Sea surge gnaws at footpath
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VISAKHAPATNAM:
Vizagites watched in horror as the ongoing erosion took a dangerous
turn on Saturday, with a nearly 18-20 feet long and five feet wide
section of the footpath, along with a portion of the retaining wall,
caving under the onslaught of the waves on Beach Road opposite the Rajiv
Smriti Bhavan. This even as sand under another section of the retaining
wall next to the damaged footpath started being gnawed away by the
tidal waters.
Following the collapse, the authorities barricaded nearly 100 metres of the footpath on RK Beach on Saturday, even as a large number of curious onlookers gathered at the spot. As a precautionary measure, the traffic police stopped vehicular movement betwee Kursura Submarine and Rajiv Gandhi Smriti Bhavan.
The erosion on the coastline behind the iconic Kursura Submarine was first noticed on Wednesday, when the sea waters reached the walls of the footpath in front of the Rajiv Smriti Bhavan. On Thursday, a portion of the sand under the footpath was swept away by the tidal waves. Oceanography experts attributed the erosion to the changing dynamics of sea current thanks to the three back-to-back cyclones.
Prof KSRV Prasad, head, meteorology and oceanography department, Andhra University (AU), said, "Usually during March to September, the sea current flows from south to north and changes in the opposite direction from October onwards. But this time, three cyclones - Phailin, Helen and Lehar - disrupted the movement of sediments. Also, the Kursura Submarine is acting as an artificial breakwater, due to which the sediments don't get deposited behind it, leading to the erosion."
Finally waking up to the rapid erosion, GVMC commissioner M V Satyanarayana on Saturday said that a team of experts from the National Institute of Oceanography and AU has initially suggested setting up of geo-grid blocks at a distance of 1.5 kms into the sea as temporary solution, followed later by setting up of geo-tube volumes further into the sea in order to break the waters and protect the beach.
Following the collapse, the authorities barricaded nearly 100 metres of the footpath on RK Beach on Saturday, even as a large number of curious onlookers gathered at the spot. As a precautionary measure, the traffic police stopped vehicular movement betwee Kursura Submarine and Rajiv Gandhi Smriti Bhavan.
The erosion on the coastline behind the iconic Kursura Submarine was first noticed on Wednesday, when the sea waters reached the walls of the footpath in front of the Rajiv Smriti Bhavan. On Thursday, a portion of the sand under the footpath was swept away by the tidal waves. Oceanography experts attributed the erosion to the changing dynamics of sea current thanks to the three back-to-back cyclones.
Prof KSRV Prasad, head, meteorology and oceanography department, Andhra University (AU), said, "Usually during March to September, the sea current flows from south to north and changes in the opposite direction from October onwards. But this time, three cyclones - Phailin, Helen and Lehar - disrupted the movement of sediments. Also, the Kursura Submarine is acting as an artificial breakwater, due to which the sediments don't get deposited behind it, leading to the erosion."
Finally waking up to the rapid erosion, GVMC commissioner M V Satyanarayana on Saturday said that a team of experts from the National Institute of Oceanography and AU has initially suggested setting up of geo-grid blocks at a distance of 1.5 kms into the sea as temporary solution, followed later by setting up of geo-tube volumes further into the sea in order to break the waters and protect the beach.
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