Swell surge alert in Kerala, TN, Lakshadweep; beaches shut, fishing vessels anchored
Kerala was last struck by damaging Kallakkadal events in 2024
A warning of a swell surge, locally known as 'Kallakkadal', has been sounded among the fishing communities along Kerala, southern Tamil Nadu and the Lakshadweep Islands.
The Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) on Thursday urged fishing vessels, including bottom trawlers, and country craft boats, to not venture into the sea, as it said the swell surge could batter the coast.
INCOIS is an autonomous body, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, that tracks and forecasts ocean conditions during extreme weather — from high swells to storm surges. It said high-period swells generated far out in the southern Indian Ocean have already reached Indian shores.
A swell surge forms very differently from the choppy waves whipped up by local winds. It begins as an ordinary wind wave, generated when a storm blows steadily across a vast stretch of open ocean.
In the most severe cases, swells can stretch beyond 700 metres because they arrive without the accompanying wind and rough weather that usually signal danger. Swells can strike a calm, sunny coastline without warning — catching fishing communities off guard, flooding low-lying settlements, damaging boats and gear, eroding beaches and hurting the livelihoods that depend on the coast.
Meanwhile, tourists have been prohibited from visiting beaches in Ramanathapuram, Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli and Kanniyakumari districts in Tamil Nadu.
According to a bulletin released by INCOIS, high period swells reached south Tamil Nadu and Kerala coasts. The statement warned of high waves ranging from 2.5 — 2.7 metres for two days from the evening of August 19 for coastal areas of Kerala, South Tamil Nadu districts and Lakshadweep islands.
Fishermen were advised to anchor vessels at a fair distance from each to avoid collision and damages to the craft, and recommended to the state governments to completely suspend all recreational activities along the beaches.
In Thoothukudi, over 4,000 country boats and 550 mechanised vessels remained anchored. The rough sea conditions forced 1,500 mechanised vessels and 3,000 country boats to stay on shore in Ramanathapuram district, while the administration restricted tourist access to Arichal Munai in Dhanushkodi, officials said.
At Kanniyakumari, boat operations to Vivekananda rock memorial, glass bridge and Thiruvalluvar statue were suspended by the Poompuhar Shipping Corporation.
Kerala was last struck by damaging Kallakkadal events in 2024. On March 31 that year, high swell waves, which local authorities had said were in the range of 11 metres, reached the coast and inundated beaches and adjoining areas.
The Kerala State Disaster Management Authority had linked this to a low-pressure system formed over the South Atlantic Ocean.
