MALE, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- The Maldives Meteorology Department on Thursday warned of further rains and strong winds in the coming days and urged the public to remain cautious.
In its latest weather update, the Meteorology Department said strong winds and thunder showers were expected in the central, northern and southern islands while swell wave surges were also expected during high tide in some parts of the country. Fishermen have been cautioned from going out at sea.
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said in a statement that the damages caused by monsoon rains in the past few days had been massive, compared to the damages caused by monsoon rains in previous years.
Deputy Chief Executive of NDMA Umar Moosa Fikuree said 70 houses had been severely damaged due to heavy rains and a clean-up operation was underway.
The Maldives Health Protection Authority (HPA) has also issued an alert to pay extra caution on the current weather as several health issues have been reported across the country.
Epidemiologist Ibrahim Afzal said diseases such as diarrhoea, flu, cold and other water-borne illnesses had already been reported from several areas and he advised children to refrain from playing in water puddles as it will present them to different vectors.
