Caribbean Tsunami exercise
The Cayman Islands joined other Countries in the Caribbean as a participant in a tsunami response exercise on Wednesday March 26, 2014. The purpose of the exercise was to evaluate local tsunami response plans, increase tsunami preparedness, and improve coordination throughout the Caribbean region and northern Western Atlantic.
The exercise has been modeled by NOAA NWS Caribbean Tsunami Warning program, and is titled CARIBE WAVE/LANTEX 14. The exercise simulates a tsunami generated by a magnitude 8.0 earthquake located approximately 270 km off the coast of Portugal. As a result, a widespread Tsunami Warning and Watch situation occurs throughout the Caribbean which requires implementation of local tsunami response plans.
A number of local agencies participatedin the exercise including Department of Public Safety Communications, the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service, Cayman Islands National Weather Service and Government Information Services.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
Goal
Review and enhance the existing National Tsunami Plan
Objectives
Apply and review notification procedure outlined in Tsunami plan
Evaluate the use of the local Warning Phases for alerting the public and response services
Complete evaluation form for Caribe Wave 2014.
Evaluate notification procedures for a tsunami alert from PTWC – review of local equipment and capabilities.
Identify long, medium and short issues for tsunami preparedness and response planning.
Review media templates in plan to be used for expediting media releases and public warning in the event of a tsunami
Historical tsunami records from sources such as the National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) show that over 75 tsunamis with high validity have been observed in the Caribbean over the past 500 years. These represent approximately 7–10 % of the world’s oceanic tsunamis. Earthquake, landslide, and volcanic tsunami sources have all impacted the region. Since 1842 almost 3,500 people have lost their lives to tsunamis in the Caribbean.
In addition to tsunamis, the region also has a long history of destructive earthquakes. Historical records show that major earthquakes have struck the Caribbean region many times during the past 500 years. Within the region there are multiple fault segments and submarine features that could be the source of earthquake and landslide generated tsunamis (Figure 2). The perimeter of the Caribbean plate is bordered by no fewer than four major plates (North American, South American, Nazca, and Cocos). Subduction occurs along the Eastern and Northeastern Atlantic margins of the Caribbean plate. Normal, transform and strike slip faulting characterize northern South America, eastern Central America, the Cayman Ridge and Trench and the Northern plate boundary (Benz et al, 2011). In addition to the local and regional sources, the region is also threatened by teletsunamis/trans-Atlantic tsunamis, like that of 1755. A major earthquake occurs about every 50 years in the Caribbean, and the possibility of a resulting tsunami is real and should be taken seriously.
For more information on the ICG/CARIBE-EWS, see http://www.ioc-tsunami.org
or contact Simon Boxall at [email protected] or 526-2027
EDITOR: The Caribbean Tsunami Warning Program recently installed a sea-level sensor in George Town harbour. The sensor will send real-time data to tsunami centres in Hawaii and Puerto Rico.
Related story
UNESCO tests tsunami warning system in Caribbean basin
From Fox News Latino
UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, or IOC, conducted an exercise Wednesday to test the tsunami alert system covering 31 Caribbean basin countries, officials said.
The exercise was scripted around a tsunami occurring at 1000 GMT some 430 kilometers (267 miles) west of the coast of Gibraltar, simulating the earthquake and tidal wave that happened on Nov. 1, 1755, in that area.
The 1755 temblor affected the coasts of Portugal, Spain, North Africa and the Caribbean islands, unleashing waves that battered Lisbon about 20 minutes after the quake hit and reached Antigua more than nine hours later, UNESCO said in a statement.
The U.S. government’s Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, or PTWC, and National Tsunami Warning Center, or NTWC, sent mock alerts to participating countries during the simulation.
“The goal is to test the Tsunami and other Coastal Hazards Warning System for the Caribbean and Adjacent Regions, which was established in 2005 by the countries of the region in collaboration with IOC-UNESCO, ensuring that the national focal points responsible for the dissemination of the alert receive timely warning,” the IOC said in a statement.
The Caribbean has been hit by 75 tsunamis in the past five centuries, accounting for nearly 10 percent of the tidal waves registered in the world during that period.
“Previous experience underlines the crucial importance of rapid transmission of information to minimize the damage caused by tsunamis,” the IOC said. EFE
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Tsunami photo: www.gadling.com
