The International Water Management Institute (IWMI) stands in solidarity with Sri Lanka as the island country grapples with one of its most severe weather emergencies in decades. Cyclone Ditwah made landfall on November 28, triggering catastrophic flooding and landslides that have claimed at least 56 lives, with 23 people still reported missing.
Official reports indicate that several districts have received more than 300 millimeters of rain in 24 hours. The deluge has triggered widespread flooding and landslides, affecting over 43,000 people, with thousands evacuated to emergency shelters across multiple provinces as search and rescue operations continue.
“In this moment of national crisis, IWMI stands firmly with the people of Sri Lanka,” said Mark Smith, Director General of IWMI. “Our teams are supporting disaster-response agencies, providing accurate information that can help protect lives, particularly in these critical first hours of the response.”
IWMI, with global headquarters in Colombo, worked with national emergency response systems from the onset of the tropical deep depression in the Bay of Bengal, which later gained strength and turned into Cyclone Ditwah. IWMI researchers are supporting Sri Lanka’s Disaster Management Centre (DMC) with satellite-based flooding forecasts, rainfall monitoring and situation reports. They also provided a tool to quickly digitize and process police reports, which will speed up data processing and on-the-ground response.
The cyclone made landfall along the eastern coast before moving inland, inundating low-lying areas and overwhelming rivers across the central, north-central and northwestern provinces. Landslides in the central highlands cut off road access to several communities, complicating rescue operations. The floods have waterlogged agricultural fields and disrupted the planting season, which will have an impact on food security: flood damage will reduce the production of staple crops for the months ahead.
Officials warn that cyclonic weather patterns will cause intense rainfall in the coming days. As heavy rainfall continues and river levels rise and shift across the country, IWMI and the DMC remain on high alert, working hand in hand to monitor the evolution of the flooding and to guide timely response.
IWMI reaffirms its long-standing commitment to Sri Lanka, where it has conducted research on water management, climate resilience and disaster risk reduction for more than four decades.
