Thiruvananthapuram: Despite a 48-hour ban on visitors to
Sankumugham beach, imposed by the district collector after a sea surge warning by the met department, police officers and life guards had a tough time on Wednesday controlling tourists and curious locals who flocked the spot.
While many of them were not aware of the ban, others admitted that they turned up to see how far the sea had advanced. The district collector imposed the ban on Tuesday afternoon after raging waves ate more than half of the beach away.
On Tuesday, the collector, who heads the district disaster management authority, had sought the cooperation of the visitors, beach-side merchants and the residents in wake of strong tides and intense sea erosion. The ban for visitors will continue till Thursday evening.
“We were not aware about the sea erosion as we were on trip. During last year’s summer vacation too we had visited here. It was only after reaching here, the officials told us about the seriousness of the situation. We are disappointed, but it’s alright, after all safety matters,” said Arif Salaam, a resident of Kollam, who was here with his family.
According to R Kumar, civil police officer of Valiyathura police station, many visitors are those who arrive at the airport from distant places to see off their family members or friends.
‘’We are keeping a strict watch. We do not let them stay here even for a minute’’, he said.
On Wednesday morning tourism director P Balakiran visited the beach to review the safety measures implemented by the District Tourism Promotion Council.
They had installed barricades to prevent the visitor’s entry to the beach. Red flags, warning boards and cordon tapes were installed at the danger zones. The vendors on the beach were also asked to vacate the premises.
‘’If vendors keep their shops open, the visitors will linger around and it will be tough for us to clear them from the place. It is very sad that even after getting alerts messages people are neglecting it and visiting the spot with their kids,” said life guard Subhash.
Many of the visitors were not aware of the ban