Wave washes away 2 boys at Marina

Two from a group of friends bathing on Marina Beach were swept away by a giant wave on Sunday evening.

Police said Dheenadayalan(18) and Madan Kumar (17), both residents of Tondiarpet, along with a few other friends entered the sea and were playing when a giant wave hit the shore-line.

Dheenadayalan’s family members Parvathi (mother), Vedavalli (sister) and Karuppasamy (father) and Madan Kumar’s family members were eagerly waiting at Anna Square police station since 6 am on Monday for any update on the missing boys.

“Dheenadayalan went out in the morning to play cricket and returned home on Sunday afternoon before he left for the beach with his friends. He has talked to his family members from his cellphone when he reached beach, ”Parvathi said.

She added with tears that she received a call from police through Dheenadayalan’s cellphone and they said that they had picked up some students along with her son for taking bath in the sea.

“We rushed to the station where they informed us that our son had drowned in the sea,” she said.

Inspector AC Gnanaselvam, the investigating officer, told Express that they had launched a search for the bodies.

“We have received information of an unidentified body being spotted near Kasimed Fishing Harbour. We are pursuing that information as well. But we are yet to confirm whether that body was one among the two that drowned on Sunday,” he said.

Sources said that the age of the unidentified body will be assessed and the families’ help will also be sought for identification.

Following the incident, vigil on the shoreline had been stepped up. As many as 10 were arrested by the police on Monday alone for bathing in the sea.

Mobile patrols kept a close watch on the shoreline and intervened if anyone tried to enter the sea.