A spring tide, coupled with incessant rain, caused breaches to numerous earthen dykes and contributed to widespread flooding for the second consecutive day on Wednesday in and around Mousuni Island.

Residents of South 24-Parganas’s Namkhana, within which Mousuni lies, alleged that most of the embankments had been recently repaired by the irrigation department, albeit in a “substandard manner”.

“They used muddy soil in the repairs, as we can see now. It defeats the purpose of having a dyke, as they failed to provide any resistance in the face of these strong tides,” said a local resident, adding “extensive damage” from Cyclone Yaas in May had left a downbeat mood among people.

“On top of that, when we see such substandard efforts, it is quite upsetting,” the resident added.

The people, however, admitted that district officials had conducted evacuation operations in vulnerable locations throughout this week’s flooding and had also opened a temporary control centre at the Kakdwip subdivisional office.

On Wednesday morning, a 500m stretch of an earthen dyke in Baliara was collapsed by a strong wave out of the Chinai river.

“The water level suddenly rose owing to the spring tide and soon, began overflowing the dyke, washing it away completely in the end,” said local resident Sankar Doloi.

“Only a part of the dyke was damaged yesterday (Tuesday), but now, the entire village has been flooded by the Chinai. The embankment was weak and being repaired with muddy soil: a repeated and unfortunate style of maintenance work against which we have been protesting for long,” Doloi added.

The fresh inundation has reportedly also spoiled crop and horticulture in the area, sparking fresh worries in the agriculture-based work force.

“Officials from the block development office came to shift us and provide dry food items, but we reiterated our appeal for a proper dam if they really want to save us and Mousuni island as well,” said Sachin Kumar Patra, another resident of the area.

River water flooded several areas of the Nadavanga area, also on the island. Similar breaches were reported from Ishwaripur and Dwariknagar as well. In several spots, villagers were seen repairing vulnerable stretches of the dams on an ad hoc basis in a last-ditch effort to save their property.

“Several earthen dykes have been damaged, particularly in Mousuni, owing to heavy tidal waves similar to those during Yaas. In May, we had undertaken repairs on the dykes, which, however, could not be strengthened enough. As a result, fresh breaches occurred. We have alerted irrigation officials, who will take up fresh repairs once the water level recedes,” said block development officer of Namkhana, Santanu Sinha Thakur.

Speaking to The Telegraph, subdivisional officer Kakdwip, Aranya Bandopadhyay, added: “The situation is under control. The impact of the tide on Wednesday was not as strong as we expected. There has been no loss of lives as we had shifted people to safer places well in advance.”