As each wave thunders and batters the sea wall along their village, the residents of Chinna Kuppam, a fishing hamlet in Ennore, tremble. A few like 55-year-old Kala Appavoo shriek and close their ears and eyes as the roar reaches a crescendo. The village has around 500 houses, and at least 100 of them have been damaged so far by the waves.
On Tuesday morning, water entered the homes and reached about 100 m into the village, crossing the cement concrete road.
Kumari, a resident whose cement concrete home has been damaged, said that it had been at least five days since anyone has cooked in the village.
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“There is water everywhere. Our clothes are wet, the electrical lines have caught fire and appliances have water inside them. We need help badly. Nobody has come and asked after our well-being so far, not even the Minister who is one of us,” she said.
Ms. Appavoo, whose three-year-old grand daughter was caught in a wave when she was playing outside her house, said nobody felt safe in the village anymore. “Though our livelihood depends on the sea, we are now afraid of it. My eyes are bloodshot due to continuously being exposed to salt water, and also because I have remained awake for days now,” she said.
She urged the government to construct a seawall perpendicular to the coast so the waves will not batter her village.
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‘Livelihood at stake’
The men have not been to the sea for over 20 days now. Even those like Balakrishnan, who works in a private firm, have remained at home because of the water. Villagers said that the government had constructed groynes only for the bigger villages but ignored their safety.
Over the years, the village had lost plenty of land to the sea that only seemed to be ever advancing, a resident added.
Sources in the Fisheries Department say steps would be taken to ensure their safety and that assistance would reach them soon.