Legislature(2011 - 2012)BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
03/22/2011 03:30 PM Senate COMMUNITY & REGIONAL AFFAIRS
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB96 | |
| Presentation: Alaska Tsunami Modeling & Emergency Preparedness | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| = | SB 96 | ||
| + | HB 130 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE COMMUNITY AND REGIONAL AFFAIRS STANDING COMMITTEE
March 22, 2011
3:36 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Donald Olson, Chair
Senator Thomas Wagoner
Senator Albert Kookesh
Senator Linda Menard
Senator Johnny Ellis
MEMBERS ABSENT
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
SENATE BILL NO. 96
"An Act relating to the Village Safe Water Act."
- MOVED CSSB 96(CRA) OUT OF COMMITTEE
PRESENTATION: ALASKA TSUNAMI MODELING & EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS
- HEARD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 96
SHORT TITLE: APPLICATION OF VILLAGE SAFE WATER ACT
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) KOOKESH
03/09/11 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
03/09/11 (S) CRA, FIN
03/15/11 (S) CRA AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
03/15/11 (S) Heard & Held
03/15/11 (S) MINUTE(CRA)
03/22/11 (S) CRA AT 3:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
WITNESS REGISTER
DAVID SCOTT, Staff
Senator Donny Olson
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Explained how CSSB 96( ), version D, differs
from CSSB 96( ), version I.
ROGER HANSEN, State Seismologist, Professor of Geophysics and
Director of the Alaska Earthquake Information Center
University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF)
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Gave a presentation on Alaska's tsunami and
earthquake modeling and answered questions from the committee.
JOHN AHO, Chair
Alaska Seismic Hazards Safety Commission (ASHSC)
Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys
Department of Natural Resources
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Gave an overview on how to prevent damage
from tsunamis and earthquakes in Alaska.
GENERAL THOMAS KATKUS, Commissioner
Alaska Department of Military and Veterans Affairs (DMVA) and
Adjutant General, Alaska National Guard
Fort Richardson, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Briefly discussed DMVA's role in tsunami and
earthquake emergency preparedness and the importance of public
outreach and education.
MIKE O'HARE, Deputy Director
Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management
Department of Military and Veterans Affairs (DMVA)
Fort Richardson, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Gave an overview on how the state prepares
and responds to tsunamis and the importance of public outreach
and education.
ACTION NARRATIVE
3:36:27 PM
CHAIR DONALD OLSON called the Senate Community and Regional
Affairs Standing Committee meeting to order at 3:36 p.m. Present
at the call to order were Senators Kookesh, Menard, Ellis, and
Chair Olson.
SB 96-APPLICATION OF VILLAGE SAFE WATER ACT
3:37:00 PM
CHAIR OLSON announced the consideration of SB 96. [CSSB 96( ),
version I, was before the committee.]
3:37:28 PM
SENATOR MENARD moved to adopt CSSB 96, labeled 27-LS057\D as the
working document. Hearing no objections, version D was before
the committee.
3:37:48 PM
DAVID SCOTT, Staff to Senator Donny Olson, said one change that
was made to version D from the previous committee substitute,
version I. He explained that on page 1, line 7, the word "city"
was replaced with "municipality". In making this change it would
allow Yakutat to be eligible for the Village Safe Water funds.
CHAIR OLSON asked if Senator Kookesh had any issues with this
change.
SENATOR KOOKESH replied no.
3:38:44 PM
SENATOR MENARD moved to report CSSB 96( ), version D, from
committee with individual recommendations and attached fiscal
note(s). There being no objections, CSSB 96 (CRA) moved from the
committee.
3:39:14 PM
At ease from 3:39 p.m. to 3:40 p.m.
^Presentation: Alaska Tsunami Modeling & Emergency Preparedness
Presentation: Alaska Tsunami Modeling & Emergency Preparedness
3:40:45 PM
CHAIR OLSON announced that the next order of business would be
to hear a presentation on Alaska's tsunami preparedness.
3:41:30 PM
At ease from 3:41:30 p.m. to 3:41:52 p.m.
