1. What Happened in Sri Lanka? And why it won’t be so bad next time

2. 6:59 AM: Earthquake off Sumatra (most times provisional)

3. 7:05 AM: Colombo Learns of Earthquake (USGS equipment)

4. 7:14 AM: Honolulu PTWC Issues Earthquake Bulletin (no tsunami mention)

5. 7:30 AM: Tsunami Hits Sumatra

6. 8:04 AM: Honolulu Issues Bulletin with Tsunami Warning

7. 10,500 DEAD
8:27 AM: Tsunami Hits Kalmunai

8. 23,000 DEAD
8:50 AM: Tsunami hits Trinco and Batticaloa

9. 30,000+ DEAD
9:30 AM: Tsunami Hits Galle, Kalutara and more

12. What Can One Phone Call Do?

13. Yala Safari Lodge Hit

14. Lighthouse Hotel Hit (same chain, no warning)

15. Lighthouse Calls Blue Water (same chain)

16. No casualties at Blue Water (22 mts warning)

17. What Can a National Disaster Warning System Do?

18. Best Case

19. 8:04 AM: Honolulu Warning Reaches Warning Center

20. 8:10 AM: Warning Issued to Sri Lanka

21. lives saved
8:30 AM: Lives Saved in Kalmunai and Batticaloa

22. Worst Case

23. 23,000 DEAD
8:50 AM: Tsunami hits Trinco and Batticaloa

24. 23,000 DEAD
9:05 AM: Warning Issued

25. 7,000 saved
9:30 AM: ~7000 lives saved in Matara, Mulativu, etc.

26. What Can a Tsunami Warning System Do?

27. If the warning is generated quickly... If the media acts promptly...
If the sirens are in place on the East Coast...
If disaster awareness is high...
the media acted promptly
If the sirens were in place on the East Coast
If disaster awareness was high

28. 7:14 AM + 10 mts: COLOMBO Issues Tsunami Warning

29. Almost 30,000 Lives Saved
Hotels and Beaches Cleared

30. What Is Being Done?

31. Vanguard Disaster Preparedness Centre
A new private-third sector foundation is being established to make sure the lessons of this disaster are implemented

32. With LIRNEasia
Process to develop a “people’s concept paper” on a disaster warning system already started
Expert consultation on January 26th
International experts (Peter Anderson et al.)
Local researchers: LIRNEasia
Subset of 100+ alumni of Asian Disaster Preparedness Center in Bangkok
Persons with expertise selected through newspaper advertisement

33. www.vanguardfoundationlanka.org www.lirneasia.net
Draft report up on websites by February 10th or before
Video news conference
Finalized after comment period
Expert readers recruited
Final Report to government by end February

34. After February
Disaster education program in schools, leveraged by electronic media
Quizzes, activities, contests
Leading up to Disaster Awareness Day, June 26th, 2005

35. What Will This Produce?

36. Hopefully, more Angels like Tilly
“Last term Mr Kearney taught us about earthquakes and how they can cause tsunamis,”
“I was on the beach and the water started to go funny. There were bubbles and the tide went out all of a sudden.”
“I recognised what was happening and had a feeling there was going to be a tsunami. I told mummy.”

37. In sum Institutions more important than technology
Though technology is valuable
Disaster prevention is core business of government
But too important to be left to government alone
Too many died
But not in vain, if we succeed in building warning system and increasing disaster awareness

38. For more information www.vanguardfoundationlanka.org www.lirneasia.net
Rohan Samarajiva: