Sri Lanka faces ‘historic’ crisis as floods and landslides worsen, says disaster management chief
Sampath Kotuwegoda, Sri Lanka’s Disaster Management Centre chief, told Al Jazeera the country is facing one of its worst weather-related disasters in decades...

Al Jazeera English
27.9K views • Dec 1, 2025

About this video
Sampath Kotuwegoda, Sri Lanka’s Disaster Management Centre chief, told Al Jazeera the country is facing one of its worst weather-related disasters in decades after Cyclone Dittwa triggered severe floods, landslides, and infrastructure collapse across all 25 districts.
He confirmed at least 355 deaths, a similar number missing, and more than 1.1 million people displaced.
Rescue capacity is insufficient, and Sri Lanka urgently needs additional SAR and emergency teams.
India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Japan have already deployed assistance, with more countries in discussion.
He warned that climate change is intensifying extreme weather events regionally.
Immediate priorities are rescue operations followed by resettlement.
Rebuilding the nation will be a massive task requiring extensive international support.
Subscribe to our channel: http://bit.ly/AJSubscribe
Follow us on X: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish
Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera
Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/
Check out our Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/aljazeeraenglish/
Download AJE Mobile App: https://aje.io/AJEMobile
#SriLanka #SriLankaFloods #SriLankaDisasterRelief #NaturalDisasters #SriLankaMonsoonRains #CycloneDitwah #SriLankaFloodEmergency #ExtremeWeather #Floods #Landslides #SouthAsia #AlJazeeraEnglish
He confirmed at least 355 deaths, a similar number missing, and more than 1.1 million people displaced.
Rescue capacity is insufficient, and Sri Lanka urgently needs additional SAR and emergency teams.
India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Japan have already deployed assistance, with more countries in discussion.
He warned that climate change is intensifying extreme weather events regionally.
Immediate priorities are rescue operations followed by resettlement.
Rebuilding the nation will be a massive task requiring extensive international support.
Subscribe to our channel: http://bit.ly/AJSubscribe
Follow us on X: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish
Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera
Check our website: http://www.aljazeera.com/
Check out our Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/aljazeeraenglish/
Download AJE Mobile App: https://aje.io/AJEMobile
#SriLanka #SriLankaFloods #SriLankaDisasterRelief #NaturalDisasters #SriLankaMonsoonRains #CycloneDitwah #SriLankaFloodEmergency #ExtremeWeather #Floods #Landslides #SouthAsia #AlJazeeraEnglish
Tags and Topics
Browse our collection to discover more content in these categories.
Video Information
Views
27.9K
Likes
169
Duration
4:11
Published
Dec 1, 2025
User Reviews
4.1
(5) Related Trending Topics
LIVE TRENDSRelated trending topics. Click any trend to explore more videos.
Trending Now