BALIK PULAU: Twenty years ago, Penang Hill funicular train worker Mohd Sabri Abd Mutolib used to go on dates to the sandy beaches of Pasir Panjang at the south-western tip of the island.
Now, aged 42, he is shocked to see the beach swallowed up by the sea.
“There are rocks everywhere where there used to be sand. I think all the sand has been washed away and these rocks that were buried below the sand have been exposed.
“It is shocking, what has happened?” said Mohd Sabri who lives in Balik Pulau.
“I used to take my girlfriend, who is now my wife, on dates there. We later took our children, too.
“We did notice over the years that the beach was becoming smaller, but we never expected it to almost disappear,” he said.
Mohd Sabri said that even after the 2004 tsunami, there was still plenty of sand, although things have changed.
“Early this year, we heard about the beach disappearing and drove there to take a look. We were shocked,” he said.
Pasir Panjang, which faces the Straits of Malacca, is about half a kilometre long. Offering marvelous sunset views, this secluded beach was never a tourist spot but was enjoyed by the locals.
This year, the locals noticed waves coming further in, especially during the full and new moon phases when spring tides are stronger.
Some contacted The Star, worried that rising sea levels may have washed the beach away.
The more popular Batu Ferringhi beach in the northern tip of the island has also suffered the same fate, with waves crashing so high up it damaged the baywatch tower foundation, causing it to collapse in early January.
Balik Pulau fisherman Wan Mohizan Wan Hussein said he noticed the beach disappearing about a year ago.
“When I pass in my boat during high tide, I cannot see the beach anymore. The waves crash up onto the land, right by the road,” he said.
“I live here so I pass Pasir Panjang by boat almost every day. If the sea reclaims the beach, this is a big problem,” he said.
Local angler JY Shen said he was taken aback by the sight of the beach when he went fishing for sand whiting (bebulus) there in March.
“The beach was never like this, even during huge spring tide days. Now, the waves come so high up to the shore that the concrete steps by the road are broken. It is frightening,” he said.
Pulau Betong fishermen unit head Arshad Omar, who lives nearby, said this was the first time he was seeing the beach disappear.
“This happens every year but never this bad. This is the first time it looks like there is no beach.
“Maybe it is really due to global warming,” he said.