World Tsunami Awareness Day

In December 2015, the UN General Assembly designated 5 November as World Tsunami Awareness Day.

Tsunamis are rare events but can be extremely deadly. In the past 100 years, 58 of them have claimed more than 260,000 lives, or an average of 4,600 per disaster, surpassing any other natural hazard. The highest number of deaths in that period was in the Indian Ocean tsunami of December 2004. 

World Tsunami Awareness Day was the brainchild of Japan, which due to its repeated, bitter experience has over the years built up major expertise in areas such as tsunami early warning, public action and building back better after a disaster to reduce future impacts. The date of 5 November was chosen in honour of a true story from Japan: “Inamura-no-hi”, which means the “burning of the rice sheaves”. During an 1854 earthquake, a farmer saw the tide receding, a sign of a looming tsunami. He set fire to his harvested rice to warn villagers, who fled to high ground. In the aftermath, he helped his community build back better to withstand future shocks, constructing an embankment and planting trees as a tsunami buffer.

The UN General Assembly has tasked the UN office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) to facilitate the observance of World Tsunami Awareness Day in collaboration with the rest of the United Nations system.

Rapid urbanization and growing tourism in tsunami-prone regions are putting ever-more people in harm’s way. That makes the reduction of risk a key factor if the world is to achieve substantial reductions in disaster mortality – a primary goal of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, the 15-year international agreement adopted in March 2015 to succeed the Hyogo Framework.

World Tsunami Awareness Day 2024 - Empowering the next generation with the lessons of the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami

Each edition of the annual day will be thematic.

World Tsunami Awareness Day 2024 activities commemorates the 20th anniversary of the Indian Ocean Tsunami by passing its lessons to a new generation of children and youth. 

On 26 December 2004, an earthquake in the Indian Ocean caused a devastating tsunami that tragically killed around 230,000 people, affecting 14 countries. It was the first global disaster of the 21st century and remains one of the deadliest disasters in recent human history. The people who lived through this tragedy have been forever changed by it. Its lessons, including the warning signs of a tsunami and the importance of seeking high ground, have been engraved in their memories. However, in the 20 years since the disaster, a new generation - that was too young or was born after the disaster - can stand to benefit from the lessons that have been internalized by older survivors.  

Empowering children, especially through education, can enable them to protect themselves and to become agents of change in their families and communities by sharing what they learned.

Facts about Tsunami

What is a tsunami and where do they happen?

The word "tsunami" comprises the Japanese words "tsu" (meaning harbour) and "nami" (meaning wave). A tsunami is a series of enormous waves created by an underwater disturbance usually associated with earthquakes occurring below or near the ocean.

Volcanic eruptions, submarine landslides, and coastal rock falls can also generate a tsunami, as can a large asteroid impacting the ocean. They originate from a vertical movement of the sea floor with the consequent displacement of water mass.

Tsunami waves often look like walls of water and can attack the shoreline and be dangerous for hours, with waves coming every 5 to 60 minutes.

The first wave may not be the largest, and often it is the 2nd, 3rd, 4th or even later waves that are the biggest. After one wave inundates, or floods inland, it recedes seaward often as far as a person can see, so the seafloor is exposed. The next wave then rushes ashore within minutes and carries with it many floating debris that were destroyed by previous waves.

How will I be warned about a tsunami?

There are two types of tsunami warnings: official and natural. Both are important. You may not get both. Respond immediately to whichever you receive first.

Official tsunami warnings

These warnings are broadcast through radio, television, and wireless emergency alerts. They may also come through outdoor sirens, officials, text message alerts, and telephone notifications.

In India, the Indian Tsunami Early Warning Centre hosted at the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) in Hyderabad, Telangana is one of three regional centres of the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System (IOTWMS). The Indian system will issue both national and regional alerts from its system, with color coding to differentiate “warnings”, “alerts” and “watches” at national level, and “threat” or “no threat” status to Indian Ocean nations. Messages will go out over SMS, email, global telecommunication system (GTS) and fax, with links to a web-based bulletin system, public within India and accessible via password to the 24 participating countries.

For the latest Earthquake / Tsunami Information bulletin, click here.

Natural warnings include:

• A strong or long earthquake
• A loud roar (like a train or an airplane) from the ocean
• Unusual ocean behavior (the ocean could look like a fast-rising flood or a wall of water or it could drain away suddenly like a very low tide)

If you experience any of these natural warnings, even just one, a tsunami could be coming.

How do I respond to a tsunami warning?

If you are in a tsunami hazard zone and receive an official warning:

• Stay out of the water and away from beaches and waterways.
• Get more information from radio, television, or your mobile device (text or data).
• If officials ask you to evacuate, move quickly to a safe place. Follow evacuation signs or go as high or far inland (away from the water) as possible.

If you are in a tsunami hazard zone and receive a natural warning, a tsunami could arrive within minutes:

• In case of an earthquake, protect yourself. Drop, cover, and hold on. Be prepared for aftershocks. Each time the earth shakes, drop, cover, and hold on.
• Take action. Do not wait for an official warning or instructions from officials.
• As soon as you can move safely, move quickly to a safe place. Follow evacuation signs or go as high or far inland (away from the water) as possible.
• If there is earthquake damage, avoid fallen power lines, and stay away from weakened structures.
• When you are in a safe place, get more information from radio, television, or your mobile device (text or data).

If you are on the beach or near water and feel an earthquake of any size and length, move quickly to high ground or inland (away from the water) as soon as you can move safely. Get more information from radio, television, or your mobile device (text or data).

If you are outside of the tsunami hazard zone and receive a warning, stay where you are unless officials tell you otherwise.

What should I do after a tsunami?

• Stay out of the tsunami hazard zone until officials say it is safe. The cancellation of a warning does not mean danger has passed.
• Stay out of any building with damage or water around it until a professional or official says it is safe.
• Get updates and safety instructions from radio, television, or your mobile device (text or data).

Source : UN

Related resources

• Do's and dont's for common disasters
• Tsunami: the ultimate guide
• UNISDR website for World Tsunami Awareness Day