Memories of Tsunami haunt survivors and kin of victims

Fishermen along the State’s coastline refrained from fishing and hoisted flew black flags on their boats to mark the day when over 8,000 persons lost their lives in 2004; former fisheries Minister D. Jayakumar led a gathering in Kasimedu in prayers and Food Secretary J. Radhakrishnan paid homage at Nochikuppam

It’s been 18 years since the Tsunami of 2004 claimed thousands of lives yet the painful memories remain etched in the minds of those who witnessed it or faced the losses due to the monstrous waves.

Fishermen all along the State’s coastline refrained from fishing and hoisted black flags on their boats to mark the day when over 8,000 persons lost their lives. 

At Arangamkuppam in Pulicat where the elderly Pachaiamma, who collected seashells for a living, died, residents poured milk into the sea and offered flowers in memory of the day. At Kasimedu, former fisheries minister D. Jayakumar led the gathering in the prayers. He recalled how the government, NGOs and the people worked together to rebuild the coastline. 

At Nochikuppam, former Nagapattinam District Collector and present Food Secretary J. Radhakrishnan paid homage. He said that the tsunami was something unknown and it came stealthily at the speed of an aeroplane. “But now India has advance tsunami warning systems, and we have learnt to build back better and take insurance for our properties. Around 50% of the deaths in India happened in Tamil Nadu but those who have survived have shown that they are resilient, which is very important,” he said. 

K. Bharathi of the South Indian Fishermen Welfare Association said that after the tsunami, a team of IAS officials, ably spearheaded the rehabilitation works and ensured that everything came back to normalcy. One of the grouses that fishermen have is that in many cases the promised houses never turned a reality and in some places where they did, pattas were not in the names of the families, he said.