🔗 Share this article

Local actor and musician GK Reginold rides in a motorised fishing boat through flooded neighborhoods, aiming to bring food and water to those in desperate need.

Many families, Mr Reginold says, have gone without help for days, isolated by the country's most severe weather disaster in memory.

Cyclone Ditwah lashed the country last week, causing catastrophic floods and landslides that killed more than 400 people, with hundreds missing and destroyed 20,000 homes.

But the flooding has also inspired a surge in volunteerism, as citizens face what the president has described as the "gravest natural disaster" in its history.

"My primary motivation why I wanted to do this, is to at least help them to have one meal," Mr Reginold states. "And I was so happy that I was able to do that."

More than one million people have been affected by the disaster and a national emergency has been announced.

The military has sent helicopters for rescue operations, while relief assistance is arriving from international partners and aid groups.

But it will be a long journey to rebuild for the nation, which has seen its fair share of turmoil in recent years.

Activists Volunteer at Local Food Hub

In a Colombo suburb, individuals who demonstrated in 2022 are now helping run a makeshift kitchen that produces food aid.

The protests from three years ago were driven by a spiralling economic crisis that caused shortages of fuel, food and medicine. Widespread frustration erupted and led to a leadership shift. Now, that political activism is being channelled toward disaster response.

"People came after work, some took turns and some even took leave to be there," one organizer states.

"We mobilized our network as soon as we heard what was happening last Thursday," he says.

The organizer also considers the kitchen as an "continuation" of his volunteer work in 2016, when torrential rain and floods killed hundreds across the country.

The team have compiled hundreds of requests for help, shared them to authorities, and organized the distribution of food.

"Every request we made, we got an overwhelming amount in response from the community," he says.

Online Initiatives for Support

A wave of coordination is also happening on the internet, where netizens have created a public database to direct donations and volunteers.

Another volunteer-backed website helps donors find relief camps and identify what is most needed in those areas.

Private companies have organized fundraising efforts, while media outlets have started an campaign to provide food and basic necessities like soap and toothbrushes.

Facing criticism over the management of storm readiness, the president has urged citizens to "set aside all political differences" and "come together to restore the nation".

Opposition politicians have claimed authorities of disregarding weather warnings, which they say exacerbated the disaster's effects.

Recently, opposition lawmakers protested in parliament, arguing that the ruling party was trying to restrict debate on the disaster.

On the ground, however, there remains a sense of unity as people begin the cleanup after the floods.

"In the end, the satisfaction of helping someone else to save lives makes that exhaustion fade," the organizer wrote after putting in long hours at relief sites.

"Crises are not new to us. But, the empathy and size of our hearts is larger than the damage that occurs during a disaster."