COLOMBO, Dec 3: Sri Lanka’s total economic loss from Cyclone Ditwah is estimated to be between USD 6 billion and 7 billion, which is roughly 3-5 per cent of the island nation’s GDP, a senior official overseeing recovery efforts said on Wednesday.

At least 465 people died so far, and 366 remain missing as Sri Lanka grapples with widespread flooding, landslides and severe infrastructure collapse, leaving several districts isolated and severely straining the country’s disaster-response capacity.

“Given that all 25 districts are affected, we estimate the cost would be USD 6-7 billion,” Prabath Chandrakirthi, Commissioner General of Essential Services, told reporters here.

Over 1.4 million people have been affected, with more than 233,000 sheltering in 1,441 relief centres.

Chandrakirthi sa

See Full Page