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| Sunday, 2 January 2005 |
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70 per cent fishing fleet destroyed by Elmo Leonard Seventy-percent of Sri Lanka's 29,694 fishing fleet is lost following the tidal waves which devastated the island on December 26, Director General of the Department of Fisheries, G Piyasena said. Surviving members of fisheries corporatives from most parts of the coast, we spoke to said that the loss to life was even more startling than the destruction to infrastructure, fishing craft and property.
Of Sri Lanka's 800-mile sea coast only a 100-mile-stretch north of Chilaw and south of the Jaffna Peninsular was spared of significant damage, Piyasena confirmed. The tidal waves lashed most ferociously on the eastern and southern half of the coasts of the island. In some places in the east the sea water had moved two to three kilometres inland taking its toll of complete fishing villages, the craft and nets the fishermen used. The Jaffna peninsular was also badly inundated. The 200,000 strong active fishermen, 90 percent of whom are Christians were enjoying their Christmas festivity in huts situated a stone-throw from the ocean. Many thousands of women and children of the island's fisher folk are missing or dead, drowned by the tidal waves. Fishing families said that the next generation of fishermen from the eastern and southern coasts which took the strongest impact, could be largely lost. The robust active fishermen, most of whom work on traditional crafts fared much better. In the chaos which follows, it will take a lot of time before the actual loss of human life is known, according to as many sources as we spoke to. In addition to the active fishermen there are 100,000 people who were employed in ancillary fishing activity as net, gear and boat manufacturers, wholesalers and traders, according to statistics of the Ministry of Fisheries and Ocean Resources. A large part of these people live near the sea coast and their losses are yet to be computed, Fisheries Ministry sources said. The island has only 1,500 multiday fishing craft, most 34 to 45 foot in length. There are also 11,000 Fibreglass Reinforced Plastic Boats (FRP) 17 to 23 foot with outboard motors. Also, 1,500 Inboard Engine Powered Boats, of 28 to 32 foot. The traditional craft are canoes, catamarans and vallam. Some craft are taken to sea by a single man, rowing all the time, others have sails. The fisher folk of Sri Lanka never fear the oceans. In over 2,500 years of recorded history they went to sea, son following father, lived in huts on the sea shore and had an added duty of informing the kings of newcomers. It was over 2,000 years ago that a tidal wave stuck Sri Lanka and history will repeat itself when the surviving fishermen resume their fishing activity with whatever fishing craft and ancallaries they can muster. The island's fisheries harbours in Kalpitiya in the north west and Mutwal in Colombo and Chilaw have not suffered any significant damage. The other fisheries harbours along the western coast are at Panadura, Beruwala, Ambalangoda (under construction), Ambalangoda, Hikkaduwa (61 miles from Colombo) Galle, Mirissa and Tangalle, Hambantota and Kirinda. Most of these fisheries harbours suffered damages to infrastructure and fishing craft. The Eastern part of the island has fisheries harbour in Cod Bay near Trincomalee and a non-functional harbour in Valachchenai. Most of Sri Lanka's other fishing craft are berthed in anchorages and along the show. Most of Sri Lanka's fishing activity is concentrated in the western coast of the island. Negombo, 26 miles from Colombo is a fishing hub, but has no fisheries harbour and the multiday and traditional craft are berthed in the Negombo lagoon and other places. Some of the fishing craft in the Duwa anchorage, nearby had been washed to the Negombo road. The 90-mile long Hamilton Canal, built by the Dutch in the 17th Century provides shelter for many of the motor boats which leave the western coast. Here too, we saw this canal overflow its banks adding to the destruction of fishing craft. The Blue Star Marine boat did not seem to be damaged. Along the western coast we saw many traditional craft physically lifted by fishermen to higher ground. "At a time like this it is all team work," fisherman Anthony in Hendala said. Many of the multiday craft which survived the Asian tsunami were engaged in fishing at the time while those which were berthed were dashed against the harbours they were berthed in. Some multiday craft took to the sea to avoid being damaged. Sri Lanka's exports of 3,000 tonnes of fish, most in value added forms, comprising Tuna, shark fins, cuttle fish and shrimp (20 percent wild caught) goes to the EU, Japan and the United States. Most of Sri Lanka's exports go in value added form. The Neil Marine boatyard in Negombo is claimed to the largest boatyard in South East Asia exports multiday craft Negombo to Europe, the United States and African countries while supplying to the domestic market. This boatyard is not damaged, general manager Ruwan munasinghe said. The state run Sea-Nor boatyard in Mattakkuliya, Colombo and its four outlets in Beruwala, Galle, Tangalle and Kirinda have suffered an estimated loss of Rs 6.6 million (Rs 105 to a US dollar) General Manager Delgoda Liyanage said. Sri Lanka's total production of fish in 2003 amounted to 300,000 tonnes per year, according to the Ministry of Fisheries and per capita availability is 17.8 kilograms per year. The island's exports of fish in 2003 amounted to 15,690 tonnes valued at Rs 495.426 million, most in value added forms, comprising Tuna, shark fins, cuttle fish and shrimp (20 percent wild caught) goes to the EU, Japan and the United States. Tropic Fishery is one of Sri Lanka's largest exporters of fish. The large multiday craft they operate were not damaged. Tropic also buys tuna from foreign vessels that dock at the Mutwal harbour. Director Roshan Fernando lamented that their supplies from local boats will be limited. "We are continuing our exports with stocks available," Fernando said. |
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