COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Floods and mudslides triggered by heavy rains have left at least seven people dead in Sri Lanka ’s tea-growing mountainous regions and forced the closure of some schools, officials said Tuesday.
Heavy downpours over the last two days flooded homes, fields and roads in many parts of the country. The mountainous areas in the central region are the worst hit, according to the government’s Disaster Management Center.
At least five people died after being buried in mudslides that overran two houses in the central region, while two others died in floods, said Pradeep Kodippili, the center’s spokesperson. Three others have been injured. He said 291 houses had been damaged and nearly 3,500 people have been evacuated.
Navy and army personnel have been deployed to rescue those trapped in the floods. Local television channel Hiru TV showed troops and civilians rescuing people trapped by floodwaters in their homes or at risk of being buried by mudflows.
Local channels also showed huge rocks, mudslides and fallen electric posts blocking several roads in the central region.
The natural disaster comes as Sri Lanka is still trying to recover from the devastation in November caused by Cyclone Ditwa, which killed nearly 640 people, affected 2 million people and caused an estimated $4.1 billion in damage.
The central province was the hardest hit by Ditwa and the government is struggling to rebuild roads, railways and houses.
Mudslides and floods are among the most destructive natural disasters, causing severe damage to lives and property in Sri Lanka every year. Heavy monsoon rains mostly trigger mudslides in the central hill region while flooding low-lying areas, forcing thousands of people to evacuate their homes.
People walk across a mud covered road following heavy rain in Nawalapitiya, Sri Lanka, Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026. (AP Photo)
People clean a stretch of a road that covered with mud following heavy rain in Nawalapitiya, Sri Lanka, Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026. (AP Photo)
People walk across a mud covered road following heavy rain in Nawalapitiya, Sri Lanka, Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026. (AP Photo)
CAMDEN, N.J. (AP) — LeBron James took his seat and fidgeted with a microphone before he tossed his identification placard on the ground.
“You guys know who I am, right?” James asked.
Sure do. No introduction needed.
LeBron James, the most famous basketball player in the world and the NBA's career scoring leader, was indeed in a No. 23 Philadelphia 76ers jersey. He's happy to play for the Sixers, happy to play with close friend and fellow All-Star Tyrese Maxey and happy to start a 24th NBA season — with no promises of how long his career is going to last.
He's sure not in Philadelphia to lose.
“I didn't leave my family,” James said Monday, “to lose in the second round.”
James, Maxey, Joel Embiid and the other new star Sixers player, Jaylen Brown, were all on hand for media day ahead of the start of training camp and what figures to be the most anticipated season in Philly since Julius Erving's heyday.
James is the undisputed star the show.
The usual assortment of beat writers and bloggers were dwarfed inside the Sixers' complex in New Jersey by cameras and questions from media entities far beyond the NBA scope. James, naturally, handled himself like a true professional, used to the global spotlight since he was put on a basketball pedestal as a teenager.
“Understand that the noise is going to be the noise,” James said. “What happens outside of this building is going to consistently happen, and it's going to be doubled and triple and quadrupled down on you. It just comes with the territory. I understand it.”
Much as James did for Cleveland when he ended a 56-year championship drought for the city by leading the Cavaliers to the title in 2016, he's in Philadelphia largely to help snap a championship drought for the Sixers that stretches to 1983.
“I think the luxury of my game is, I can do everything,” James said. “Literally, I can do everything.”
The Sixers went 45-37 last season and were swept in the second round by the eventual champion New York Knicks.
Enter a summer makeover anchored by James' arrival.
The 41-year-old James signed a modest $8 million, two-year contract on the veterans’ minimum with the Sixers.
James’ resume is beyond compare in NBA history. He’s a 22-time All-Star, a 21-time All-NBA selection, a four-time Most Valuable Player, a four-time NBA Finals MVP, a three-time All-Star Game MVP and a member of the NBA’s 75th anniversary team.
He also is coming off a season in which he averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists per game. For his career, he has averaged 26.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.4 assists in more than 1,600 games.
“Him being here is really cool,” Maxey said.
With key members of Sixers ownership and the front office watching from the side, James declined to get into the issue of how much longer he wants to play. His lone focus, he said, was learning how to play with new teammates — most, like Embiid, haven't won a title — and trying to bring the championship mentality he knows so well from winning titles with the Cavaliers, Heat and the Lakers to the Sixers.
“I hope that I can, you know, bring that experience, bring that knowledge, bring the blueprint to the guys that's trying to accomplish some things that they haven't done in their career,” James said. “I've seen everything that this league has to offer on the floor and off the floor, so I hope that every single day with my approach to the game, approach to the work, that it can translate to every single guy."
James started his career in Cleveland in 2003 and spent seven seasons with the Cavaliers before heading to Miami for four seasons — where he won his first two NBA titles. He then returned to Cleveland for four more seasons, including that title run in 2016, and left in 2018 for the Lakers. He won a title in LA in 2020.
He also won't set a timetable on how many years he has left in his career.
“I don't want to speak on the future right now,” James said. “I think that would be doing a disservice to myself on just living in the moment, especially knowing that I am where I am in my career.”
See AP’s full NBA coverage here
FILE - Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James reacts during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Phoenix Suns, Friday, April 10, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh, File)