3:41:52 PM
SENATOR WAGONER joined the committee meeting.
3:42:12 PM
ROGER HANSEN, State Seismologist, Professor of Geophysics and
Director of the Alaska Earthquake Information Center, University
of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), said Alaska is the biggest earthquake
and tsunami producer in the United States. The danger for Alaska
is not distant, it is local. There are communities that need to
be ready and prepared to handle these tsunamis within 30
minutes. He explained that the earthquake in Japan put out
tsunamis across the Pacific Ocean. There was one fatality in the
United States and there were no fatalities and very little
damage in Alaska because the state is not vulnerable to distant
events, but rather close events. He explained that for this
reason it is very important that individuals know what to do in
the face of such an occurrence. This requires a concerted effort
on education, outreach, preparedness, and mitigation. He noted
that this is only done through partnerships between the
University of Alaska and state and federal agencies.
He continued that the modernization of the Alaska Seismic
Network is critical and the primary way of rapidly identifying
and understanding damaging earthquakes and tsunamis. Most of the
older instrumentation has been modernized; however, large areas
of Alaska still have very sparse coverage and a poor
understanding of when earthquakes occur. He said that there is a
solution ahead: the National Science Foundation (NSF) project,
EarthScope, will be moving to the state in the next two to three
years. This project puts in about 400 seismic stations
throughout the state, which will be left in place for two years
before being taken down. However, Alaska has the ability to take
over ownership at a reduced cost and keep them permanently.
He noted that it is important to reauthorize the federal law
labeled the Tsunami Warning and Education Act, which is
scheduled to sunset in 2012. He stressed the importance of
working with Alaska's federal partners to reauthorize this
funding.
3:46:13 PM
MR. HANSEN explained that earthquakes are a release of energy in
the earth. This energy comes from the heat in the center of the
earth, which causes the mantle to boil. As the mantle boils
materials come up, become part of the lithosphere and cause the
tectonic plates to move. Where these plates move and collide
together they subduct, causing earthquakes. He noted that this
area of subduction is called a trench and Alaska is located
right on top of one. Recently there have been earthquakes in
Japan, Chile and Alaska caused by this kind of activity. He
explained that the Pacific Plate is moving northward toward
Alaska and gives rise to earthquakes throughout the state.
He shared a map with the committee showing where many of the
fault lines and large earthquakes are located in Alaska. He
reiterated that as the Pacific Plate is forced underneath the
North American plate it sticks, due to friction that builds up
and releases into very large earthquakes. He noted that this
included the 9.2-magnitude earthquake [across south central
Alaska] in 1964, the second largest earthquake ever recorded. He
read a list of other significant earthquakes along this trench.
This included an earthquake in 1946 which, while it was a much
smaller event, is significant because it created a tsunami that
completely wiped out the Scotch Cap Lighthouse and sent a wave
to Hawaii that killed hundreds of people. It was because of this
particular event that the first tsunami warning center began. He
pointed out another fault in Southeast Alaska where, like the
San Andreas Fault, smaller events occur. He noted that this
included the 7.9 magnitude earthquake which created the famous
Lituya Bay slide and resulted in a huge wave.
He noted that the Denali Fault and the Queen Charlotte-
Fairweather Fault are also active and are in areas where there
are not enough seismic instruments for warning.
He reiterated that the information given to the committee shows
that the state has some of the world's largest earthquakes, with
three out of the ten largest earthquakes ever recorded located
in Alaska. He stressed that it is important to be aware of this
in order keep the state's population safe.
He explained that in looking at the activity in Alaska for the
last five years it shows that there are earthquakes occurring
everywhere in the state. He stressed that "this is a point that
we need to drive home."
