Seven fishermen from this island town are missing while over 4,000 others aborted fishing and safely returned to the shores early Tuesday following rough sea conditions, an official said.
The seven fishermen were among those who put out to sea in 622 mechanised boats on Monday afternoon as against the usual practice of leaving early in the day as the sea conditions were unafavourable, Assistant Director of Fisheries Rajendran said.
The rough sea and gusty winds forced the fishermen to return early this morning but seven fishermen in a boat owned by Bakkiyam did not come back, he said.
Meanwhile, Ramanathapuram MP Navaskani has appealed to the Naval authorities to help in locating and rescuing the missing fishermen.
Officials said search operations have been hampered by the weather conditions.
As a low-pressure area formed in North Bay of Bengal off West Bengal coast, the Met office on Tuesday said high waves in the range of 3.5-4.1 meters are likely from Tuesday evening till 11.30 pm on Thursday along the coast of Southern Tamil Nadu from Colachel to Dhanushkodi.
It has also advised fishermen not to venture into these areas during the period.