WHATCOM COUNTY, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – Following one of the largest earthquakes in recorded history on July 29, Whatcom County braced for the resulting tsunami. The waves, which arrived from the earthquake site near Russia just after 1am July 30, were (in a word) underwhelming.
Was it one more episode of the “boy who cried wolf”; another example of forecasters getting everyone all stirred up, apparently for no good reason?
While the forecast tsunami was not a disaster on any level, it was, on every level, a good thing for us in Whatcom County. Why? Because of all we learned.
- Tsunami forecasting works
- Modeling that forecast the tsunami’s path and timing was quite accurate, with any variance discovered and reported by inundation gauge
- Our communities are prepared to partner, communicate and support one another
- Led by the state’s Emergency Management Department in hourly briefings through the night, the National Weather Service (NWS), state agencies, counties and tribal partners shared their updates, actions and real-time observations
- State agencies provided information graphics that communities could share immediately, ensuring residents were kept informed and information was consistent (shared on WhatcomReady Facebook)
- The National Weather Service’s tsunami alerting system got a great work-out
- The NWS’ Watch-Advisory-Warning parallels and provides consistency with the “Ready, Set, Go” alerting used statewide for wildfires and other emergencies
- Potential disasters were averted
- Lummi and other tribal canoeists participating in the annual Canoe Journey had just reached the Makah tribal site – at the tip of Washington on the Pacific Ocean and were preparing to camp on the beach where tsunami waves would hit
- Local agencies discovered (in what amounted to a trial run) the challenge of reaching all who could be in harm’s way during a tsunami, from live-aboards and marina visitors to those dependent on the Lummi Island ferry
So was the Tsunami Advisory just a false alarm, “sound and fury, signifying nothing (-MacBeth)”? Nope, it was a major earthquake within the Pacific Ocean “ring of fire” that triggered tsunami waves that reached as far as South America. While the waves from this tsunami were less than a foot of inundation for us, when the Big One hits, Whatcom County’s 130 miles of shorelinewill be hugely impacted. And, thanks to the recent trial run tsunami, we’re all a bit better prepared.
Amy Cloud is the Public Information Officer (PIO) for the Sheriff’s Office Division of Emergency Management. She was born and raised locally, leaving for Whitman College and work in Seattle, Knoxville and Washington, D.C. She returned to work as Supervising News Producer and reporter for KVOS-TV’s NewsView before switching to communications for WWU, PeaceHealth and the City of Bellingham. She also co-chairs the Community PIO Group and is a member of the Governor’s Committee on Disability Issues.