3:54:15 PM
MR. HANSEN said in order to monitor these earthquakes seismic
instruments (which measure the ground shaking) or an EarthScope
are used. He explained that it has been a "century" of
earthquake monitoring and this process has been slow. He noted
that following the 1964 earthquake and a better understanding of
plate tectonics there was a greater drive to put these
instruments in around Alaska. Different institutes participated
in putting these instruments in place, including the Geophysical
Institute, USGS [United States Geological Survey], and NOAA
[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration], which added
the Tsunami Warning Center. He explained that this integrated
network has been modernized with new instrumentation, real time
processing and archiving, and better site preparation. He
stressed that it is still a sparse network relative to the size
of the state and it is important to improve that.
He explained that the Alaska Earthquake Information Center has
been trying to improve the quality of these stations and adding
additional ones in order to monitor earthquakes. He added that
in addition to this the center analyzes and archives the data in
order to report to agencies that need this information. He noted
that all of the data coming from UAF, the Tsunami Warning
Center, USGS, and the Volcano Observatory is being processed
together at the Alaska Earthquake Information Center.
He explained that the center uses Shake Maps, a USGF product,
which allows it to color-contour a map with the strength of
shaking. He explained that this helps emergency managers know
where to go and help. He showed the committee a Shake Map of the
Denali Fault earthquake [7.9 magnitude earthquake in 2002].
He reiterated that EarthScope Image, funded by NSF [National
Science Foundation], will help improve the state's seismic
network. He explained that after every site has been occupied
for two years, all of these temporary stations will come up to
Alaska. He stressed the importance of looking into a way to fund
keeping these stations in Alaska.
He continued that the center does education and outreach on
earthquake safety. He added that the center also supports
research in seismology. Finally, the center produces tsunami
inundation maps through modeling for Alaska coastal communities.
4:01:04 PM
MR. HANSEN said the "Great Alaska Earthquake" on March 28, 1964
had a four to five minute rupture duration that moved the
seafloor and the ground from 2 to 20 meters. He explained that
this is what pushes water to create tsunamis. He noted that "the
devil is in the details" in regards to understanding the impact
a tsunami might have. The Alaska Earthquake Information Center's
involvement with tsunamis has been through NOAA's National
Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program (NTHMP) and the Alaska Tsunami
Center and Observatory based out of the University of Alaska
Fairbanks. He noted that both of these came from strong support
and funding from U.S. Senator [Ted] Stevens. He noted that the
funding now comes as a line item through NOAA's Alaska weather
service.
He asked the committee: "why do we study tsunamis?" He explained
that although earthquakes cannot be predicted, distant tsunamis
can be forecasted using deep ocean-bottom pressure recorders or
"dark buoys." He explained that these recorders work well
scientifically and for distant events are fantastic. However,
Alaska's hazards are local and these recorders will be useless
against this type of wave, he emphasized. He said it is more
important to have public education, warning signs, and
evacuation maps and routes.
He noted that another reason to study tsunami waves is because
they are easy to visualize compared to other types of waves. The
math is also relatively easy, though it can get much more
complicated. He noted that many unknowns remain on the tsunami
source mechanism. A simplistic view of a tsunami is that it is
created by an earthquake and occurs when tectonic plates collide
and deform.
4:06:39 PM
SENATOR WAGONER asked if there is any tie between earth quakes,
tsunamis, and rouge waves.
MR. HANSEN replied not really. A rogue wave happens to be a wave
where several waves constructively interfere and suddenly get
very big. It does not have to be associated with an earthquake
or tsunami.
He continued that when the water pops free after an earthquake
and it goes to the surface again there are two lines of waves
which move out in opposite direction. He explained that large
tsunamis are directed in certain directions. Japan's tsunami,
for example, headed straight for North America. However, Alaska
seems to be in a position where the tsunamis from Japan and
Chile do not end up here. He said "that's why our problem is a
local problem. And we have plenty of earthquakes for those." He
stressed the importance of community outreach and education on
local tsunamis.
He said that the center's mapping process is to come up with
many tsunami scenarios which are realistic and can help
communities. He noted that it is important to have the best
bathymetry possible in order to create these models and predict
where the waves will go. He explained that it is also important
to model tsunamis that have already occurred in order to see if
the center is doing a good job. The center then creates
inundation maps, writes a report which is peer reviewed by the
State Geological Survey, and published as a professional report.
