PH Bay berthing facility in KKS harbour declared open

Long waited and much necessitated berthing facilities became a reality with the ceremonial opening of the PH Bay –fully fledge berthing facility with gamut of services at Kankesanturai (KKS) harbour by the Commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Piyal De Silva on 17^th June 2020.

Being a visionary leader, the idea of constructing this berthing facility was first came to the mind of the present Navy Commander who was then Deputy Area Commander of Northern Naval Area in 2011. Created in the shape of a U in the KKS harbour, the jetty is 100m in length 70m in width and 12ft in depth. The large limestone and hard rock layer that had been exposed during low tide, was dug up from July 1, 2019, in eight months with great effort and dedication by the officers and sailors of the Diving Unit and Civil Engineering Department.

This project has left Sri Lanka Navy’s mark in the history as Rs. 1,200 million estimated project was completed by spending only Rs. 94 million, largely due to the able guidance of Commander of the Navy, supervision of Commander Northern Naval Area, Rear Admiral Kapila Samaraweera and naval personnel attached to the Northern Naval Command.

Further, the event was held in line with the health advice given as a result of ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The occasion was also attended by Security Force Commander Jaffna, Major General Ruwan Wanigasooriya, Senior Deputy Inspector General Jaffna, Pathmasiri Munasinghe, Commander North Central Naval Area, Rear Admiral Lalith Dissanayake, Commander Eastern Naval Area, Rear Admiral Ruwan Perera,Deputy Area Commander Northern Naval Area, Commodore Sudath Lelwala,Commanding Officer Palai Air Force Base, Group Captain Asela Jayasekara, senior officers and sailors.