Onset of South West Monsoon expected to trigger tidal swells

By Yohan Perera and Chathuranga Samarawickrama   

The South West Monsoon which is expected to become active within the coming days will cause tidal swells in the seas around Sri Lanka, the Disaster Management Centre (DMC) which quoted the Department of Meteorology said yesterday.  

These kind of waves are a common occurrence whenever the South West Monsoon gets active during the month of May every year according to the Department of Meteorology.   
The swell waves (about 2.5 m – 3.0 m) in height with wave period (about 12s-16s) may increase in the sea areas off the coast extending from Kalpitiya to Pottuvil via Colombo, Galle, and Hambantota.
“There is a possibility that the coastline extending from Colombo to Matara via Galle, may experience tidal surges due to swell waves,” DMC added.   
The sea areas off the coast extending from Kalpitiya to Pottuvil via Colombo, Galle and Hambantota can be rough at times. Naval and fishing communities who are engaged in fishing and naval activities in the above sea areas were requested to be vigilant in this regard.