Mayhem in Meethotamulla

By Himal Kotelawala

Confusion and heartache reigned in Dahampura, Meethotamulla, Colombo over the weekend as residents were still trying to make sense of the disaster that struck them on the Sinhala Hindu New Year’s day killing an estimated 21 people and displacing nearly 200. 

A colossal pile of garbage gave way when a suspected explosion underneath triggered a landslide that engulfed some 60-100 houses in the vicinity, burying men, women and children alive in its wake. 

Army and Police Special Task Force (STF) personnel were seen at the site on Saturday (15 April), a full 24 hours after the incident, still digging through the debris and braving the elements into the late hours of the evening in an attempt to recover bodies that police said may still be buried underneath the rubble.

The anger present in the villagers gathered around were palpable, as many were observed by this reporter shouting themselves hoarse, berating the authorities for allegedly turning a blind eye to their pleas to remove the massive garbage dump from their neighbourhood. 

One woman who had lost her brother in the disaster was seen tearfully reciting her story to the Inspector General of Police Pujith Jayasundara, who had visited the area to oversee the ongoing excavations. Politicians, she complained, had repeatedly ignored their requests to address the problem.

Many residents gathered at the site refused to speak to journalists, charging that the media had previously sided with the political establishment in reporting their plight, which has now, they said, resulted in catastrophe.

Sukarnika Rajapaksa, a Dahampura resident who was lucky enough to escape with her life, told Daily FT that around 2.30 in the afternoon on Avurudu Day, a loud explosion was heard, followed by a two-storey red-painted house ominously making its way to her place.

Leaving their belongings behind, Rajapaksa and her family ran for their lives to a neighbour›s house that was nearby but far enough to be safe from the oncoming debris.

“The dump is quite a ways away from us, but the garbage came within metres of our house. I saw with my own house the red house drifting towards our place,” Rajapaksa, still taking refuge at the neighbour’s, said.

Rajapaksa’s residence is now submerged in water that the neighbours say is the result of burst pipes and water that had gathered under the garbage dump in the wake of last year’s unprecedented floods.

Rajapaksa claimed their repeated pleas to the authorities to help out have so far fallen on deaf ears, and they’re still awaiting aid and assistance.

“Even the funds that were promised to us when the floods came in May last year have yet to materialise. Now we’re staying with our neighbours. They’re like family now. We trust them and they have allowed us to stay with them for the time being,” she said.

Sugath Dammika, 41, a laborurer and a father of three, was not so lucky. Although he himself managed to escape unhurt, his two young sons (aged 18 and 20) died in the tragedy under the most unfortunate circumstances. At the time of writing, only one of their bodies had been discovered.

“I went to pick up my two boys from their workplace. My wife, my youngest son and two nieces were also in the three wheeler. Usually when I pick them up from work, we go to the Diyawanna Oya, but yesterday we thought we’d go to my sister-in-law’s place,” recounted a visibly drained Dammika.

That house just so happened to be in close proximity to the garbage dump. Not 10 minutes had gone by when they arrived, the house was buried in a heap of soil and solid waste that came out of nowhere. Dammika managed to bring his wife and youngest son to safety. The other members of the household had also escaped in the nick of time. His two boys, however, couldn’t get out in time.

“There was no traffic either, as it was New Year’s Day. If I had been just five minutes late [to get to my sister-in-law’s place] my children would be alive now,” said Dammika.

His wife was still at the morgue, identifying the younger son’s body. The older boy is still nowhere to be found.

Meanwhile, Nalini Liyanage, who lost three members of her extended family and was furious at what she called the negligence of the authorities, remarked that no good would come out of getting their story out.

“We ran as soon as we heard the explosion. Then the houses started coming our way. There were eight people in our house. My son, his children, my brother-in-law, we all ran,” she said.

Liyanage’s residence, like many others in the area, is now partially underwater and completely inaccessible.

“There was water in the dump after the floods. We’ve been protesting this. We held a protest as recently as three months ago. The Buddhist monks and the Muslim religious leaders in the area also took part but to no avail,” she said.

Some 60-100 houses set free from their foundations and slid across the hilly terrain crashing into other houses along the way. Police Media Spokesman Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Priyantha Jayakody, who was at the site, told Daily FT that some of these houses had moved as far as 25-30 metres from their original locations - a few of them even landing on the roofs of other houses in their vicinity.

According to DIG Jayakody, geology experts looking into the incident suspect an explosion underneath the dump had triggered the landslide. Police have not ruled out foul play.

“We have summoned Geological Department experts from the University of Peradeniya and the Government analyst as well as others to get an expert opinion on what really happened: whether it was a man-made disaster or a natural disaster. If it was the latter, how did it originate, was it a chemical reaction, was it an explosion underneath the earth’s surface? It’s still too early to come to a conclusion,” he said.

The Police and the three armed forces, he further said, have so far found 18 dead bodies, all of which have been dispatched to the Colombo General Hospital. At least seven injured persons admitted to the hospital are now out of danger and those who sustained minor injuries have left the hospital, he added.

“We have three major tasks now. Firstly, to look for any living persons [trapped under the rubble]. We’re slowly and systematically removing the debris. Secondly, we have to provide security to the area [to prevent looting]. Lastly, over 180 people have been displaced, their houses smashed and now we’re in the process of providing them shelter, food and clothes,” said DIG Jayakody.

The number of affected people may increase, however, he added. The area, roughly 800 m in radius, has been declared a danger zone and residents have been requested to evacuate until rescue operations are complete.

-Pix by Himal Kotelawala and Shehan Gunasekera