Red alert for 17 districts over severe lightning: Met Dept.

A Red alert on thundershowers accompanied by severe lightning was issued for 17 districts, the Department of Meteorology said today.

They said fairly heavy rainfall of more than 75 mm could be expected at some places in Central, Sabaragamuwa, Western, North-western, Uva and Southern provinces and in Mannar and Ampara districts.

There may be temporary localized strong winds during thundershowers, they said.

Accordingly, 16 districts including Mannar, Puttalam, Kurunegala, Matale, Kandy, Gampaha, Kegalle, Nuwara Eliya, Badulla, Ampara, Colombo, Kalutara, Ratnapura, Monaragala, Galle, Matara and Hambantota have been alerted over the weather conditions.

The general public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimize the damage caused by lightning activity.

The Meteorology Department advised people to seek shelter, preferably indoors and never under trees. They also advised avoiding open areas such as paddy fields, tea plantations, playgrounds and open water bodies during thunderstorms. Avoid using wired telephones and connected electric appliances during thunderstorms. Avoid using open vehicles, such as bicycles, tractors and boats. Beware of fallen trees and power lines. (Chaturanga Samarawickrama)