General unpreparedness for flash floods and landslides has led to a severe death toll of 188 people, 112 people missing and around 557,505 people belonging to 151,392 families affected in 15 districts. 

(Photograh by Kushan Pathiraja) 

Sri Lanka is once again in need of urgent disaster relief aid. Social media has been a catalyst in assembling together a plethora of private organisations and individuals undertaking rescue/relief operations. As of 28th May, the #unitedcharities reports: 

4,665 families including 16,327 people have been supported in relief distribution. 

While operations have begun to supply the victims with these essential items, many generous donors have come forward to offer help. 

The items that are collected include: 

· Bottled water 
· Sanitizing liquids / soap 
· Sanitary napkins 
· Biscuits 
· Toothpaste 
· Cooked food to be kept for few hours
· Mosquito nets/ coils
· Bedsheets
· Tents
· Mobile toilets
· Disposable plates / cups
· Medicine (Panadol, gripe water, plasters, Siddhalepa etc.)
· Candles and matchboxes 

And other essential items. 

The collection points for these items are as follows: 

· As Panadura was one of the badly affected areas a few collection points have been identified at Panadura itself. The collection point is at Vyanjana (Sun Caters). 

· The Rotaract Club of Panadura has joined hands with the Interact Club of Sri Sumangala Boys' School to give a hand to these victims. Collection points are at Polar Regions, Panadura and Sri Sumangala College, Panadura. 

· The Rotaract Club of Wellawatte will be collecting items at the Wellawatte Police Station. 

· Head over to Colombo Racecourse today to support the rotaractors of RC Colombo Mid City and give a hand to those in need. 

· The Rotary and the Rotaract Club of Colombo Fort has joined hands to support the flood victims. The collection point is at No. 13/32 A, Averihena Road, Polhengoda, Colombo 5. 

· Digital Humanitarians Sri Lanka (DHSL) is collecting items for those affected in the Matara town. Contact Kavinga, Iroshan or Anjana for more details. 

· The students at the Informatics Institute of Technology (IIT) will be collecting donations at their college premises at No. 57, Ramakrishna Road, Colombo 5. 

· Chuckles n' Giggles House of Play too has come forward to support the affected people. The collection point is at No. 17, Right Circular Road, Jayanthipura, Battaramulla between 10:00AM - 6:00PM. 

· Cooked food and bottled water could be brought to the Air Force camp at Ratmalana.  Contact (011) 2 674535 or (011) 2 674502 for more details. 

· Empty plastic water bottles of any size for refilling with UV treated water could be dropped directly to Virtusa at Orion City. 

· Few other drop off points are at the University of Colombo, Edulink Campus Colombo, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University, Ratmalana, Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology, Malabe. 

Here's what you need to know on how you can support the victims if you're willing. 

The Flood Relief Crisis Map 

This map includes support, requests, and access routes during #FloodSL. Contact individuals directly through the phone numbers listed on the map. 

In any case of emergency, either 

- Contact the DMC by calling 117 
- Use the Pick Me app SOS feature 
- TEXT 077-168-8579 to inform govt. authorities and post on disasterhelpsl.com. 

Disclaimer: This map is crowdsourced and updated by volunteers. If there are any corrections, updates, or questions, please email [email protected]. 

Dry Rations And Essential Items 

"The People's Channel" Sirasa - Shakthi - TV 1 Sahana Yathra relief convoys consisting of public donations which were collected at 3 separate locations have reached out to 5 affected districts so far. 

AIESEC has opened a flood relief collection point. There is an urgent appeal for water, biscuits, rice, bread, tinned food, sanitary towels, clothes and other monetary support. The location of AIESEC in Sri Lanka is at No. 117, Nagahawatte Road, Nugegeoda. Please consult Kaveen for more details on 077 369 3332 as stated in the poster above. 

International Movement for Community Development (IMCD) are working with the flood victims immensely. There is an urgent need for water bottles. Any prompt response would be appreciated. 

People's Church are collecting clothing and dry ration packs to be distributed at the affected areas. They are also on the lookout for anyone interested in volunteering. Centres are located at People's Church 160/3, Kirimandala Mw, Colombo 5 and 255, Parakrama Mawatha, Peliyagoda. 

The Voice Foundation is also collecting dry rations and relief items. Please drop them off at 465, Sri Jayawardenapura Road, Welikada, Rajagiriya. 

Online Donations 

Takas together with IMCD are working to accept donations online for the flood victims. To donate online, click here. 

Rescue efforts by the volunteers at the Sri Lanka Red Cross Society are underway in the flood affected areas. Medical camps, cooked food and non food relief items have been widely distributed. Online donations are also accepted. 

In an effort to help co-ordinate amidst flood victims in dire need of relief, ReadMe has created a central database. The database will guide you through a comprehensive list on what supplies are needed and the collection points these supplies can be dropped off at. Please ensure to fill out a Flood Relief form included in the website and/or if you're interested in any volunteering, please click here to fill out their registration form. 

The Foundation of Goodness is accepting online donations for post flood resettlement. Please click here to donate. 

Monetary Donations 

Fundraising campaigns as a result of the recent weather disasters are ongoing by Sri Lankans living overseas. 100% of the funds will be towards helping the affected, ensuring process transparency. Check out their Gofundme pages here and here to make your cash donations. 

The National Zoological Gardens have partnered with the YZA to collect funds to help those communities who are displaced by the floods. You can contact Vibushana on 0714 657 783 for more details on how you can contribute. 

International Relief 

International relief teams such as Khalsa Aid from India are actively volunteering to assist those affected. Meanwhile, the NRS International has issued their Emergency Stock Report that includes essential items, family tents and multi-purpose shelters that are available for immediate distribution from their Pakistan warehouse. 

It is not only humans who were affected by this calamity but animals too were stranded on rooftops and other places they found safe. Hence, many rescue operations were conducted by various groups as follows: 

· The Emergency Rescue operation conducted by the Best Care Animal Hospital. For details contact 0768220911. 

· Ray of Hope Sri Lanka too has generously come forward to give a hand for these innocent creatures. Contact them via their Facebook page. 

Need more help? 

For text alerts, fresh updates, and help on what else is needed, do visit the #DisasterReliefLka - Volunteers Facebook page. 

Other numbers include, Army on (011) 2 434 251, Navy on (011) 2 445 368, Air Force on (011) 2 343 970. 

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TEXT by Rushda Rafeek and Kamanthi Wickramasinghe 
VIDEO by Zeeshan Akram Jabeer