Aid comes to Sri Lanka after heavy rains wreak havoc
The heaviest rains in a quarter of a century have battered Sri Lanka and other South Asian countries. At least 71 people have been killed and more than half a million displaced in the past week.
More than 500,000 people have fled their homes
People walk down a flooded road after leaving their homes behind in Biyagama. For a week now, torrential rains have deluged the island country, triggering landslides that have buried victims in up to 50 feet (15 meters) of mud and left 127 people missing.
Thousands scramble for shelter
People are seen gathering inside a Buddhist temple after a landslide in Elangipitiya village. Nearly 300,000 people are staying in about 500 state-run relief centers; 200,000 others have sought refuge with friends or family.
Desperate times call for desperate measures
A man pushes his rickshaw after it got stuck on a flooded road in Colombo. Residents clung to ropes as they battled to the cross torrents of water that inundated the streets of the flooded capital. Some were even forced to take shelter in rickshaws.
22 of Sri Lanka’s 25 districts affected
People sit atop a roof of a house on the side of a flooded road in Biyagama. Twenty-two of Sri Lanka’s 25 districts have been affected by the rains, according to disaster officials. Almost a third of residents have been moved from the low-lying capital, which has a population of about 650,000.
Death toll likely to rise
Members of the Sri Lankan military rescue team can be seen working at the site of a landslide in the village of Aranayaka. A total of 127 people, including 37 children, have been reported missing since Tuesday's landslides.
Huge outpouring of sympathy
Navy rescuers walk a woman on a flooded road in Biyagama. Disaster management officials said there had been a huge outpouring of sympathy for victims, with people donating food, clothing and dry rations.
Foreign aid pours in
A man bathes on the side of a flooded road in Biyagama. As aid began to arrive on Saturday, authorities said their priority was now preventing diseases such as diarrhea, with many areas still underwater.
Rains caused by depression in Bay of Bengal
A man stuggles to hold his umbrella against gusts of wind and pouring rain in Colombo. The meteorological department reported that the rains were caused by a depression in the Bay of Bengal ahead of the arrival of the southwest monsoon.