Programs that increase public awareness of the measures that people can take to protect lives and property before, during and after a tsunami. Information about the community's warning system signaling that a tsunami is imminent is included. A tsunami is a series of ocean waves generated by the sudden displacement of large volumes of water by thrust-type submarine earthquakes, submarine volcanic eruptions, meteor impact, or coastal landslides. Tsunami wave activity is virtually imperceptible in the open ocean but tremendously destructive when it reaches shore, potentially stripping beaches of sand, undermining trees and other coastal vegetation and moving inland hundreds of feet, crushing boats, homes and other coastal structures in its wake. At some locations, the advancing turbulent front may be the most destructive part of the wave; at others the greatest damage may be caused by the outflow of water back to sea.
Taxonomy Code: TH-1700.1800-860
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