UNESCO presented today (12/12/2024) in Cannes its program for the protection of tsunamiwhich is expanding into the Mediterranean as a tidal wave is considered likely in the coming decades.
Twenty years after the Indian Ocean tsunami that killed more than 220,000 people, UNESCO has about 10 alert centers around the world, including CENALT on the outskirts of Paris as the danger now also exists in Mediterranean.
“Even the ideal warning system will be useless if people don’t know what to do,” explains Bernardo Aliaga, head of UNESCO’s tsunami response programme.
The majority of tsunamis recorded to date have affected residents of coastal areas in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Therefore, residents of these areas are familiar with the tsunami threat.
Most French people are not familiar with this threat. In Côte d’Azur, local authorities have prioritized dealing with flooding from heavy rainfall. However, a report dating back a decade said there was a high chance of a tsunami in the Mediterranean within 30 years, like the tidal wave that devastated parts of Messina in Italy in 1908.
It won’t be a giant wall of water, but rather a rushing wave 30 or 50 centimeters high, but which can prove deadly. In the event of a tsunami triggered by an earthquake off the coast of Algeria, residents of Côte d’Azur will have plenty of time to seek safe shelter.
But in the event that a tsunami is triggered by an earthquake off the coast of Liguria, the window of time will be narrow, less than ten minutes.
The safety protocol designed by the municipal authority in Cannes foresees the transmission of messages – in French and English – through 383 loudspeakers immediately after CENALT (CENTre d’Alerte aux Tsunamis) sounds the alarm, explains Yannick Ferrad, head of municipal emergency management services. Efforts are being made to sensitize students and the elderly, special signage has been placed indicating the nearest shelter (eg a square on a hill or away from the coast).
Thanks to these efforts, Cannes was recognized in January by UNESCO as the first French city to be deemed “Tsunami Ready”. Marseille and Nice want to follow in the footsteps of Cannes.