Establishing the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System for human and environmental security

• Published in: Procedia engineering 2018, Vol.212, p.1339-1346
• Main Author: Hettiarachchi, S.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Disaster Awareness; Mitigation; Response; Risk Assessment; Tsunami Early Warning
• ISSN: 1877-7058; 1877-7058
• DOI: 10.1016/j.proeng.2018.01.173

The Indian Ocean Tsunami of Boxing Day, December 2004, caused loss of lives and widespread damage to infrastructure and ecosystems across Indian Ocean States. The massive tsunami rudely awakened Indian Ocean States on the dangers of ‘ocean basin wide’ hazards. It also identified the importance of coastal hazards, vulnerability, risk assessment and management and generated global interest for disaster risk reduction in coastal areas. Over the following decade the member states through regional and international collaboration, planned, designed and commenced operations of the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System (IOTWMS) as a highly successful end to end warning system under UNESCO/Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC). The objective of this paper is to share this experience, summarising important aspects including policies that had to be adopted, capacity development that had to be undertaken both with respect to technology and institutional development. The paper also describes the measures undertaken to promote institutional coordination, exchange of data and information and vital links of dialogue both on a routine basis and when a hazard is active across a region. It also highlights key learning achievements and good practices. The IOTWMS is certainly larger than the sum of its components and it has been a win-win situation to the all member states.