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Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries
Special Paper 35
Tsunami Warning
Systems and Procedures
Guidance for Local Officials
Oregon Emergency Management
and the
Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries
2001 Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries Special Papers, ISSN 0278-3703
Published in conformance with ORS 516.030
For copies of this publication, or other information about tsunamis,
including tsunami hazard maps for the Oregon coast, contact:
Nature of the Northwest Information Center
800 NE Oregon Street #5
Portland, Oregon 97232
(503) 872-2750
www.naturenw.org Special Paper 35
Tsunami Warning
Systems and Procedures:
Guidance for Local Officials
Prepared for the
National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program
by
Oregon Emergency Management
and
Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries
2001
STATE OF OREGON
DEPARTMENT OF GEOLOGY AND MINERAL INDUSTRIES
John D. Beaulieu, State Geologist The greatest enemy
of communication
is the illusion
that it has taken place.
Pierre Martineau Table of Contents
Executive Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .v
Preface and Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .vi
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
Section 1: General Tsunami Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
Causes and geographic locations of tsunamis
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
Characteristics of tsunamis
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
Local versus distant tsunamis
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
Tsunamis that affect the United States and Canada
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
Section 2: Tsunami Warning Centers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
West Coast/Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (WC/ATWC)
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC)
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
Chile Warning Center
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
Improvements in tsunami warning
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
Section 3: Established Evacuation Notification Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Japan system
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Hawaii system
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
Other systems
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
Section 4: Types of Notification Systems and Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
Introduction
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
Available notification systems and procedures
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
Sirens
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
Telephones
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
NOAA weather radios
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
Emergency Alert System
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22
Emergency Managers Weather Information Network
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
AlaskAlert
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24
Miscellaneous systems
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25
Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
Appendix I: Siren Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Appendix II: Siren Manufacturers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
Appendix III: Tsunami Warning Workshop Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
Special Paper 35: Tsunami Warning Systems and Procedures page iii page iv
Special Paper 35: Tsunami Warning Systems and Procedures
Pictured is an electronic siren station of the Cannon Beach Rural Fire Protection District Community
Warning System. This unit is a Whelen WS2000-16 with Public Address feature. The unit is comprised
of sixteen re-entrant speakers, four speakers aiming at each compass quadrant. The effective range is
approximately 2,400 feet in each direction. Each station operates on 24 VDC supplied by four 6 VDC
deep cycle storage batteries maintained by a solar charger entirely independent of commercial power.
Station operation is radio-controlled from the district's main fire station using pre-recorded announce-
ments (Sony MiniDisc format). The system operator can also make special announcements by micro-
phone through all the stations simultaneously or any single station. Controls at the main fire station have
automatic auxiliary power if commercial power fails. Executive Summary
Tsunamis are one of the most destructive forces in
nature and can cause much loss of life, injury, and
property damage. Tsunamis are usually produced
by the uplift of the sea floor from a large magni-
tude subduction zone earthquake. Most tsunamis
are created in the Pacific Ocean, because the
largest number of subduction zones is found
there. The effects of a tsunami can be local or dis-
tant. The last destructive tsunami to significantly
affect the United States was caused by the 1964
Alaskan earthquake. There was damage and loss
of life locally in Alaska, and distantly in Hawaii,
California, Oregon, and Washington.
Injury and loss of life can be minimized if coastal
populations are warned that a tsunami is
approaching. Coastal populations can be notified
of a distant tsunami by a combination of:
Tsunami warnings from the Tsunami Warning
Centers in Hawaii and Alaska; and evacuation
notifications from local systems, such as sirens
and NOAA Weather Radio. In the case of a local
tsunami, the warning is usually the earthquake.
However, notification by local systems is also
needed to reinforce evacuation orders, provided
the systems are functional after the earthquake.
There are a variety of local evacuation notification
systems. They include sirens, NOAA weather
radio, the Emergency Alert System, telephones,
the Emergency Managers Weather Information
Network, and others. Each system has benefits
and drawbacks, which are discussed in detail in
this document.
The system that an area uses depends on several
factors, including the nature of the population
(residents vs. non-residents), budget, and geo-
graphic location. There should be complete cover-
age, redundancy, and seamless meshing of new
and existing systems. Regardless of the system, it
is critical that there be consistency in its applica-
tion and message, as well as consistent and con-
tinuous education about the alerts.
Special Paper 35: Tsunami Warning Systems and Procedures page v Preface and Acknowledgments
These guidelines were prepared by Oregon
Emergency Management for the National
Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program under a
contract awarded to the Oregon Department of
Geology and Mineral Industries. The National
Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program (NTHMP) is
funded by the National Oceanographic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). It is
steered by a group made up of representatives
from NOAA, the United States Geological Survey
(USGS), the Federal Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA), the National Science Foundation
(NSF), and the five Pacific coastal states (Alaska,
California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington).
The National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation
Program was created to reduce the impact of
tsunamis through:
1. Warning guidance - deploy tsunami detec-
tion buoys and improve seismic systems
2. Mitigation develop tsunami hazard mitiga-
tion programs and projects
3. Hazard assessment produce tsunami inun-
dation maps.
For more information on the program, visit the
web site at www.pmel.noaa.gov/tsunami-hazard.
This document is the result of the efforts of many
individuals representing several organizations.
Special thanks to the following for their review,
comments, and contributions:
Dan Keeton, National Weather Service
David Oppenheimer, United States Geological
Survey, Menlo Park
Tom Sokolowski, West Coast/Alaska Tsunami
Wa