Reducing and Managing the risk of Tsunamis
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Material Information

Title:
Reducing and Managing the risk of Tsunamis ICG/NEAMTWS Working Group 4, Public Awareness, Preparedness and Mitigation
Series Title:
IOC Manuals and Guides
Creator:
ntergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Place of Publication:
Paris
Publisher:
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
Publication Date:
Copyright Date:
2011
Language:
English

Subjects

Subjects / Keywords:
Natural hazards and disasters ( lcshac )
Tsunami hazard zones ( lcshac )
Genre:
serial ( sobekcm )
international intergovernmental publication ( marcgt )
series ( marcgt )

Notes

Summary:
This is a guideline to support and supplement countries’ established procedures for preparing and responding to natural hazards and disasters. It aims at assisting countries in their assessment of the tsunami hazard risks facing their coastal populations. As coastal areas are increasingly favored for development and recreation, the exposure of people and their supporting assets to coastal hazards is also on the rise. Unlike storm surge and extreme wind-driven waves, which are climate-related events that can be forecast a few days in advance, most tsunamis are generated by movements along faults in the Earth’s crust, and thus their timing and magnitude are often unpredictable. The document summarizes procedures for analyzing the possibility and the probability of a country’s coasts being impacted by a tsunami, taking into account potential tsunami sources, the record of past impacts and computer modeling of tsunami propagation and inundation. The guideline encourages countries to place a priority on the prevention of disaster, not just from tsunamis, but also other marine hazards, whether catastrophic, such as storm surge inundation, or slow-onset (creeping) hazards, notably the erosion of susceptible coastal land and the consequences of sea-level rise. The next section covers the procedures that should be taken at the national level for receiving tsunami alerts, and for formulating and issuing warnings for action by national Civil Protection Agencies. The guideline recommends that countries establish or enhance their capacity for the early warning of tsunami events through participation in the Tsunami Early Warning and Mitigation System of the North-eastern Atlantic, the Mediterranean and Connected Seas (NEAMTWS). The last section covers the procedures for making coastal communities and administrators at all levels aware of the nature and consequences of tsunami impact, and the importance of evacuation in the case of a forecasted inundation. The document concludes that an effective tsunami warning and mitigation system is achieved when all persons in coastal communities at risk are prepared and respond in a timely manner upon recognition that a potentially destructive tsunami may be approaching. High-level government advocacy and commitment are needed to make the tsunami early warning system sustainable. ( , )
Subject:
Disaster Risk Management
Citation/Reference:
(2011). Reducing and managing the risk of tsunamis. Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Record Information

Source Institution:
Florida International University
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Aggregations:
Disaster Risk Reduction