High tides engulf houses, shops in Andhra Pradesh village, trigger fear among residents

Fear gripped the Antarvedi village in Andhra Pradesh’s East Godavari district after high tides from the sea engulfed several houses and shops in the area. Shops at the beach area in the Antarvedi village were also affected by the rising tides.

There is panic among the residents of the village, who are worried that the high tides may cause massive damage in the low-lying areas.

People residing near the beach at Antarvedi temple said it was the first time that the high tides had moved in so close to settlement areas and submerged shops and houses there.

© Provided by India Today

Incidentally, the high tide-induced incident has come at a time when environmentalists have been warning about damaging impact of climate change.

A report by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) this week predicted that there was a dangerous risk factor for India and rising sea level can submerge 12 coastal cities in the country by the end of the century.

A Nasa analysis, based on the IPCC report, identified Mumbai, Chennai, Kochi, and Visakhapatnam among cities that may face wide-scale submergence due to rise in sea level under the impact of climate change.

It predicted that several coastal cities across the globe could be nearly three feet underwater by the century’s end.

The IPCC report indicated that the sea level around Asia has been increasing at a much faster rate than the average global rate.

The extreme changes in sea levels, previously seen once in 100 years could happen once every six to nine years by 2050, the report stated.

“Coastal areas will see continued sea-level rise throughout the 21st century, contributing to more frequent and severe coastal flooding in low-lying areas and coastal erosion with extreme sea-level events that previously occurred once in 100 years could happen every year by the end of this century,” the IPCC Working Group-I report said.

ALSO READ | Five things to know about the new UN report on climate change