He added that these results are now being put onto Google Earth
Layers, which is accessible to more people. He emphasized the
importance of having a community-based approach in creating
these maps. This helps communities be prepared in the long-term
and allows emergency officials to have a basis for developing
hazard and evacuation maps.
He briefly touched on the inundation maps which allow the center
to put lines on the map to show where the water will or has in
the past hit in a particular area.
4:12:42 PM
MR. HANSEN said that local tsunamis from landslides are created
when an earthquake occurs causing the land to slide down into a
body of water and draw the water down with it. This happened in
numerous places during the 1964 earthquake in Alaska. He
explained that the potential for this type of tsunami is very
high in Alaska because there are a lot of fjords in the state
that have steep walls, often with a lot of erosion. He noted
that in Skagway in 1994 there was a tsunami wave that was not
associated with an earthquake, but solely a landslide. He noted
that these tsunamis are very challenging because there is no
means for warning.
He shared with the committee images of the town of Seward before
and after the tsunami hit that was generated from the 1964
earthquake. He noted that while Seward did not rebuild the
harbors in the tsunami zone there is now an RV park located in
that area. He said that by looking at the entire bay
[Resurrection Bay] the center found that there were ten
different areas where slides occurred during the 1964
earthquake. He reiterated that the way the center figures out
where these tsunami zones are located is by having very detailed
bathymetry.
He summarized that the Alaska Earthquake Information Center has
robust computational mapping capabilities and it is working with
the best high-resolution data that it can. He stressed that
landslide tsunami hazards are very high and community input is
extremely valuable. He reiterated that people need to know what
to do to in order to be safe.
4:18:26 PM
SENATOR MENARD asked if any new techniques using robots for
monitoring were being used.
MR. HANSEN replied ocean-bottom seismometers and instrumentation
robotic devices are being used.
CHAIR OLSON asked when the Federal Tsunami Warning and Educating
Act is supposed to sunset.
MR. HANSEN replied at the end of the fiscal year in 2012.
CHAIR OLSON asked whether the Aleutian Chain protects the Bering
Sea and Arctic Ocean area from any significant tsunami event.
MR. HANSEN replied that the islands along the Aleutians do seem
to be a barrier. However, tsunamis will curl around the island
and hit places like Dutch Harbor. He explained that as a tsunami
propagates up the Bering Sea it becomes very shallow; this
dissipates the energy very quickly.
CHAIR OLSON asked what the financial obligation would be if the
state were to take over the temporary earthquake monitoring
sites that the federal government will be putting into place.
MR. HANSEN answered the state would have to pay for the
equipment at a reduced cost.
CHAIR OLSON asked how much this would cost.
MR. HANSEN replied, per site, around $35,000. He noted that this
is a good price. He said that the state would not have to pay
for the cost of installation and it saves the federal government
money because they do not have to take down the equipment.
CHAIR OLSON asked if, for all of the sites, this would cost less
than $1 million.
MR. HANSEN replied about $5 million.
CHAIR OLSON asked, since he has already had experience with the
Trans-Alaska Pipeline, what words of warning he could give the
committee with regard to issues related to natural gas
pipelines.
MR. HANSEN replied that people are surveying quite a bit right
now to find out what the earthquake potential is. He said that
there are areas in the Tintina Fault (north of Denali) that were
thought to be inactive during the days of the oil pipeline,
which are being looked at more critically now for the gas
pipeline. He stressed that more monitoring would be very good,
so the center can study the smaller earthquakes to understand
more about the state-of-stress in the crest.
CHAIR OLSON asked if he has any suggestions on where or where
not to build a deep water port.
MR. HANSEN replied that tsunami waves do not come all the way up
to Anchorage. However, it is where a large earthquake could
occur.
CHAIR OLSON asked if there are other celestial events that
effect the earth's mantle movement.
MR. HANSEN replied that celestial events affect the shape of the
earth. However, not in regards to the actual movement of the
mantle, he said.
