The Department of Meteorology says that showers or thundershowers will occur at times in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central and North-western provinces and in the Galle and Matara districts today (May 31).

Fairly heavy rains above 75 mm are likely in some places in the Western and Sabaragamuwa provinces and in the Nuwara-Eliya, Kandy, Galle and Matara districts.

Several spells of showers may occur in the North-central province and in the Mannar and Hambantota districts.

Strong winds of about 50 kmph can be expected at times over the Western slopes of the central hills and in the Northern, North-central and North-western provinces and in the Hambantota and Trincomalee districts.

Fairly strong winds about (30-40) kmph can be expected at times elsewhere on the island.

The general public has been requested to take adequate precautions to minimize damages caused by temporary localized strong winds and lightning during thundershowers.

The deadline given to submit the names of the elected members to the local bodies in the 2025 Local Government Elections to the Election Commission ended at midnight yesterday (30).

Election Commission Chairman R. M. A. L. Ratnayake said that the gazette listing the names of the elected members to local councils is expected to be issued today (31) as soon as the names are received.

The gazette listing the names of the chairpersons for 161 Local Government institutions has already been prepared and finalised. 

The Election Commission Chairman further said that no person who has not been gazetted can use his vote to appoint the heads of Local Government institutions. The Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government Minister through a gazette notification issued on February 17, 2025 has stipulated that the term of office of Local Government institutions should commence on June 2, 2025. According to that provision, the names of elected and nominated members of Local Government bodies must be published in the Gazette before the commencement of their term of office.

The Election Commission also issued a gazette notification on May 27 ordering the immediate submission of the names of the elected members to the Election Commission due to the failure of political parties and independent groups to submit the names of the members elected to the Commission, even though 21 days have passed since the Local Government Elections.

The Election Commission Chairman said that after the names of the members have been gazetted, steps will also be taken to gazette the names of the Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Local Government Institution nominated by the party that obtained a 50 percent majority of the votes in the relevant Local Government Institution during the Local Government Institution elections.
(dailynews.lk)
(This story, originally published by dailynews.lk has not been edited by SLM staff)

The Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) has said that over 29,015 electricity breakdowns have been reported across the country due to the prevailing adverse weather conditions. 

CEB teams are actively engaged in attending to these breakdowns despite challenges posed by limited staffing and resources, the statement said.

The CEB requests the public to report any outages or safety concerns via the CEBCare mobile app or by calling the ‘1987’ hotline, so that their teams can prioritize and respond swiftly.

1,757 affected

Meanwhile, the Disaster Management Center (DMC) reports that a total of 1,757 individuals from 485 families have been affected by the adverse weather conditions.

‘Red’ warning for strong winds and rough seas 

The Department of Meteorology has issued a ‘Red’ warning for strong winds and rough seas for the sea areas off the coast extending from Chilaw to Kankesanthurai via Puttalam and Mannar, and from Galle to Pottuvil via Hambanthota.

Due to the effect of the active southwest monsoon condition, the sea areas off the coast extending from Chilaw to Kankesanthurai via Puttalam and Mannar and from Galle to Pottuvil via Hambantota will be very rough at times with very strong wind gusts up to 60-70 kmph, it said. 

Naval and fishing communities are advised not to venture into the above sea areas until further notice. 

Wind speed may increase up to 50-60 kmph at times in the sea areas off the coast extending from Chilaw to Galle via Colombo and from Kankasanthurai to Trincomalee via Mullaittivu. 

The naval and fishing communities engaged in fishing and naval activities in these sea areas are requested to be vigilant in this regard. 

The advisory further states that the wave height may increase about 3.0 meters in the sea areas off the coast extending from Mannar to Pottuvil via Puttalam, Colombo, Galle and Hambantota. 

It further said there is a possibility of surges due to swell waves over the coastal areas extending from Mannar to Pottuvil via Puttalam, Colombo, Galle and Hambantota. 

Naval and fishing communities are also requested to be attentive to future forecasts issued by the Department of Meteorology in this regard.