Silent processions and tearful homages marked the fourth anniversary of the devastating tsunami that wreaked havoc in Cuddalore and Nagapattinam. A large number of men and women who lost their kin on December 26, 2004 to the killer waves paid floral tributes at memorials across Tamil Nadu. In a low-key event at the collectorate complex in Nagapattinam, which saw maximum casualties and where a memorial stupa has been built, collector M Jayaraman, Nagappatinam MP A K S Vijayan and several people observed silence for two minutes. Children of the Annai Sathya Home, who were orphaned by the tsunami, also paid floral tributes at the stupa. “We did not want to fan the buried emotions of the public. Hence we ensured that the tsunami anniversary was observed in a low-key manner,” said M Jayaraman. Flowers were sprinkled in the sea, with a prayer to the ‘Mother Sea,’ not to strike again. Candle-lit prayers were held in front of huge posters of the dead children. At places, women and children broke down grieving for their loved ones who were among the 6,000 odd persons killed in the tsunami from Nagapattinam district. Fishermen in Akkaraipettai and other hamlets kept off sea. They tied black flags to the boats as a sign of mourning for the tsunami victims.
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