Colombo: A 53-year-old auto-rickshaw driver in Sri Lanka died of a heart attack in the suburb of Colombo on Thursday when he waited all night in a serpentine queue for fuel near a petrol pump, which was filled with fuel. as the latest victim. The crisis deepened in the island nation.
People have left their vehicles near filling stations for more than two nights as most of the diesel supply has dried up while long queues have formed for petrol supply.
The three-wheeler driver had been waiting in line for fuel in Colombo south suburb of Panadura since Wednesday night and succumbed to cardiac arrest inside his vehicle, officials said.
This is not the first time a person has died while waiting in line for fuel in Sri Lanka. Similar incidents were reported from early 2022, as some people died due to the heat.
Another 64-year-old man died while standing in a queue for cooking gas at Pugoda, northwest of here, on Wednesday night, police said.
state fuel unit Ceylon Petroleum Corporation ,CPC) said the last consignment of diesel under the current ILC $700 million for the fuel arrived on Thursday. However, the Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe Said that the issues would be based on priority for essential services.
The unloading of this shipment will take three more days to complete. He hoped that another ILC (Indian Line of Credit) will be made available very soon by India for $500 million. CPC officials said that however, there was no news of the arrival of the final petrol shipment under the ILC.
Angry Sri Lankans have blocked roads in several areas in protest over long waits on fuel lines.
Fuel shortage has paralyzed public transport services by more than 50 percent national transport commission declare.
The Railway Department said services would soon be crippled as it was unable to pay for the engine oil needed to operate the power sets due to a lack of dollars.
Sri Lanka is facing its worst economic crisis since its independence from Britain in 1948. The economic crisis has prompted severe shortages of essential items like food, medicine, cooking gas and other fuels, toilet paper and even matches.
The country is facing long queues for refueling at pumping stations as the government finds it difficult to finance fuel imports to maintain sufficient reserves for at least three months.
A move to ration fuel is to be implemented from next month as the foreign exchange crisis worsens.
The nearly bankrupt country, coupled with an acute foreign exchange crisis that resulted in foreign debt defaults, announced in April that it was suspending foreign debt repayments of about $7 billion due this year out of about $25 billion due by 2026. . Sri Lanka’s total external debt stands at $51 billion.
People have left their vehicles near filling stations for more than two nights as most of the diesel supply has dried up while long queues have formed for petrol supply.
The three-wheeler driver had been waiting in line for fuel in Colombo south suburb of Panadura since Wednesday night and succumbed to cardiac arrest inside his vehicle, officials said.
This is not the first time a person has died while waiting in line for fuel in Sri Lanka. Similar incidents were reported from early 2022, as some people died due to the heat.
Another 64-year-old man died while standing in a queue for cooking gas at Pugoda, northwest of here, on Wednesday night, police said.
state fuel unit Ceylon Petroleum Corporation ,CPC) said the last consignment of diesel under the current ILC $700 million for the fuel arrived on Thursday. However, the Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe Said that the issues would be based on priority for essential services.
The unloading of this shipment will take three more days to complete. He hoped that another ILC (Indian Line of Credit) will be made available very soon by India for $500 million. CPC officials said that however, there was no news of the arrival of the final petrol shipment under the ILC.
Angry Sri Lankans have blocked roads in several areas in protest over long waits on fuel lines.
Fuel shortage has paralyzed public transport services by more than 50 percent national transport commission declare.
The Railway Department said services would soon be crippled as it was unable to pay for the engine oil needed to operate the power sets due to a lack of dollars.
Sri Lanka is facing its worst economic crisis since its independence from Britain in 1948. The economic crisis has prompted severe shortages of essential items like food, medicine, cooking gas and other fuels, toilet paper and even matches.
The country is facing long queues for refueling at pumping stations as the government finds it difficult to finance fuel imports to maintain sufficient reserves for at least three months.
A move to ration fuel is to be implemented from next month as the foreign exchange crisis worsens.
The nearly bankrupt country, coupled with an acute foreign exchange crisis that resulted in foreign debt defaults, announced in April that it was suspending foreign debt repayments of about $7 billion due this year out of about $25 billion due by 2026. . Sri Lanka’s total external debt stands at $51 billion.