Ms Hala Hameed, Permanent Representative of the Permanent Mission of Maldives said, “the 2004 Tsunami swept over the entire nation. There was nowhere to run to and nowhere to hide. We had to evacuate 13 islands permanently.

“We have focused on a ‘build back better’ strategy. The lessons we have learned are: build resilient communities, and focus on disaster preparedness and stronger internal frameworks. We are setting up emergency response and early warning systems for multi hazards.

“At the community level we have established disaster management mechanisms. The long term resilience of our islands is now a national priority which involves consultations with communities. We are also pursuing multilateral and bilateral partnerships. Technical and financial sectors need support,” said Ms Hameed.

Ms Pamela Moraga, Permanent Mission of Chile to the United Nations Office at Geneva said Chile had learned much since the 2010 Earthquake and Tsunami.

“We never overestimate our readiness and we are always in a state of awareness. Loss of communication cannot be allowed. We avoid decision chain overload. We also conduct regular exercises to see if systems work, and use communication more effectively. We also have strong construction and seismic codes. We can learn how to survive if our populations learn how to confront disasters,” she said.

Dr. Stephanie Girardclos, from the University of Geneva, Department of Earth Sciences and the Institute of Environmental Sciences (ISE) said that research over the last five years revealed that there had been six lake tsunamis from Lausanne to Geneva over the past 4,000 years with waves that were 8 metres to 13 metres high to 8 m from Lausanne to Geneva.

“We are now aware that we have to build a culture of tsunami awareness but the short wave arrival time is challenging for early warning systems. About 10,000 to 100,000 people are at risk. The Swiss authorities are now processing information and pursuing a solution.”

The Panel discussion was jointly hosted by the Government of Japan and the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) ahead of World Tsunami Awareness Day (5 November).

Date:

27 Oct 2017

Sources:

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR)

Hazards:

Tsunami

Countries:

Chile, India, Indonesia, Japan, Maldives, Switzerland

Regions:

Americas, Europe, Asia, Oceania