4:23:15 PM
SENATOR MENARD asked for confirmation that Russia had a strong
earthquake and what the magnitude was.
MR. HANSEN replied the Kuril Islands had close to a 9.0
earthquake.
CHAIR OLSON asked if the earth was even done shaking after the
Japan earthquake was registered as a 9.1.
MR. HANSEN replied no; the earth is still shaking. He said
earthquakes cause the earth to ring like a bell and will ring
for weeks. He said that the final magnitude is derived by these
final waves.
4:26:49 PM
JOHN AHO, Chair, Alaska Seismic Hazards Safety Commission
(ASHSC), said that the committee has learned a lot about what
causes tsunamis, how to register when one occurs, and what to do
after a tsunami has hit. However, the question remains as to
what to do to prevent the damage from a tsunami, particularly in
Alaska. He said "the answer, unfortunately, is not much." He
explained that, from a design standpoint, building codes address
ground shaking but don't address ground rupture, ground failure,
or tsunami. He said that communities along the seacoast that
have the potential of experiencing a large tsunami are going to
be damaged substantially. The only thing that can be done in the
future is to not build in those areas and always address the
ground shaking aspect of earthquakes.
SENATOR MENARD commented that typically living by the water is a
lifelong dream for many and it will be difficult to accept that
people should stop building in those areas.
MR. AHO agreed; in regards to single family residents it would
be difficult to prevent individuals from living by the ocean.
However, large multifamily structures should be built away from
landslide and tsunami inundation areas.
He explained that, with regard to tsunamis in Alaska, if there
is a distant earthquake the state has minutes or hours to send
out a warning to the public. However, for a near force
earthquake that generates a tsunami then the earthquake itself
is the warning. He stressed that the general public has not been
addressed and does not know what to do.
4:30:41 PM
MR. AHO said that, from a ground shaking standpoint, the actual
force that a structure needs to be able to resist an earthquake
is substantial. He explained that the only way this type of
force can be resisted by well-designed structures is through
ductility [the ability to bend without breaking] and redundancy
[additional components that will function in case one component
fails]. He explained that without these two items it is almost
impossible for a structure to resist the actual demand from an
earthquake.
He reiterated that design codes do not address tsunami, ground
failure, and ground rupture. He noted that earthquake design,
through the uniform building codes or the international building
codes, is a very complicated situation.
He explained that after each major earthquake ASHSC goes into
the area where the earthquake occurred to look at buildings and
structures that were damaged. This allows ASHSC to determine why
the damage occurred, what mistakes there were in design, what
construction and material used led to that particular failure,
and then try to modify codes to prevent that from happening in
the future to similar structures. He noted that the commission
also looks at buildings that survived. When doing a structural
design, ASHSC also looks at the structural natural frequency and
the ground natural frequency in order to make sure that the two
are not in resonance with each other. Otherwise, there will be
major inflection failures.
He noted that it is important not to forget that New Zealand has
also had substantial damage recently due to earthquakes.
He showed the committee image examples of ground failure and
ground rupture [included in the document packet]. He noted that
it is not possible to design against ground failure or rupture
and building structures in these areas should be avoided. He
explained that, unfortunately, this has already been done.
Structural engineers must make one basic assumption: that the
foundation material will remain under a structure after an
earthquake. He explained that if that assumption cannot be made,
than the structure should not be built in that area.
He shared examples of structures used for vertical evacuation
from tsunamis. These evacuation structures could sit, for
example, in the RV park in Seward and would allow individuals to
get to higher ground very quickly.
He recommended the book, Designing for Earthquakes: A Manual for
Architects, available through FEMA [Federal Emergency Management
Agency].
4:37:49 PM
SENATOR MENARD asked what the percentage of times an earthquake
has occurred in the exact same place.
MR. AHO answered that there has been strong ground shaking in
Anchorage, for example, over many different decades. He
explained that there are seismic risks and seismic hazards.
Seismic hazards are the potential occurrence and seismic risks
are the consequence of occurrence. There have been earthquakes
throughout cities in Alaska, but the risk becomes greater with
larger populations and more infrastructures.
