triggered three overlapping tsunamis<\/a>, recorded around New Zealand.<\/p>\nCivil Defence Emergency Management director for the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), John Price, said the anniversary is a reminder that every part of New Zealand\u2019s coastline is vulnerable.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday is a reminder that all of New Zealand\u2019s coastline is at risk of tsunamis, and they can strike at any time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He urged households and coastal communities to put plans in place now \u2014 and to act immediately if they feel a long or strong earthquake.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn a local-source tsunami, like one triggered by the Hikurangi fault off the North Island\u2019s East Coast, immediate self\u2011evacuation is key to survival,\u201d Price said. \u201cTake action today \u2013 make a plan, practise your tsunami evacuation route, and remember: if an earthquake near the coast is long or strong, get gone.\u201d<\/p>\n
NEMA\u2019s chief science adviser, Professor Tom Wilson, said intensified coastal development means a major tsunami today would likely be devastating and could cause widespread loss of life.<\/p>\n
He said the gravest danger comes from fast\u2011arriving tsunamis that can reach land within one to two hours.<\/p>\n
\u201cA large tsunami is not like a normal ocean wave; instead, it is more like a large mass of water that surges inland past the shoreline,\u201d Wilson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the open ocean they can travel as fast as a jet plane, at 800km\/h. Large tsunamis are highly destructive for coastal communities.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wilson said research into the 2021 tsunami sequence shows many people waited for official warnings before evacuating \u2014 a delay that could be fatal in a local-source event.<\/p>\n
\u201cAwareness of tsunami threat is high, but the science tells us that people aren\u2019t always doing the right thing in the heat of the moment,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe more we plan and practise now, the easier it will be when we have a real tsunami event.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
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