text:
Asian nations better prepared this time
Kuala Lumpar
Page Tools
In Indonesia an Acehnese family gets on to a scooter and cart to get to higher ground, ahead of the tsunami they feared after another earthquake.
Photo: AP
Shaken into reaction by the deadly December 26 tsunami, Indian Ocean states yesterday showed they were much better prepared to deal with the possibility of another killer wave.
Police, soldiers, monks, fishermen and ordinary residents of coastal areas across the Indian Ocean used megaphones, radio, telephones and temple bells to warn of the possibility of another tsunami following the 8.7 magnitude quake off Sumatra.
In contrast to three months ago, when Asian nations were not even part of a tsunami warning network, the risk was immediately relayed by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre in Hawaii and distributed across the region.
"We are happy with the alertness with which everyone woke up, all countries and all agencies," said Mihir Bhatt of India's Disaster Mitigation Institute in Ahmedabad.
While the warning systems appeared to work, they also brought panic across the region.
Two people were killed in Sri Lanka as tens of thousands of panic-stricken people fled for higher ground following a government-issued alert.
Sri Lanka's embassy in Washington received a warning call from the Hawaiian centre minutes after the earthquake struck about 2.15am Melbourne time. The embassy immediately contacted civilian and military authorities in Sri Lanka.
In Banda Aceh, hardest hit last year, panicked residents rushed into the streets after Monday night's quake. "We went down to the street and people began to panic. Some people screamed, 'Water! Water! The water is coming again'," said Yudisia Arafah, 23, a government worker in Aceh.
Elsewhere across the Indian Ocean, beach-front roads in major resort areas were clogged with traffic as residents and holidaymakers jumped in any available transport to evacuate to higher ground.
On the tsunami-devastated Thai island of Koh Phi Phi, bars emptied as word spread of a major earthquake.
"My phone didn't stop," said Andrew Hewett, an adventure holidays operator. "Everybody thought it better to be safe than sorry and made it to higher ground. At least we had a bit of information beforehand, which made people realise they should probably be doing something other than just sitting in a bar."
Evacuation sirens began wailing on Sri Lanka's tsunami-battered east coast within two hours of the earthquake and police drove through coastal communities with loudspeakers advising residents to flee inland.
Along Sri Lanka's ravaged coastlines, thousands of people packed up their belongings and sat by the road to hail a lift.
In India authorities and coastal communities appeared better prepared and more aware of what to do. People fled risk areas as soon as they saw or heard the first news flashes, and authorities quickly mobilised police and officials in vulnerable coastal areas.
J. Radhakrishnan, a senior official in Tamil Nadu where more than 6000 people died in the December tsunami, said there had been no panic.
"People are so used to the drill of evacuating beachfronts because of persistent rumours of tsunamis. In that sense, it was easy to get people away from the danger zones."
Communities along Malaysia's west coast, caught disastrously off-guard last year, sprang into action after the latest quake.
Within an hour, Malaysian authorities had issued warnings telling people to head for higher ground.
Police went from door to door raising the alarm, fishermen rushed to secure boat moorings and hotels put staff on standby to evacuate guests.
About 1000 people fled their homes along the coast of northern Kedah state and on the resort island of Penang, in stark contrast to the ignorance shown on December 26, when beachgoers watched bewildered as the sea rose and about 70 people died.
In Thailand, where nearly 5400 people died in December's tsunami, officials used everything from megaphones and radio to telephone to get the message out, because a planned warning system is not yet installed. Authorities said the mobile phone network was overwhelmed by the number of calls made.
- Reuters
Get The Age home delivered for as little as $2.70 a week*