Death toll in Sri Lanka floods and landslides continue to rise

Floods and landslides triggered by monsoon rains have killed 180 people in recent days in Sri Lanka, authorities said, as a cyclone formed in the Bay of Bengal hits Bangladesh, with more torrential downpours forecast.

Nearly 75,000 people in the worst-affected districts have been relocated to temporary shelters.

Sri Lankan President Mathripala Srisena on Monday visited the home of an Air Force personnel killed during rescue operations, as former president Mahindra Rajapaksa made a public appeal for help.

The Sri Lankan military has sent in helicopters and boats in rescue efforts, as 110 people were missing in total in the most widespread disaster to hit the island nation since the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami.

Residents in seven densely populated districts in the south and centre of Sri Lanka were asked to move away from unstable slopes in case of further landslides.

The meteorology department said a depression in the Bay of Bengal had intensified into what has been named Cyclone Mora and forecast torrential rains over the next 36 hours.