High Tide
Deadly Reminder
More than 2,200 people died in the PNG tsunami. As we went to press the toll in the Boxing Day disaster was well over 150,000. - ADVERTISEMENT - As in Aitape, the Asian tsunami stole children and adults, homes and futures. Many amputations have been performed on survivors and they continue to live in what are effectively refugee camps. Infection and disease are threatening another wave of destruction. The effects were felt in various ways in our region as well, as we were reminded of how fragile life is and how vulnerable many of our communities are. In Hawaii, staff at the Pacific Disaster Center knew the tsunami was coming, but didn't know who to tell. Spokeswoman for the Center, Delores Clark, says, "we didn't have a contact in place where we could just pick up the phone." They resorted to calling American diplomats and military officials in the region. The center has since launched the Indian Ocean Tsunami Geospatial Information Service, a technical way of saying they are supporting emergency managers in South and Southeast Asia. The new service will provide information based on satellite imagery, such as shaded relief images, population density, coastlines and damage. Allen Clark, Executive Director of the Pacific Disaster Center, says "the real tragedy of this is that the system is there, the technology is there, the capability is there, it just wasn't in place in the Indian Ocean when the thing hit." Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, Greg Urwin-who is profiled in this issue of Pacific Magazine-says the disaster is a "timely if grim reminder of the natural vulnerability which impacts on all aspects of development." The Forum has pledged F$80,000 to relief efforts, and received another F$5,000 from the South Pacific Tourism Organization. Among the countries directly affected were Forum dialogue partners India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. An early warning system will now be set up in the Indian Ocean, even as Australia's Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, says "I know it looks a bit like closing the door after the horse has bolted." In the Pacific we are fortunate to have such a system, and the South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission working consistently on vulnerability issues. Perhaps it's timely to test though how quickly the alarm can be raised and communicated to remote island communities. The response from Pacific Islands has been generous, no doubt influenced by an intimate understanding of vulnerability to natural disaster. The United Nations Development Program offices in the region have released emergency funds for the relief and rescue efforts. UNDP Fiji Resident Representative, Peter Witham, says the disaster demonstrated "the need to continue advocating for disaster risk reduction as a part of the development agendas." The Second World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction will be held in Japan this month. It can be tempting to dismiss these conferences as talkfests, but this one will have a new poignancy and impetus, for Pacific Islands governments. Most of us know precisely what to do when a cyclone approaches. And amid the amazing stories of survival that slowly emerged post-tsunami was one about a child, who having learned about tsunamis at school, warned the curious and less alarmed adults in her family to leave the seashore, when the tide began to pull back. Simple education in all our schools and communities is also crucial in saving lives. |
