Vizag beaches turn into death traps, 233 swept away in last four years

Low tides are more dangerous as they have more receding capacity and pull water inside and rip currents compound the threat.
A policewoman stands guard on a rock at RK Beach in Vizag to prevent visitors from entering the sea. (Photo | EPS, G Satyanarayana)
A policewoman stands guard on a rock at RK Beach in Vizag to prevent visitors from entering the sea. (Photo | EPS, G Satyanarayana)

VISAKHAPATNAM: Vizag beaches seem to have turned into death traps for visitors as 233 drowned in the last four years. Four youths were swept away at the RK Beach and the YMCA a few days ago. Speaking to TNIE, former National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) chief scientist VSN Murthy said no beach in the world is 100% safe and visitors should be extra cautious while venturing into the sea.

Low tides are more dangerous as they have higher receding capacity and pull water inside and rip currents compound the threat. Rip currents cannot be predicted even by experts. High tides push water to the shore. The timings of low and high tides change. The increase in drowning incidents is mainly due to a lack of awareness among visitors about low and high tides. Most of the drownings generally occur during low tides, particularly on full moon and new moon days, he explained.

Elaborating further on drowning incidents, he said the stretch from the RK Beach to the YMCA is dangerous as strong currents reach the shore within 10 metre distance. The beach at Yarada is also prone to low tides. The stretch from Lawson’s Bay to Sagar Nagar is relatively safe as the sea currents reach the shore after travelling almost 50 metres and water is placid for most of the time, Murthy said.

The beach pockets at the YMCA, Tenneti Park, IT Hills and Sagar Nagar are rocky, whereas the RK Beach is sandy. People, particularly youth, prefer the RK Beach for the thrill as it has a slope. In the recent drowning incidents at the RK Beach and the YMCA, four youths were dragged into the sea by receding currents, he analysed.

In all, 233 people drowned at Vizag beaches in the last four years. The drowning incidents included 55 in 2018, 51 in 2019, 64 in 2020 and 63 in 2021. Murthy underlined the need to promote awareness among visitors about timings of low tides by displaying boards to prevent them from venturing into the sea.

The GVMC appointed community guards after six students drowned at Rushikonda beach in 2012. The guards maintained that they were not adequately equipped to rescue people from drowning during low tides and rip currents. There are 20 guards at the RK Beach and six each at Rushikonda and Yarada, two each at Sagar Nagar, Tenneti Park and IT Hills. Apart from guards, marine police are also maintaining a close vigil along the beach in the Vizag city limits. About 30 policemen also patrol the beach from 3 to 10 pm every day to thwart any untoward incident.

On weekends and holidays, about 200 policemen are deployed. In view of the Sankranti season, 30 lifeguards have been deployed at the beach to avert mishaps. Finally, a word of caution from the former NIO chief scientist is people should not be complacent that nothing will happen to them as ignorance of sea conditions may pose a grave threat.

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