There is no landslide threat to the Demodara Nine Arch Railway Bridge or its surroundings, a Senior Spokesperson for the Railways Department, Asanka Samarasinghe said. When contacted by The Daily Morning, Samarasinghe said yesterday (18) that there was no such threat as the Railways engineers were monitoring its situation on a regular basis. “We have heard no such reports from them,” he said. 

Samarasinghe said the train service from Ambewela to Badulla would also commence from tomorrow (20). 

The Nine Arch Bridge and its surrounding areas which were a tourist attraction over the years is reportedly under threat of landslides following Cyclone Ditwah which made landfall on 28 November. Efforts to contact the National Building Research Organisation (NBRO) Director General, Dr. Asiri Karunawardena and Dr. H.A.G. Jayatissa in charge of Emergency in Landslide Risk at the NBRO proved futile. 

Speaking to The Daily Morning, a spokesperson for the Central Cultural Fund said that preventive measures have been taken against earth slips in several unprotected railway tracks similar to the said Bridge by the Disaster Management Centre and the NBRO. The earth slip that occurred in the Demodara area was however not so alarming, he said, noting there was a minor earth slip during the recent cyclone. With the Asian Development Bank funded project that is being carried out to protect the particular area, the possible threat will be averted, he added.