Shelter lacking for victims of floods in Kilinochchi

[TamilNet, Friday, 20 December 2002, 18:42 GMT]
The floods during the past few days in the Kilinochchi district have destroyed 46 homes in the Anaivilunthan area and residents have sought refuge in the only school in the area, but as the roof of the school has been damaged they are without proper shelter, officials in Kilinochchi said.

The officials said that the Akkarayankulam irrigation tank is overflowing by 3 feet of water, and 25 homes in Samathanpuram near the tank have been submerged in floods.

In the Mullaitivu district, small tanks in Maruthankulam, Palayamurikandikulam, Thorankandalkulam, Ampalaperumalkulam, Kotaikaddinakulam, Visuvamadukulam and Udaiyarkaddukulam are overflowing and the floods have cut off transport on many roads, said Ms. Imelda Sukumar, the government agent for Mullaitivu.

Ms. Sukumar said that a large number of people displaced by war, who have returned to their homes as a result of the current peace, were engaged in agriculture, and the danger is that their agricultural produce may be destroyed.

Using irrigation schemes large and small, farmers are currently using about 96% of the agricultural land in the Mullaitivu district for paddy cultivation.

Meanwhile, a fisherman in Mullaitivu, Mr. Krishnapillai Satyanantharajah (30), a father of three, lost his life to deep currents as he was pushing his fishing boat from the shore to the sea Thursday morning, sources said. The body has not been found yet.