Tsunami in Vietnam is the real risk | Look At Vietnam

Tsunami in Vietnam is the real risk

April 19, 2012

LookAtVietnam – Scientists’ research works have found proof showing that
tsunamis once attacked Vietnam and brought about serious impacts. They have
warned that tsunami is a real risk for Vietnam, and that this needs further
through research.

The tsunami warning has been issued in 27 countries around the Indian Ocean
–after two earthquakes measuring 8.6 and 8.3 on the Richter scale occurred just
several hours apart from each other in the waters of Indonesia’s Aceh province.
In Vietnam, the Institute of Geophysics is the only agency responsible for
releasing tsunami warnings, for monitoring, analyzing and giving warnings when
it can see a tsunami risk.
According to Associate Professor Dr Nguyen Hong Phuong from the Center for
Earthquake and Tsunami Warning of the Institute of Geophysics, there has been no
official document about the damages caused by tsunamis in Vietnam. As there was
no tsunami monitoring system, no information about tsunami has been reported.
In many cases, tsunamis could be mistaken for the phenomenon of water rise
caused by storms or short wavelength waves.
According to the Bureau of Meteorology and Hydrology and Climate Change, in
Vietnam, the studies on the seismic regime in the South China Sea and the
conditions of tsunami formation only began 10 years ago. The investigations
about the tsunamis in coastal areas of Vietnam have been made based on the
historical records or the stories of coastal residents.
Some documents showed that a tsunami once occurred on the coastal area of Thua
Thien-Hue province in September 11, 1904, which damaged 22,207 houses, sank 519
boats and killed 724 people. Tsunamis also once attacked the seaside of Nam Dinh
in 1930 and Da Nang in 1964. However, no evidence has been found to confirm or
reject the information.
However, reliable proofs have been found to show that three tsunamis attacked
Vietnam in the past. The first one occurred on the Tra Co beach, and had no
relation with any earthquake. The second one attacked Dien Chau seaside in a
year in late 19th or early 20th century. The third once occurred in Nha Trang in
1923.
Especially, the assumption of scientists that a tsunami occurred in 1923 in Nha
Trang has been fortified by the notes taken by Dr Armand Krempt, the assistant
to Dr Alexandre Yersin. The documents showed that tsunami once damaged the
stable of the doctor in Nha Trang City which was just 5-6 meters far away from
the seaside.
The phenomenon was believed to relate to the volcanic eruption that caused the
6.1 magnitude earthquake on the island of Hon Tro, Phu Quy Island. Maybe the
volcanic eruption at Hon Tro Island generated the tsunami.
Vietnam had not paid big attention to the studies on tsunamis until the tsunami
disaster in South East Asia occurred on December 26, 2004 which then killed
273,000 people. However, to date, according to the Institute for Geophysics,
tsunami survey has been carried out in 33 places. The surveys have made
Vietnamese scientists believe that Vietnam was once attacked by the tsunamis
with the 2-3 meter-high waves.
Vietnamese scientists believe that the risk of a tsunami is not high in Vietnam,
but it really exists. In case tsunamis occur, the biggest suffering areas would
be the central region, especially the area from Da Nang City to Quang Ngai
province.
Source: An ninh thu do

Indonesian ocean nations conduct mass tsunami drill

ULEE LHEUE, Indonesia - Sirens wailed and crowds fled across Indian Ocean nations today in a mass drill simulating a giant tsunami similar to the 2004 disaster that killed about 220,000 people.

The UN-backed drill, dubbed "Exercise Indian Ocean Wave 09", saw the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center and the Japan Meteorological Agency send out bulletins for a 9.2-magnitude quake and tsunami, UNESCO said.

The exercise was aimed at testing warning systems and preparedness in nations in Asia, Australasia, the Middle East and Africa.

Hundreds of people including school children fled from the coast as ambulance crews stood watch in the Indonesian province of Aceh, the area worst hit by the 2004 tsunami with 168,000 dead.

"This sort of exercise is useful for letting me know if a tsunami strikes," local resident Bachtiar told AFP.

"But the sirens and crowds make me panic, they remind me of the 2004 tsunami," he said.

Another resident, 20-year-old Risnawati, said Acehnese needed no reminding of a tsunami's destructive power.

"Acehnese already know how to save their life if a tsunami strikes. They will automatically run to higher ground if there are signs of a tsunami-like receding water," she said.

"It's impossible to survive from tsunami if we take refuge in that building since it's too close to the sea," she said, referring to a shelter designated by local authorities.

In Sri Lanka, which lost about 31,000 people to the December 2004 disaster, around 200 residents on the southern and eastern coasts carried out a mock evacuation after receiving warnings via mobile phones and loud-hailers.

"The exercise took nearly three hours this morning when the Pacific Tsunami warning centre first alerted us (to kick off the exercise)," said disaster management head Gamini Hettiarachchi.

"The test went off very well," he said.

In India, national tsunami warning head Srinivasa Kumar said the public was not involved in the exercise, with authorities concentrating instead on coordination between government agencies.

Countries participating in the drill are Australia, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Myanmar, Oman, Pakistan, Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Tanzania and East Timor.