WARNINGS WORKED
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| Quake shows vital role played by early alert system |
Although none of the tremors exceeded those of the 2004 Boxing Day ones, nonetheless, at 8.6 on the Richter scale, and with the offshore epicentre so close to Banda Aceh, the threat of a tsunami was taken very seriously. The early warning sirens blared in the coastal areas fringing the Indian Ocean, warning of a possible tsunami. As a result, evacuation of all these areas was systematically undertaken by the authorities of the countries concerned, including Malaysia. Fortunately, the nature of the earthquake did not induce tsunamis and the alerts were called off soon afterwards.
The natural disasters of the new millennium have caused much
trauma in the affected countries and globally. Hundreds of thousands lost their
lives in the Boxing Day tsunami and some small shoreline communities of west
Sumatra were wiped out. Not long afterwards, another quake and a tsunami
devastated Nias Island off the Sumatran west coast. Many intervening quakes and
volcanic explosions took their toll in Indonesia and worldwide but nothing as
bad as 2004.
However, just over a year ago, Japan suffered its worst earthquake
and tsunami in recent history. Lives were lost in the thousands, communities
wrecked and, worst of all, the Fukushima nuclear plant was damaged, causing
dangerous fallout. That brought the disaster close to home throughout the
world. Time has obviously not been kind, leaving one survivor of
the Aceh tsunami wondering what manner of transgression has brought on such
divine wrath.
Nevertheless, the high death toll and the near total wipeout of Banda Aceh in 2004 had left a sense of insecurity that begged addressing, both domestically and internationally. The world came together and an early warning system was put in place. Two days ago, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre issued a warning which was communicated to all Indian Ocean rim countries, and according to the World Meteorological Organisation, the communications system set up after the 2004 tsunami worked well and the affected countries received the alert of possible oncoming "seismically charged" waves well within five minutes. People who heard the sirens and received warnings via fast spreading SMS text messages took themselves to higher ground in an orderly manner. Although the exercise was thankfully academic this time, it demonstrated the public awareness so important in avoiding chaos.
Nevertheless, the high death toll and the near total wipeout of Banda Aceh in 2004 had left a sense of insecurity that begged addressing, both domestically and internationally. The world came together and an early warning system was put in place. Two days ago, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre issued a warning which was communicated to all Indian Ocean rim countries, and according to the World Meteorological Organisation, the communications system set up after the 2004 tsunami worked well and the affected countries received the alert of possible oncoming "seismically charged" waves well within five minutes. People who heard the sirens and received warnings via fast spreading SMS text messages took themselves to higher ground in an orderly manner. Although the exercise was thankfully academic this time, it demonstrated the public awareness so important in avoiding chaos.
For, when huge volumes of water metres-tall rushing to shore in
mere minutes threaten, only the early warning sirens are of any help.
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