SENATOR MENARD commented that where the Anchorage earthquake
occurred the infrastructure has been rebuilt again and
individuals' thoughts are "what are the chances that that's
going to happen in that exact place again?"
MR. AHO replied "it will happen again."
CHAIR OLSON asked "in our life time?"
MR. AHO replied he can't be that exact. He noted that Alaska has
25,000 earthquakes per year and sooner or later there will be
another big one. Every ten years there have been magnitude 8
earthquakes in the Aleutians.
He reviewed the current research that is being done on
earthquakes in the state. The Delaney Park Downhole Array, which
is one of the most instrumented buildings in the country, has a
large part in getting much of this research.
4:42:39 PM
MR. AHO noted the 11 members for the Alaska Seismic Hazards
Safety Commission and its powers and duties. He explained that
in order to respond to those powers and duties the commission
has formed standing committees, which include:
· Schools
· Earthquake scenario
· Education and outreach
· Insurance
· Hazards identification
· Response and recovery
· Partnership
· 2014 conference planning (occurring in Anchorage)
He showed the committee a map of Alaska which identifies the
location of public schools in seismically vulnerable areas
[included in the document packet].
He said that the commission has accomplished a lot in the last
year. This includes providing post-disaster structure safety
assessment training to 45 participants. He noted that other
accomplishments are located in the commission's report [included
in the document packet].
He said that there are two policy recommendations that have been
included in ASHSC's annual report. First is to identify at-risk
school facilities. The second is for all future school design,
construction, and major renovations to include:
· Design proficiency in earthquake engineering
· Independent peer review of seismic designs
· On-site observation during construction of earthquake
related items
He stressed that if new structures and major renovations are
designed properly this will lead to substantially safer schools
in Alaska.
4:46:15 PM
GENERAL THOMAS KATKUS, Commissioner, Department of Military and
Veterans Affairs (DMVA) and Adjutant General, Alaska National
Guard, stressed that in the current situation the department is
going to be looking into individual preparedness and the short
time that individuals have to react to tsunamis and/or
earthquakes. In DMVA, the division of Homeland Security and
Emergency Management makes sure that synergy is brought forth
for first responder efforts. The public needs to feel assured
that the division is effectively bringing all of the resources
it has, as a state, to a problem.
4:47:36 PM
MIKE O'HARE, Deputy Director, Division of Homeland Security and
Emergency Management, Department of Military and Veterans
Affairs, said the department cannot operate in an all-hazards
disaster environment without partnerships [list included in
document packet]. He showed a map of Alaska that includes
distant source threat tsunamis and those communities who are
vulnerable to this threat [included in document packet]. He
stressed that "local tsunamis are the nightmare of the state of
Alaska for preparing and planning and alerting local citizens to
get to high ground."
A second map included in the presentation showed the warning
sirens and Tsunami-Ready communities located around Alaska [map
included in the document packet]. Communities who choose to be
Tsunami-Ready do so voluntarily in order to better prepare their
community for tsunamis. In order to be Tsunami-Ready, a
community must establish a 24-hour warning system, have an
emergency operation system on-scene, and multiple methods of
communicating and relaying these alerts and warnings.
He continued with the community notification call map [included
in the document packet]. He explained that the state of Alaska
receives alerts and warnings on earthquakes and possible
tsunamis from some of its partners, and the division activates
the State Emergency Coordination Center (SECC) accordingly. The
division's primary job is to get a quick understanding of where
the immediate effected zones may be and, via modeling, which
zones will be impacted first. Those zones that will be impacted
first are the priority for the call-down list. He explained that
the divisions' staff occupies the SECC and contacts communities.
He noted that this was how the division worked on Thursday night
when the alert came from Japan.
He said UAF develops maps for the Division of Homeland Security
and Emergency Management to give to local communities. This is
done in order to understand where the inundation from a tsunami
will occur and allows communities to identify its plans and
create evacuation routes accordingly.
