COLOMBO: An eighth Buddhist monk has died from injuries sustained in Sri Lanka’s cable car crash.
The death toll now stands at eight in what police describe as the country’s worst accident of its kind.
Seven monks including three foreigners died instantly when their cabin plunged down a mountainside last Wednesday.
The accident occurred near a forest monastery in the northwestern Kurunegala district.
Six other monks had been taken to hospital with four in critical condition.
One of the six hospitalised monks succumbed to his injuries late on Sunday night.
Funerals for five monks including four Sri Lankans and a Romanian were held on Saturday.
The ceremonies took place at a cemetery near their monastery.
A Russian monk will be buried alongside the Sri Lankan monk who died in hospital.
The remains of the third foreign monk an Indian national were repatriated to his relatives.
Thirteen monks had crowded into a small makeshift cabin heading to meditation units.
They were travelling atop a mountain within the vast Na Uyana monastery.
Initial investigations suggest the cable snapped sending the cabin careering downhill.
The cabin jumped the track and crashed into a tree at high speed.
The monastery is located 130 kilometres north-east of the capital Colombo. – AFP
