South Windy Season Arrives, Lebak Banten Fisherman Doesn't Go To Sea Due To High Waves

Fishing boat/ Photo; Antara

BANTEN - Traditional fishermen in Lebak Regency, Banten Province since the past week have not been fishing due to the south wind so that the waves are high enough to reach four meters. "We haven't gone to sea to repair the rampus net where a lot of damage has been found," said Saliman (55) a fisherman in Binuangeun, Lebak Regency, Sunday, August 6. Most traditional fishermen who don't go to sea, because they enter the south wind season and trigger high waves. This condition makes fishing relatively small and not proportional to operational costs. Operational costs to buy fuel oil are needed as much as 20 liters or Rp. 200 thousand each way. "If the relatively small income is also plus bad weather, it's certainly better not going to sea," said Sariman. 60-year-old fisherman said he also did not dare to go to sea because he entered the south wind. Moreover, fishermen here use a kincang boat with an outboard motor engine which is certainly not strong enough to withstand 4 meters of waves. They are fishermen if forcing to go to sea, the risk is quite large, in addition to causing accidents as well as catching empty fish.

In the southern wind season, most types of tuna, skipjack, seafar, jangilus, sophisticated, bagas, tedeng, lempet, pepeperek, bilis, singgreg and kerong-kerong into the middle of the sea.

Head of the Binuangeun Fish Port Base (PPI) of Lebak Regency Ahmad Hadi said that most fishermen who do not go to sea use outboard engine boats to avoid sea accidents. Because, the weather in the southern Sunda Strait or the Indian Ocean enters the south wind. "We estimate that fishermen who do not go to sea are around 1,500 people," he explained. He said, currently, the bad weather that hit the southern part of the Sunda Strait, the average fish catch value is 200 tons with a turnover value of Rp. 3 billion/month. This is because boat fishermen over the weights of 10 gyroston (GT) are still operating on a cruise five miles from the coast. "We hope that the weather returns to normal and traditional fishermen return to sea," he explained.