A Tamil man who risked his life to save fellow passengers when a Jaffna–Colombo bus was swept into floodwaters near Kala Oya has been found dead, four days after he went missing.
Thanigasalam Pathmanikethan, a 36-year-old from Kalviyankadu in Jaffna, had been travelling on the long-distance bus when rising floodwaters engulfed the Anuradhapura–Puttalam road. Around sixty passengers were on board when the vehicle became trapped as Cyclone Ditwah battered the island.
Eyewitness footage shows Pathmanikethan guiding passengers to safety, helping them climb onto the roof of the stranded bus as the waters continued to rise, in an attempt to save as many lives as possible.
Survivors later recounted how passengers were moved from the bus to the roof of a nearby house as the water level surged. The roof subsequently gave way under the pressure, sending several people plunging into the floodwaters before they were pulled to safety. Over the next two days, Sri Lankan navy personnel used boats to rescue those stranded in the area.
However, amid the confusion of the evacuation, Pathmanikethan’s name did not appear in hospital records. His family filed a missing-person complaint at the Nochchiyagama Police Station, launching a desperate search that lasted four days.
His body was recovered on Monday.
Pathmanikethan, an employee at a private finance company in Jaffna, has been remembered by relatives and community members as a dedicated worker and a selfless individual. For many, he is a hero who placed the lives of others above his own.
