Team Herald
VASCO: Over 30 meters of retaining wall (in stretches) located in a private property at Hollant Beach in Issorcim village collapsed after the sea became rough and tidal waves lashed the shores due to Cyclone Ockhi on Sunday evening.
Residents now fear landslides and erosion in the property and demanded immediate steps from concerned authorities to avoid any further damage to the beachside area, which has over the years become a popular picnic destination in Mormugao taluka.
A visit to the site by Herald on Monday revealed that the retaining wall of a property which was built several years ago to prevent sea erosion was severely damaged after high tidal waves lashed the wall. Damage to the retaining wall was seen in patches and locals now fear that if preventive steps were not taken soon there was a possibility of erosion and landslide in the area.
“The retaining wall at this property has been in bad shape since for the past several years. A few years ago when a proportion of this retaining wall had collapsed during a cyclone, we got it repaired by constructing a concrete retaining wall in the damaged portion. Now due to the tidal waves on Sunday night the other weak portion of the same retaining wall had collapsed at different portions,” former Velsao-Pale-Issorcim Sarpanch Lawrence Rodrigues, who also owns a beachside bar and restaurant at Hollant beach, said.
Since the other portion of the retaining wall is weak, during my tenure as Sarpanch I had proposed to construct new concrete retaining wall all across the beachside property, with railway lines passing on the other end. As the proposal remained pending, today over 35-meters area of retaining wall collapsed and if weather continues to be rough then whatever is remaining will also go very soon. There are several coconut trees and due to possible landslide even they might collapse. I don’t know why our Panchayat is neglecting the needs of Hollant beach, he added.
Meanwhile, ward panch Nandita Dayal and Velsao-Pale-Issorcim Sarpanch Henrique D’Mello have also raised their concerns over the collapse of retaining wall and have assured to take up the issue.
“I have already directed the panchayat staff to inspect the site and submit a report, so that the retaining wall can be repaired on a priority basis,” D’Mello said.
Dayal said she was out of station and was optimistic that the disaster management team as well as the office of local MLA Alina Saldanha would have taken cognizance and was sure they would be on the job to protect and safeguard property from getting damaged. “I will immediately move a proposal to get the retaining wall repaired,” she added.
