|
|
Institute for Crisis, Disaster, and Risk Management Crisis and Emergency Management Newsletter Website |
|
| |
December
2006
Volume
11 - Number 3 |
|
By Noelle Hauer When the Indian Ocean tsunami struck, the only warning most people had was the sight of the giant wave coming towards them. The Indian Ocean did not have a system to alert residents that a tsunami was imminent. In the aftermath of the disaster, scientists and governments began working on an early warning system for the region. The $126 million Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System became active in late June of this year. The warning system consists of 25 seismographic stations relaying information to 26 national tsunami centers, as well as three deep-ocean sensors. That information is sent to the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center and the Japanese Metrological Agency, which then relay it to the individual countries at risk. The concerned governments are still looking to improve the system, especially the methods used to convey the alerts. In the immediate aftermath of the Java earthquake, the Indonesian government received warnings from Hawaii and Japan but failed to relay the alert to its citizens. Officials plan to better utilize television and radio stations to get warning messages out faster. Experts say an assessment should be conducted to determine areas and populations that are the most vulnerable. Local officials should then draw up plans for their area—such as how to involve police or military, and whether to install loud speakers. Some experts say children in coastal communities should learn about the threat of tsunamis in school. Progress on a nation-by-nation basis has been inconsistent. Some countries, like Thailand, Malaysia, and Indian, have set up tsunami warning centers to field information. Thailand has also installed an alert system along the Andaman Coast, complete with sirens and evacuation routes. Indonesia, on the other hand, is still struggling to set up dozens of tidal gauges, seismometers, and deep-ocean tsunami monitoring buoys, despite help from other countries like Germany. The immediate challenge for most of the region, though, is agreeing on who should assess data and determine when to issue a tsunami warning. Eight countries want to set up their own centers, which could lead to confusion. “If you have eight different pieces of information going to all 27 countries and contrasting with one another, then nobody knows what to do,” said Curt Barrett, of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Other potential drawbacks include a shortage of deep sea buoys. There are only a handful of suppliers for the buoys worldwide. Financing the maintenance of the system over the long-term may be other potential drawback as well. It has not been decided which country or countries will have ultimate responsibility of the system or will UN continue to fund the project. The effected countries and UN continue will continue to make improvements in the next few years. Additional deep-sea pressure sensors and satellites will be added to the system by late 2007 and 2008. Since this system has been initiated other warning systems in the North East Atlantic, Mediterranean and adjoining seas and the Caribbean are establishing systems of their own. |