The Landslide Early Warning Centre of the National Building Research Organisation (NBRO) has issued early warnings to the Districts of Kalutara, Nuwara Eliya and Ratnapura from 1600hrs on 13th June 2026 till 1600hrs on 14th June 2026.

Accordingly,

LEVEL I (YELLOW) landslide early warnings have been issued to the Divisional Secretaries Divisions and surounding areas of Palindanuwara and Agalawatta in the Kalutara district,  Ambagamuwa in the Nuwara Eliya and Ayagama, Pelmadulla,
Godakawela, Elapatha, Kalawana, Ratnapura and Nivithigala in the Ratnapura district.

A decision has been taken to declare a Special Dengue Prevention Week from 15 to 21 of June by the Colombo District Dengue Control Committee to curb the spread of the disease in the Colombo District.

This decision was taken at the meeting of the Colombo District Dengue Control Committee held on Friday  (12) at the Colombo District Secretariat under the patronage of Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya.

Compared to last year, the number of dengue cases reported this year has increased significantly. According to the National Dengue Control Unit, approximately 39,100 dengue cases have been reported island wide to date, of which 25.8% have been recorded in the Colombo District. Following this situation, the Colombo District has been identified as a high-risk district.

Health authorities informed that the increasing spread of the disease has been influenced not only by the nature of circulating virus but also to the lack of sufficient immunity among the population. They further noted that the recent period of heavy rainfall has aggravated the spread of Dengue.

It was also identified that the current outbreak is being reported more frequently from public places such as government institutions, private establishments, schools, and religious venues rather than from residential premises. Observations have identified improperly managed solid waste and drainage systems in offices and other public locations as major breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

Accordingly, during the Dengue Prevention Week from 15 to 21 June, a series of measures will be implemented, including, organising community clean-up campaigns in government and private institutions, schools, residential areas, and other public spaces; Conducting inspections of high-risk premises by Divisional Secretariats and taking legal action, where necessary, followed by awareness programmes; Distributing informational leaflets, displaying banners, and carrying out public awareness campaigns through the media. Health authorities also requested school administrations not to involve students below Grade 10 in school cleaning programmes and to immediately notify the relevant Medical Officer of Health (MOH) office if a student is diagnosed with dengue.

The programme is expected to receive the active support and participation of the district’s political leadership, religious leaders of all faiths, public officials, local government institutions, the tri-forces, the police, and the general public.

The event was attended by the Chairperson of the District Coordination Committee, Members of Parliament, representatives of local government authorities, government secretaries, police officers, and officials representing the education and health sectors, among others.

[Prime Minister’s Media Division]

SpaceX has debuted on US markets with a market valuation of more than $2 trillion, minting CEO Elon Musk as the world’s first trillionaire.

Shares opened on Friday at $150 per share, marking a 11 percent increase from the initial public offering (IPO) price of $135, valuing the company at $1.96 trillion and putting the aerospace company on track to become the sixth-largest company in the United States.

The stock surged 18 percent to $159 per share, up from the $135 it had been priced at, as the trading day came to a close.

Markets more broadly ticked higher amid a possible interim peace deal between the United States and Iran that could open the Strait of Hormuz. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 0.6 percent, the Nasdaq is up 0.2 percent, and the S&P 500 is up 0.35 percent as trading wraps up for the week.

The company sold $75bn in shares, immediately valuing it at $1.77 trillion. The IPO was oversubscribed four times higher than was otherwise expected, according to the Reuters news agency.

Of the institutional investors allocated, according to Bloomberg News, as much as 70 percent went to what are called long-only investments — a strategy in which holders buy assets based on the expectation that their value will grow over time — and sovereign wealth funds, including those from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait as well.

SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell and Chief Financial Officer Bret Johnsen rang the opening bell at Nasdaq MarketSite in New York City at 9:30am local time as US markets opened.

On Thursday, protesters gathered outside the MarketSite to protest the IPO amid continued allegations that Grok, part of xAI, a subsidiary of SpaceX, allowed users to create non-consensual deepfake sexualised images before the IPO debut.

Shares of SpaceX did not trade until the middle of the trading day as the exchange collected buy and sell orders and underwriters delayed trading until supply and demand were balanced.

“We would expect SpaceX to see an immediate pop in trading due to the hype around the deal, north of 20 percent perhaps,” said Samuel Kerr, global head of equity capital markets at Mergermarket. “Anything lower would actually make me nervous.”

Exchanges and trading firms are eager to avoid the technical mishaps that marred Meta’s 2012 debut. With SpaceX widely viewed as a dress rehearsal for a new generation of mega-listings, market participants will also be watching for signals on investor appetite in advance of forthcoming IPOs for AI heavyweights Anthropic and OpenAI.

The landmark listing cemented Musk’s status as the first trillionaire ever and propelled SpaceX into the ranks of the world’s most valuable companies — even though the firm posted a loss of nearly $5bn last year and generated only a fraction of the revenue brought in by similarly valued tech giants.

The surge comes amid growth driven by its Starlink subsidiary, which drives as much as 80 percent of its revenue.

On Friday, SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket with 29 satellites into space from Cape Canaveral in Florida.

[Aljazeera]