Army, Police rescue marooned students

Over 200 members of the Army serving in Kandy swiftly responded to an SOS Police message and rescued a team of Sri Jayawardenapura and Jaffna University undergraduates and members of faculties numbering 455 who went missing in the Hantana mountains in Peradeniya. All rescued were brought to safety at daybreak yesterday.

Around 386 undergraduates and several lecturers of Sri Jayawardenapura University, joined by 65 undergraduates and four lecturers of Vavuniya Faculty of University of Jaffna as part of their annual picnic on Sunday morning.

They commenced trekking the popular Hantana mountain range after entering from the Peradeniya University side, but inclement weather by Sunday noon had worsened with torrential rains, covering the area with thick mist, compelling stranded picnickers to go in all directions, away from one another as darkness was enveloping the mountains.

One of the stranded lecturers in the group had reportedly alerted the Kandy Police who in turn immediately contacted the Kandy 11 Division Headquarters of the Army.

More than 200 officers and soldiers of 2 Sri Lanka Sinha Regiment (SLSR), 20 Gajaba Regiment (GR) and Sri Lanka Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (SLEME) Training School-Gannoruwa were launched on the rescue operations by Sunday (16) evening in search of those missing undergraduates.

Troops hours after the launch of the operation traced the whereabouts of 71 students and admitted seven who were critically ill to the Peradeniya Teaching Hospital.

However, by 4.30 a.m. on Monday,troops completed the massive rescue operation after saving all the 455 missing students, including four lecturers and 30 student monks.

The expedition was jointly organized by the Jaffna and Peradeniya Universities. Brigadier K.M.U Wijeratne, General Officer Commanding, 11 Division and Col Kamal Pinnawala, Commander, 111 Brigade coordinated the rescue operations in association with 111 Brigade officers and troops who braved the fog and heavy rains.