Cyclone Ditwah death toll crosses 350: Sri Lanka eases tourist visa rules, asks airlines for flexibility

Dubai: The government of Sri Lanka has put in place special visa facilitation measures for travellers impacted by Cyclone Ditwah.

The Department of Immigration and Emigration said, “Foreigners who were scheduled to depart Sri Lanka on or after November 28 but were unable to do so due to flight cancellations or travel difficulties caused by the weather, will be exempted from visa extension fees and overstay penalties.”

It said, “This measure is intended to support travelers who experienced unavoidable delays beyond their control.”

Additionally, short-term tourist or business visa holders and residence visa holders will be granted a seven days’ grace period to complete their visa extension formalities. The department said the extension of short-term tourist visa can be done through the Department’s online portal. It added, “the Department will continue to monitor the situation, and issue further updates as necessary.”

The flooding and landslides that have devastated parts of Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Sri Lanka over recent days have killed more than 1,000 people, according to a figure shared by the Guardian, citing official sources.

The death toll for the floods in Indonesia has risen to 502, the national disaster management agency has said in a new update, with another 508 people missing.

Over 350 people have been killed in Sri Lanka, according to the Disaster Management Centre’s situation report issued Monday, with many more still missing. Flood waters in the capital, Colombo, peaked overnight, and with rain now stopped there were hopes that waters would begin receding.

Waiver on cancellation fees  

Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) said it has asked airlines to provide a “full waiver of flight cancellation and date change fees for tourists” and to offer “flexible rebooking policies” for those affected by the cyclone.

 The tourism authority said the verification process for the rebooking and cancellation would be straightforward, noting that “a passenger’s declaration of being affected by the weather is sufficient to qualify for the waiver.” It has also set up a 24-hour hotline for tourists needing immediate assistance.

The country's national carrier issued a travel advisory, and said, "SriLankan Airlines will continue to monitor the conditions closely and keep all our valued passengers updated." Sri Lankan's Dubai-Colombo operations on November 30 were cancelled.

Emergency declared

The President of Sri Lanka, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, declared a state of emergency on Saturday to deal with the aftermath of Cyclone Ditwah and has also appealed for international aid. He called it the “most challenging natural disaster” Sri Lanka has seen.

The extreme weather system had, as of Sunday, destroyed more than 25,000 homes and forced 147,000 people into state-run temporary shelters. A further 968,000 people required assistance after being displaced by the floods.

The cyclone is Sri Lanka’s deadliest natural disaster since 2017, when flooding and landslides claimed more than 200 lives and displaced hundreds of thousands of people.

Record rains hit he country from last Thursday causing multiple landslides in the hilly central region while overflowing rivers submerged entire towns.

Over 24,000 police, army and air force personnel are still trying to reach families stranded by floods, authorities said, with several countries having sent in aid to help with relief efforts, notably India and Japan.

 Sri Lanka's tourism sector was enjoying something of a resurgence after the island country suffered a series of shocks: the 2019 Easter Sunday terror attacks, the COVID-19 pandemic and global travel bans, and then the country’s 2022 economic and debt crisis, which triggered shortages, protests and severe pressure on visitor sentiment. 

However, quick government responses to the calamity is helping from the situation snow-balling into a full-blown tourism crisis.