Surging sea triggers panic at Vizag Utsav

VISAKHAPATNAM: Even as the organisers were trying to put up a brave face amidst allegations of inadequate preparations and low turnout, the three-day Visakha Utsav received another threat from the nature in the form of coastal erosion.

The surging tides swept the shore swallowing 18 meters of retaining wall just 200 meters away from the venue on the Beach Road. However, the venue escaped the fury of the sea as the authorities had raised the ground to prepare the shore for the mega event.

The retaining wall holding the Beach Road over a stretch of 18 m collapsed near the Kursura Submarine Museum at RK Beach due to the sea ingress.

The sea remained very rough throughout the day causing panic among the visitors at the main venue. Rising concern among the residents of the Beach Road, the freshly damaged section is next to the recently filled breach.

As the sea surge caused panic among the visitors, the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) authorities sprung into action and dumped boulders along the coastline to avoid further erosion.

On Saturday morning, the retaining wall near the Kursura Submarine Museum came crumbling down as gushing sea water from the swell waves breached the shoreline.

The residents on the Beach Road said that the high tides were crashing over the retaining walls between The Park hotel and the Kali Mata Temple since Friday night.

The police deployed additional personnel to prevent public from venturing into the beach. On information, city police commissioner Amit Garg inspected the spot and directed the senior police officials to deploy additional force including swimmers along the beach, particularly at the main venue of the Utsav.

A major section of the Beach Road was cordoned off to ensure that the visitors do not venture on the dangerous patches of the beach.

'All measures are in place to ensure that visitors are able to enjoy the Visakha Utsav as well as the beach climate without having to face the risk of high tides,' he added.

Meanwhile, the GVMC authorities dumped 1,000 cubic m of boulders and debris to fill the breaches temporarily. 'Further steps will be taken as per the recommendations of experts in the long term,' GVMC commissioner Pravin Kumar told newsmen.

He clarified that there was no quick solution for the beach erosion and stated that the Visakhapatnam Port Trust will take up dredging and beach nourishment works from February, which would address the problem to some extent.

Meanwhile, visitors and stall owners at the Visakha Utsav were worried over the sea surge and concerned about the safety of the stalls. More than 30 stalls were erected at the main venue at RK Beach by levelling the ground with sand. The visitors, who turned up in large numbers at the main venue Saturday, also seemed hesitant to stay on the beach for a long time.