New Delhi, Oct 17 – India is building a tsunami early warning system in the South China Sea to avoid a repeat of the 2004 catastrophe.
The tsunami warning system is likely to be operational in the next 10 months, Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.
The region currently receives alerts from Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC).
The idea of building a tsunami warning system in the South China Sea was brought up in a meeting two years ago with the Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System for Africa and Asia (RIMES), a Bangkok based 18-member multi-governmental organisation of which India is a member.
Currently, the Indian Tsunami Early Warning System (ITEWS) in Hyderabad is cross-checking the data it receives.
“After the 2004 tsunami, we set up the ITEWS. Currently, we are cross-checking the data as giving correct information about when and where the tsunami will occur is paramount. This alone should take 3-4 months,” said Shailesh Nayak, Secretary of Ministry of Earth Science (MoES).
The next stage is setting up a Bottom Pressure Recorder in the South China Sea to record changing sea levels in an event of an earthquake and establishing tidal stations.
“For this, we would have to install devices in the seas and this require assistance from countries in the region. The location for these devices is very important as it should neither be too far from the fault line nor too close from it,” Shailesh said.
ITEWS, acting as one of the Regional Tsunami Advisory service Providers (RTSPs) for the Indian Ocean Region, provides advisories to the Indian Ocean rim countries along with Australia and Indonesia.
Last month, the IOC gave greenlight to China to build a similar warning system in the South China Sea to monitor an area encompassing the South China, Sulu and Sulawesi seas bordering nine countries.
Sources said having a Tsunami early warning system in the South China Sea is important for India due to its commercial and strategic interests in the region.
A massive earthquake struck the coast of Indonesia’s Aceh province on Dec 26 2004, triggering an Indian Ocean tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people in Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and nine other countries.
-Bernama
