Giant Wave Impact in Orissa, India

[Ian David]

Source: RSOE Emergency and Disaster Information Service

GLIDE Number: GW-20070912-13352-IND
Date / time: 12/09/2007 11:39:32
Event: Giant Wave Impact
Area: Asia
Country: India
State/County: State of Orissa
City: Unknow
Number of Deads: None or unknow
Number of Injured: None or unknow
Damage level: Minor

Description:

At least 13 houses were washed away and three more houses damaged under the impact of high tidal waves in Podampeta, a sea-side village under Palibandha gram panchayat in Ganjam district, official sources said here on Monday. The powerful waves lashed the village inhabited mostly by fishermen during the last three days. Alarmed over another depression formed over the Bay of Bengal, the district administration apprehended more tidal waves and asked the fishermen families residing very close to the sea to shift to the nearby cyclone shelter. We have asked the fishermen families to shift to the cyclone shelter in the village, Ajit Mishra, Ganjam sub-collector, said. Mishra said the district administration could not provide any relief to the victims as they were residing very close to the sea violating the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Act. However, it had asked some NGOs working in the area to provide temporary relief to the victims, he said. Local CPI MLA N.Narayan Reddy and CP(I)M leader Ali Kishore Patnaik visited the village and urged the district collector to initiate long term steps to solve the problem. About 210 fishing families, locally known as nolias belonging to Kantiagada, a nearby village, had migrated to Podampeta about seven years ago due to differences with other villagers. They had constructed thatched houses near the sea and depended on the sea for their sustenance. Ganjam district Collector V K Pandian said they were living very close to the sea which was illegal as it was not revenue land, but the situation there was very grave and alarming.

The district administration was contemplating to shift the families to another place and issue them patta as a permanent solution to their problem. We have identified three sites for them and asked the village committee to give their option, Pandian, who visited the area on Sunday, told. They are needed to be settled permanenently. We will provide them a new site for which the exercise has already started, he added. The sea, which was about one km from the village, is now flooding it. Meanwhile, the huge waves which have been bothering the administration caused more damage to the coastline at Puri and Gopalpur, two of Orissa's finest beach resorts. The waves also washed away a portion of the newly-built marine drive at Puri on Sunday paralysing traffic. The road damaged was between Hotel Coco Palm and Hotel Sterling, the reports said. Few seaside hotels at Gopalpur had also suffered damages on Saturday night. A report from Kendrapara said the waves breached the nearby Rabindrapalli saline embankment inundating a large agricultural field since Sunday morning. While it rained in torrents, the sea had turned turbulent and the waves had made inroads into Kanhupur village. But unlike in the past it has not damaged the houses, Sashmita Das, sarpanch of Satbhaya gram panchayat, said. About 30 families of Kanhupur village had shifted to Satbhaya, she said adding the villagers were apprehensive of the sea turning violent in the night. The sea had eaten up nearly two-third of Kanhupur village over the years while the adjoining Satbhaya had been equally hit by erosion. Of the cluster of seven hamlets under the Satbhaya panchayat, five have already been devoured by the sea.

Read more: http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/woalert_read.php?lang=eng&cid=13352

[TreasonousBastard]

1. Oh Shit! Now they're gonna get whacked by...

a tsunami from the Sumatran earthquake.

And we think we got problems!