Earthquake gives warning on tsunami, official says

By JOYCE INGIPA
NATIONAL Disaster Centre assistant director (risk management) Kaigabu Kamnanaya says it is crucial to take earthquakes as warning signs for tsunami.
In his presentation during a workshop in Port Moresby last Monday, Kamnanaya said there was no technological system available in PNG or from advanced countries that could detect and warn in advance that an earthquake was occurring at a particular location at a certain depth and would generate tsunami of whatever magnitude.
“In this scenario, the best warning sign is the earthquake itself,” he siad.
“Once communities feel a very strong earthquake for more than 10 seconds, they must voluntarily and immediately take a precautionary measures by moving away from the coast to higher grounds of 10-20 metres above sea level.”
Kamnanaya said those on boats who experienced signs of tsunami should move away from shallow waters from the coast and remain there until authorities declared that all was clear.
Meanwhile, Kamnanaya stressed that PNG did not have reliable communication network to reach out to the last person or the last mile regarding destructive tsunami coming from nearby countries within 60 minutes.