Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Education and Preparedness of
Individuals, Communities, and
Decision Makers
SUMMARY
This chapter reviews progress in education and emergency management in preparation
for future tsunamis. Effective education and emergency management have been credited
with saving thousands of lives in recent tsunamis elsewhere and can also save lives in future
tsunamis that strike U.S. communities. Ultimately, the ability to survive a tsunami hinges on at-
risk individuals having the knowledge and ability to make correct decisions and act quickly. For
local tsunamis, waves will arrive within minutes after generation, and at-risk individuals need
to understand that natural cues (prolonged ground shaking and shoreline draw down) may be
their only warning. Local oficials will not be capable of assisting them in the initial moments or
even potentially for days, so individuals need to know how to respond with no oficial guid-
ance. The knowledge and readiness they acquire through pre-event education could save their
lives. For distant tsunamis, waves will arrive several hours after generation and individuals need
to understand where oficial warnings may come from, how they may receive the warnings,
what those warnings might say, and what they need to do in response to those warnings.
Although much has been done to educate at-risk individuals, prepare communities,
develop and deliver warning messages, and coordinate agency procedures, the committee
concludes that these efforts could be more effective with improved coordination, baseline as-
sessments of the target audience, evaluations of effectiveness, transfer of best practices among
the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program (NTHMP) members, and use of evidence-
based
1
approaches in the social and behavioral sciences of education, warning messaging, and
emergency management. The committee commends the intent of the federally administered
TsunamiReady program to coordinate community preparedness efforts but inds major gaps
between stated program goals and current accomplishments. The recommendations listed
here in summary form include:
1
A program is judged to be evidence-based if (a) evaluation research shows that the program produces the expected
positive results; (b) the results can be attributed to the program itself, rather than to other extraneous factors or events;
(c) the evaluation is peer-reviewed by experts in the ield; and (d) the program is “endorsed” by a federal agency or
respected research organization and included in its list of effective programs (Cooney et al., 2007).
