National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) officials declared in December that San Francisco had completed the NOAA National Weather Service “TsunamiReady” program, better equipping the City to prepare and warn its citizens about tsunamis.
San Francisco is now the most populous city in the nation to achieve this recognition and joins more than 60 other tsunami-ready communities, including 14 in California.
National Weather Service Western Region Director Mark Tew, and Dave Reynolds, the meteorologist-in-charge of the weather service’s forecast office in Monterey, presented city officials with a “Tsunami Ready tool kit” at a press conference Dec. 9 at Ocean Beach near Sloat Boulevard. The kit included road signs to identify tsunami inundation zones, evacuation routes and safe areas.
“We’re proud to have partnered with the National Weather Service on our comprehensive tsunami readiness program, and that we’ve become the largest city in the nation to earn the “tsunami ready” designation, said SF Mayor Gavin Newsom.
“Tsunamis, although rare, are a real threat to the City since seismic activity is possible from the Cascadia Subduction Zone located just offshore,” Tew said.
To be recognized “TsunamiReady,” a community must establish a 24-hour warning point and emergency operations center; have more than one way to receive tsunami and severe weather warnings and forecasts to alert the public; create a system that monitors local weather conditions; promote the importance of public readiness through community seminars; and develop a formal hazardous weather plan, which includes training severe weather spotters and holding emergency exercises.
Becoming tsunami ready is an important part of our mission to enhance the city’s preparedness for any type of hazard, said Rob Dudgeon, deputy director of the SF Department of Emergency Management.
Disaster preparedness is everyone’s responsibility, experts say. Educating oneself on environmental hazards, maintaining a disaster supply kit and having an emergency plan in-place are all proactive ways to be better prepared for an emergency.