EnvironmentGeneralHOTThursday, May 14, 2026

Sri Lanka Meteorological Department Issues Red Notice for Heavy Rainfall

TLDR

May 22nd special red notice warns of 200mm+ rain, flood risk.
Previous May 15-16 notice warned 150mm+ rain, impacting 6,375 people.
May 18th advisory warned of lightning/thunderstorms in multiple provinces.
A May 25, 2026 lightning advisory issued for Uva, Ampara, Batticaloa.

The Department of Meteorology has issued a Red Notice for heavy rainfall affecting several parts of Sri Lanka. The alert, valid until the morning of May 15th, warns of very heavy showers exceeding 150 mm in specific locations. These include the Western, Sabaragamuwa, and North Western Provinces, as well as the districts of Kandy, Nuwara Eliya, Galle, and Matara. The adverse weather is due to an active low-pressure zone near the island, which is expected to move away. Authorities advise the public to take precautions against potential thunderstorms, strong winds, lightning, floods, and landslides.

3 Updates

Update #4\u00b7 May 25 · 6:46 AM

The Meteorological Department has issued a special red notice for heavy rainfall exceeding 200mm, along with a flood risk, for several areas including the Western, Sabaragamuwa, North Western provinces, and Galle district. This notice was issued this morning (May 22nd). Separately, an advisory notice for strong lightning was issued on May 25th, 2026, at 12:04 PM, specifically for Uva Province, Ampara, and Batticaloa districts.

Update #3\u00b7 May 18 · 7:16 AM

The Meteorological Department has issued a red notice for heavy rainfall exceeding 150mm in several areas, including the Western, Sabaragamuwa, North Western, and Southern (Galle, Matara) provinces, and parts of Kandy and Nuwara Eliya districts. The notice, issued at 9:30 AM on May 15th, is valid until 8:30 AM on May 16th. The low-pressure zone to the northeast of the island is expected to weaken and move away within the next 36 hours. Separately, an advisory notice was issued on May 18th at 12:00 PM, valid until 11:30 AM the same day, warning of strong lightning and thunderstorms with possible strong winds in parts of the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Uva, and Eastern provinces, and the Kurunegala district.

Update #2\u00b7 May 15 · 5:01 AM

The Meteorological Department has issued a red notice for heavy rainfall exceeding 150mm in several areas, including the Western, Sabaragamuwa, North Western, and Southern (Galle, Matara) provinces, and parts of Kandy and Nuwara Eliya districts. The notice is valid until 8:30 AM tomorrow (May 16th). Adverse weather has already impacted 6,375 individuals from 1,113 families across 7 districts. A low-pressure zone to the northeast of the island is expected to weaken and move away within the next 36-48 hours.

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