SL’s Kadugannawa Landslide: Experts Downplay Widespread Risk, Confirm Incident is Localised Hazard
Kandy, Sri Lanka – November 24, 2025
Following the tragic landslide that occurred in Lower Kadugannawa on Saturday, killing six people, the National Building Research Organisation (NBRO) has moved to reassure the public that the disaster was a localised, site-specific hazard and does not represent a threat to the entire region.
Dr. Gamini Jayatissa, Director of the NBRO’s Landslide Research Division, issued a statement directly addressing widespread panic and misinformation circulating on social media suggesting that the entire Kadugannawa area is facing a critical landslide risk.
“The incident that occurred yesterday in Lower Kadugannawa is an inherent danger specific to that particular location. It is not an impending dangerous situation affecting the entire region,” Dr. Jayatissa clarified. He urged the public not to panic unnecessarily over the reports.
Geotechnical Analysis Confirms Localised Failure
Dr. Jayatissa provided a geotechnical explanation for the collapse, confirming the limited scope of the failure:
- Stable Bedrock: The area where the railway line is situated, a critical piece of national infrastructure, is located entirely on bedrock (mother rock), which remains stable.
- Weathered Rock Failure: The segment that failed and collapsed onto the shop near the Colombo-Kandy main road was merely a weathered, degraded portion of the bedrock situated above the highway.
He stressed that the failure was confined to that specific layer and location, emphasizing that the main railway line and the Colombo-Kandy main road are not subject to large-scale impact from this specific event. Any immediate effects are limited strictly to the immediate vicinity of the collapse.
Road Closure for Safety Clearance
Addressing the ongoing inconvenience caused by the road closure, Dr. Jayatissa explained that the road has been temporarily shut down solely to ensure public safety. The closure is necessary to allow teams to safely remove the fallen rock and debris and to confirm the security and stability of the main road before traffic is permitted to resume.
The NBRO’s assessment is critical in mitigating widespread public fear and ensuring that essential services and travel planning are based on accurate geotechnical information rather than social media speculation. While the threat of further landslides in other rain-affected parts of the Central Province remains high, the NBRO’s statement limits the immediate crisis in Kadugannawa to the current clean-up and recovery operations.
