Introduction. The 11th of March 2012 is a red letter day in our Disaster Management calender. We experienced the tremors of an earthquake and were given a tsunami warning, which resulted in chaos in Colombo. Office staff vacated their seats and poured into the streets. Vehicles were at a standstill. The reason for this panic I believe is their recollection of the destruction caused by the 2004 disaster. It will be recollected that on the 26th. January 2004 we were hit by an earthquake and tsunami that caused havoc and the death of thousands. We were totally unprepared for such a disaster. This was mainly due to the fact that at that time we did not know what a tsunami was. In fact there were jokes to the effect that the Foreign Ministry on being notified that a tsunami was arriving, sent a delegation to the airport to welcome the Japanese guests!

Nishantha Wickremasinghe, Chairman SriLankan Talks to Maheen Senanayake of the Sunday Island during a candid interview on how he hopes to bring his brand of expertise to the national carrier.

I met him outside his office on the 22nd Floor on the East Tower at the World Trade Centre. From his handshake to his gait, here was a man who was very much a people’s person. Sans pretense, Nishantha Wickremasinghe generated warmth and made you feel at home.

I was circumspect and did not want to be taken off guard. However, it took him under a few minutes to penetrate my journalistic shield - his unmistakable signature being his ability to stay within the realms of his own understanding, avoidance of speculation and an innate ability to avoid being dragged into speculative debate.

The Obama administration on Monday has exempted Sri Lanka India and five other nations from U.S. economic sanctions after they significantly reduced their imports of Iranian oil.

Washington Post reports that Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton also granted waivers to Malaysia, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Taiwan, meaning that banks and other financial institutions based there won’t be hit with penalties under U.S. law for a renewable 180-day period.

Gale force winds swept through Matara, Hambantota and Gampaha on Tuesday night and early yesterday morning causing severe damage to 88 buildings

Deputy Director of Media at the Disaster Management Centre, Sarath Lal Kumara told The Island that the affected buildings were partially damaged but one house in Ranna was completely destroyed.