Tsunami Ready Manila

Manila residents have organized again to prepare their efforts to become a NOAA Tsunami Ready Community. These actions, several years in the making, are leading to the Capstone Event: our tsunami evacuation drill. Please visit the Redwood Coast Tsunami Working Group for more information about tsunami. Please also check out the Manila Community Services District website for other information regarding activities in Manila. Here is a photo album that documents the community, along with Troy Niccolini (NOAA NWS) and Lori Dengler (HSU), testing the evacuation routes.

In preparation for the drill and to bring the community together to become more prepared for tsunami hazards, we are holding a second meeting on Friday April 12th at 5:30PM at the Manila Community Center.

Meeting Announcement Poster (300kb pdf; credit Lori Dengler (HSU)):

Cover Letter (40kb pdf; credit Troy Niccolini (NOAA NWS), Lori Dengler (HSU)):

One Pager (400kb pdf; credit Lori Dengler (HSU), Jay Patton):

Here is an informational handout for surviving a tsunami in Manila (700kb pdf; credit Redwood Coast Tsunami Working Group):

Google View of Evacuation Sites (130kb jpg; credit Lori Dengler (HSU)):

News Release (20kb pdf; credit Redwood Coast Tsunami Working Group):

Manila residents have organized again to prepare their efforts to become a NOAA Tsunami Ready Community. These actions, several years in the making, are leading to the Capstone Event: our tsunami evacuation drill.

In preparation for the drill and to bring the community together to become more prepared for tsunami hazards, we are holding a meeting on Tuesday March 26th at 6:30PM at the Manila Community Center.

The meeting will be held Tuesday, March 26th at 6:30 p.m. at the Manila Community Center, located at 1611 Peninsula Dr, Arcata, CA. The purpose of the meeting is to prepare the community for the evacuation drill that will be held on Saturday, April 13 at 10:00 a.m. The meeting will also provide valuable information on how to make sure you, your family, and your community is ready for the next real tsunami emergency. Hors d’oeuvres and refreshments will be provided.

The meeting will include short presentations as well as opportunities to talk to local earthquake and tsunami experts one-on-one to get those nagging tsunami questions answered. The presenters will include Professor Lori Dengler of Humboldt State University and Troy Nicolini from NOAA’s National Weather Service. Members of the Redwood Coast Tsunami Work Group will also be on hand to answer questions.

Dr. Dengler is a well-known local expert on earthquakes and tsunamis and has traveled all over the world to learn from other tsunamis the lessons that we can apply here on the North Coast. Dr. Dengler’s presentation will include:

· A short overview of Manila’s tsunami risk and how lessons learned from other tsunamis can be applied directly to Manila.
· Why driving cars to escape a tsunami is a bad idea.
· Inspirational stories of how community preparedness saved lives in Japan, Chile, Samoa, and Indonesia.

Troy is NOAA’s tsunami program leader for NW California and is the co-chair of the Redwood Coast Tsunami Work Group. Troy’s presentation will include:

· How to make preparedness a fun family activity.
· Description of Manila’s newly drafted evacuation routes and evacuation sign plan.
· How to make sure that community preparedness addresses the mobility-impaired, the elderly, and children left at home.
· Overview of the evacuation drill and how to use it to feel more confident that you and your family will be safe during any tsunami.

A second community meeting will be held to prepare for the drill on Friday, April 12 at 5:30 p.m. The two meetings will be very similar and are being held in hopes that community members can make at least one of the meetings before the evacuation drill. However, attendance at one of the meetings is not required to participate in the drill. Additional information about the drill will be mailed to Manila residents in late March.

Here is a draft evacuation route map; credit Jay Patton:

We will be posting resources for this drill and other support for our volunteer based organization online here. Watch this page for updates to our plan. We will be posting materials for the community directly on this page.