Asia attempts to build a tsunami warning system

According to the Wall Street Journal , two major earthquakes in Asia on August 11 show that regional countries still have to make great efforts to build effective emergency warning systems to avoid repeating the tsunami tragedy. 12-2004.

The magnitude 6.5 earthquake off the southern coast of Japan and the 7.6-magnitude seismic near the Andaman Islands, India do not cause tsunamis. However, people in some parts of Southeast Asia had to evacuate to prevent disaster. In Ban Nam Khem village on the west coast of Thailand, 400 people were evacuated to the upper floor of a local school after the village leader received a tsunami warning message from the National Disaster Warning Center. Thailand. The Thai government also used 76 towers built in six provinces along the Indian Ocean coast to broadcast alarm messages.

Fishermen in Chennai in southern India do not dare to sail on August 11 due to fear of tsunami - (Photo: Reuters)

The Wall Street Journal said Thai, Indonesian, Sri Lankan and Indian governments, the four most heavily devastated countries in the tsunami in December 2004, are trying to improve the ability to detect tsunamis early to More time to evacuate people when disaster strikes. Currently, Asia is still relying on the US Pacific Tsunami Warning Center located in Hawaii. Since 2004, the center has been monitoring seismic activities in the Indian Ocean and sending warnings to nearly 30 countries in the region whenever tsunamis can occur.

The Intergovernmental Oceanographic (IOC) committee of the United Nations (UN) is also setting up the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning Center with the ability to send faster and more detailed alerts to regional countries. So far, Indonesia, India, Malaysia and Thailand have all expressed their willingness to act as the host of the center, and have also invested significantly in marine seismic monitoring systems. In October, for the first time, these countries will hold a rehearsal in response to the tsunami to test established systems.