4:52:52 PM
MR. O'HARE explained that the warning sirens in communities vary
from a simple design to more advanced sirens that can
accommodate any event where a warning is necessary. He showed
the committee photos of various sirens in communities throughout
Alaska [located in the document packet].
SENATOR MENARD asked what the cost of a warning siren is.
MR. O'HARE replied that it varies. The more advanced sirens cost
about $300,000 and the less advanced sirens cost about $100,000.
He noted that as technology improves these sirens get better,
cheaper, and faster.
SENATOR MENARD asked where the sirens are manufactured.
MR. O'HARE replied all over the country. He said that the
community makes the decision as to the best location for the
siren.
He shared examples of tsunami hazard and escape route signs with
the community [included in the document packet].
4:55:07 PM
He said that with regard to outreach and education, the division
has a "Quake Cabin" which is used in local communities, schools
and businesses. The cabin is an earthquake simulator, which
simulates up to a 5.0 magnitude earthquake and allows
individuals to see and feel what this looks like. He noted that
after the simulator experience, division educators explain to
individuals that a 9.2 magnitude earthquake was what really
affected the state.
SENATOR MENARD asked whether the cabin can simulate a 9.2
magnitude earthquake.
MR. O'HARE replied no; if it went up to 9.2 the cabin would fall
apart.
He showed the committee some of the division's outreach
products. He recommended the film, Ocean Fury, which gives a
very good understanding of the impact tsunamis have had in
Alaska.
He said that "an educated and aware public with a plan of action
will have the ability to adapt to the situation and respond
accordingly." He stressed that by informing and educating the
public on tsunamis the state will be better prepared and will
save more lives.
He urged the committee that, as state leaders, it is important
to address their constituents to: have a plan, be informed, and
have a survival kit.
SENATOR MENARD asked if he has explored having Home Depot or
Lowell's put together kits for individuals.
MR. O'HARE replied that Costco has a three-day food kit for
families. He noted that most individuals already have a lot of
the items needed at home and just need to be put them together
in one place.
CHAIR OLSON asked, with regard to escape routes and tsunami
shelters, what the minimum amount of elevation above sea level
is.
MR. O'HARE replied that he is not sure what the maximum
threshold is. He noted that if it is identified as a "high
ground safety area" then it's safe.
CHAIR OLSON asked "about 50 feet?"
Mr. HANSEN replied it depends on the location.
CHAIR OLSON said there was a 160 foot wave swell that came out
of Valdez. He stressed that it's important to be prepared for
that.
MR. O'HARE replied it's important to get as high as possible.
CHAIR OLSON asked what the time frame is between when the water
goes out and the wave surge comes.
MR. O'HARE replied if an individual lives in a coastal
community, as soon as the earthquake is over get to high ground
as quickly as possible. He noted that there was an instance in
Japan of an elderly couple who were running to high ground. The
husband stopped to put his shoes on and did not survive.
CHAIR OLSON asked if he is correct in assuming that there are
several minutes.
MR. O'HARE replied with the event in Japan, individuals had 10
to 15 minutes. He explained that it depends on the localized
event and where an individual is in relation to the event.
MR. HANSEN replied 15 to 20 minutes with regard to an earthquake
generated tsunami. He explained that in a place like Seward
where a landslide generated tsunami can occur it might be 60-90
seconds. He noted that this is why local landslide tsunamis are
so dangerous in Alaska.
SENATOR MENARD asked where he predicts the next big earthquake
will be.
MR. HANSEN hypothesized that it would start in southern Kodiak
and follow the trench out towards Dutch Harbor. He explained
that this source is being considered for a scientific project
for an all-hazards program. He said that this happens to be an
area that is particularly vulnerable to sending a tsunami down
to southern California.
CHAIR OLSON asked why St. Paul was chosen as the only tsunami
warning community on the north side of the Aleutians.
MR. HANSEN replied that St. Paul can see some larger waves
because it is right on the shelf edge and to the west is much
deeper ocean.
5:05:00 PM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Olson adjourned the meeting at 5:05 p.m.
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