In the land of sun, sand & surf
DEATH BY DROWNING
A deadly cocktail of naivete, alcohol and strong sea currents is the reason why Goa’s alluring beaches are death traps for tourists
Preetu Nair | TNN
Goa’s most prominent beaches — Calangute in the North and Colva in the South — are also the biggest killers.
Going by police statistics from January 2006 to September 2008, 42 persons drowned at Calangute while 18 met a watery grave at Colva. Significantly, most of the deceased were Indian male tourists.
“Most Indian visitors have often never seen the sea before and can barely swim,” explains a senior tourist official, “They plunge into the water despite warnings and often in a drunken state.”
In 2006, North Goa’s seas saw 23 Indian men drown; the figure upped to 31 in 2007 and till September this year, the seas have claimed 25 Indian tourists.
In the South, 2006 saw 24 Indians die in the waters, 2007 saw 30 and in the first nine months of 2008, 16 Indians have lost their lives to the sea. In contrast, the total number of foreign visitors who’ve died in Goa’s waters in the last 33 months are 12 in the north and two in the south.
The killer seas are mostly off the crowded beaches of Calangute, Baga and Arambol in North Goa, while Margao’s Colva beach is the sinister sea in the South.
While the total number of drowning deaths in the North in 2006 was 35, the South saw 28 deaths. Year 2007 witnessed 55 drowning deaths in North Goa, while the South recorded 33 drowning deaths. Till September 2008, 33 people have drowned in the North and 21 in the South.
October 29, 2008, The Times of India, Goa edition
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