Stay away from high tides, villagers warned

Risky area: Villagers looking at the damaged road and big waves at Kampung Tanjung Gelam in Kuala Nerus due to the high tide phenomenon. — Bernama

KUALA TERENGGANU: Stay away from the beach, the Civil Defence Force (APM) has warned.

The caution is out as high tides are expected to continue through the days ahead.

State APM Disaster Management, Opera­tions and Logistics officer Lt Norasmawi Abdul Mutalib said waves reached up to 2.5m at Kampung Tanjung Gelam in Kuala Nerus on Wednesday night.

He said many people were seen standing on a slippery slope watching the big waves hitting the shore.

“This is dangerous, what if they slipped and fell? We will have a disaster. People should not get too excited,” he added.

The high tide phenomenon that night saw huge waves hitting some homes in the village located by the beach, damaging the road as well.

Lt Norasmawi said villagers living close to the beach were advised to move away “as staying put can be dangerous”.

“So far, one family has moved to stay with relatives. Their house is directly facing the beach,” he said.

Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Razif Abd Rahman announced an immediate allocation of RM1.2mil to stem erosion in the village.

He said the allocation was a short-term measure to protect the coastline.

“For the longer term, we have a RM40mil federal allocation.

“We are designing a breakwater to overcome the erosion,” he told reporters after visiting Pulau Sekati bridge here yesterday.

Ahmad Razif said the state government had acted to minimise erosion at the Tok Jembal beach, mainly around Universiti Malaysia Terengganu and Teluk Ketapang, by building wave breakers.

“The DID has suggested that we do the same in Tanjung Gelam, where two breakwaters must be built.

“However, it needs to study this in detail, so that it does not affect the beaches around Batu Rakit and the surrounding areas,” Ahmad Razif added.

He said the Federal Government had allocated RM90mil to tackle erosion in the coastal villages of Tok Jembal, Tanjung Ketapang and Teluk Gelam, with another RM30mil allocation to the Public Works Department, raising the figure to RM120mil.