Sri Lanka stopped passenger trains and closed roads in some parts of the country where landslides and floods triggered by heavy rains have caused more than 20 deaths, officials said Thursday.
The government’s disaster management center said 18 of the reported deaths occurred in the tea-growing, mountainous regions of Badulla and Nuwara Eliya in the country's central province about 300 kilometers (186 miles) east of the capital Colombo.
Another 14 people were missing Thursday due to landslides in the same areas, the center said.
The death toll has risen to 31 since last week, when Sri Lanka began grappling with severe weather. Heavy downpours over the weekend wreaked havoc by flooding homes, fields and roads, The Associated Press said.
Authorities stopped trains in some areas in the mountainous region after rocks, muds and trees fell onto tracks and local television showed workers busy removing the debris. Roads also were closed due to heavy flooding.
The severe weather has impacted about 4,000 families, the center said.
