The houses of more than a hundred families in Pozhiyoor were damaged. (Representative)
Thiruvananthapuram:
Ancy and her seven family members were sleeping after attending Easter mass when a monster wave engulfed her house at Pozhiyoor near Poovar in Thiruvananthapuram.
Everything they had prepared for an Easter feast and what little they had in the house was washed away when seawater rushed into the house on Sunday. They tried to grab everything they could and ran outside to save their lives.
Coastal communities in Thiruvananthapuram and many other coastal districts of Kerala were shocked by sudden rough seas on Sunday.
“It looked like a tsunami. We had no warnings from the authorities and everything we had disappeared with the water,” Ancy told PTI through tears as the monstrous waves continued to hit the half-damaged sea wall bordering her house engulf.
The houses of more than a hundred families in Pozhiyoor were damaged, some lost permanently, and fishermen suffered huge losses when the waves damaged their boats and fishing nets.
“The monstrous waves continued to crash, flooding the entire area in Pozhiyoor and nearby areas for more than five hours. The situation is getting worse as the waves are still very powerful and are even climbing over half the sea wall built at Pozhiyoor ” says Kulathoor Gram Panchayat. President Geetha Suresh told PTI.
The coastal town of Pozhiyoor looked like a graveyard, with cement bricks and rubbish from damaged houses everywhere. The famous tourist spot Poovar and nearby areas were completely submerged in water on Sunday. Although the water has receded, huge waves continue to hit the coast.
The coastal road in this part was completely damaged. The fish landing area and the Okhi monument on the beach have been swallowed by the sea.
“No one has come to help us. This is election time and they will come asking for votes. We have a lot to ask them as we demand a complete sea wall in this area,” said a local fisherman who was angry at the authorities’ neglect said .
“We have opened one camp at the government school and as of yesterday, 24 families have stayed here. But most of the affected people are not willing to come to the camp as they are not satisfied with the facilities provided here,” Geetha Suresh said.
She said the area has only one government hospital but the inpatient facility has been discontinued by the government.
“There are many people who are bedridden and cannot be admitted to the camp. If the hospital had an inpatient facility, we could have admitted them there,” she added.
The rough seas and monstrous waves are expected to continue until April 4.
According to INCOIS, the central government agency that issues weather warnings to fishermen in the country, this phenomenon is caused by ‘high periods of swell’. But there is no scientific explanation to define this sudden phenomenon during a season not known for its rough sea problems.
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