COLOMBO — Amid the hustle and bustle of Pettah, one of the busiest marketplaces in the Colombo district, Sri Lanka’s commercial region, Sandya Jayasekara was busy cutting king coconuts for her customers. Despite the heat, Sandya must engage in her business outdoors to earn a living and to fund her medical treatment. “I have been selling king coconuts [Cocos nucifera var. aurantiaca] from a very young age,” Sandya tells Mongabay. “But sales are exceptionally low now because the price of a king coconut varies,” from 200-220 rupees ($ 0.63-$0.70). The heat is unbearable and sometimes my skin turns red, but I can’t afford to stay at home,” the vendor says. Sri Lanka has been experiencing warmer temperatures for a couple of weeks now, and the dry heat is making people avoid outdoors as much as they can. The latest heat advisory issued by the Meteorology Department shows an amber alert for several provinces, including the Western province. On Saturday, March 28, the highest temperature was recorded from the north-central district of Anuradhapura, at 39° Celsius (102° Fahrenheit), while Colombo recorded 39°C. Marimuththu Maheshwaran blames the heat for the reduction in fruit sales. Image by Kamanthi Wickramasinghe. Sweltering heat Meril Mendis, director at forecasting and decision support at the Meteorology Department, says the amber warning is meant for people to be prepared. “We use three colors: yellow is for people to be aware, amber to be prepared or the caution level and red to take action. But usually, warm weather prevails during…This article was originally published on Mongabay

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