It's intermonsoon season and Colombo among other places on the island is going through its seasonal apocalypse: powercuts, flooding, blocked roads, and distraught, stranded humans.
Throwback to our ominous video of the coming storm:
Check out Indi's post for more info on how and why the sky is pelting down on us this month. Or if you're snuggled up in bed at home or in your office chair and have resigned yourself to all the chaos, here's a compilation you can browse through of the onslaught of monsoon madness.
This is a picture of @raisalw's garden in Nawala completely immersed in water. She, like a lot of people today, wasn't able to leave the house and head out all morning. Many people even in central Colombo have been complaining that the ground floor of their homes have succumbed to water too.
Meanwhile, Bolgoda's floor level is becoming one with the lake, as seen in this picture taken by Azad Gyl. Kind of scary.
Sri Lanka is a very, very green place and if you look at any place that has a lot of trees during this season – the Battaramulla parliament stretch or the Thunmulla road, you'll see those trees swaying wild and precariously. Arun Jentrick captured this photograph of a tree having pulled the pavement up with it in its attempt to fly away on the storm wind, in Thunmulla.
Aman Ashraff took this picture somewhere near Rajagiriya of an ordinary house now turned island. I've decided it's time to invest in a boat.
Colombo actually doesn't seem as insane as say Mawanella right now. Here's an exodus of people trying to cross a road turned into a muddy river.
Rajagiriya, one of the worst hit parts in the capital city, is sinking, if this picture by @cvrchathu is anything to go by.
The Old Kandy Road is another one to go under, as you can see in @ravindu's picture, and it's not fun for anybody who's not inside their house or their vehicle. If you don't have huge garden boots to help you wade through, then your best bet is unfortunately going barefoot, lest you lose your footwear in the flow.
The worst part is eroding soil and mud getting mixed up in the waters – picture taken by Sumaya Samarasinghe in Colombo. This isn't just an eye-sore but it can be very dangerous to charter through.
Here's the landmark fresh green parks of Battaramulla now turned into a paved-in lake, in this picture by @sljfdo
This is when you know it's getting bad – when passing vehicles produce live fountains on either side as they drive past, and when your neighborhood pavements are suddenly a swimming pool for monitor lizards. No, seriously, we need boats.
So it's getting choppy out there, we suggest you try to stay indoors as much as possible, and if you're heading out keep away from the beach and swaying trees (my garden's banana tree tried to kill me today, not kidding), arm yourself with a sturdy raincoat and boots, and a tiny inflatable boat and paddle, maybe. The good news is it's good weather for a hot cup of coffee (check out our 15 cosy Book Nooks) and weather-induced healthy socializing since you're forced to stay indoors and talk to the humans around you.