Russia has dispatched a planeload of humanitarian aid to Sri Lanka in the wake of Cyclone Ditwah, which struck the island in late November, Russia’s RIA news agency reported on Wednesday, quoting Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Moscow, Shobini Gunasekera.
According to the ambassador, a plane carrying 35 tonnes of relief supplies has already left for Colombo and is expected to arrive later today.
Cyclone Ditwah, the deadliest natural disaster to hit Sri Lanka since the 2004 tsunami, claimed 635 lives and affected nearly 10% of the country's population. It also caused extensive damage to infrastructure and devastated major crops, including rice and tea.
Government officials estimate that the cost of recovery could reach US$7 billion.
