Surviving a tsunami in Bali

The Asian tsunami of 2004 awakened us to the dangers of living close to the ocean. Indonesia is situated in a geologically unstable part of the world, sometimes referred to as the Ring Of Fire. Fault lines, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, mud flows, landslides and tsunamis are all par for the course out here. Learning from other people’s experiences can pay dividends when it comes to surviving an event like a tsunami.

The 2 women I talked to from Pangandaran Java last week, spoke of a wave of water higher than the palm trees. They survived through luck, rather than planning, though according to the latest reports, no amount of planning could protected people from the ‘stealth wave’

In most situations there will be some warning of an impending tsunami, such as an earthquake, or the tide going out further than normal. Accounts of people in coastal areas surviving tsunamis have often depended on them acting on this kind of advanced warning.

Here are some key points to help you survive a tsunami:

• Heed Natural Warnings
• Heed Official Warnings
• Expect Many Waves
• Head for High Ground and Stay There
• Abandon Belongings
• Don’t Count on the Roads
• Go to an Upper Floor or Roof of a Building
• Climb a Tree
• Climb onto Something that Floats
• Expect the Waves to Leave Debris
• Expect Quakes to Lower Coastal Land
• Expect Company

There is a great article on surviving a tsunami that gives real life accounts of how the key safety points were used. One obvious point that is omitted is not staying on the beach. If your accommodation is slightly inland, or on a headland, or in a raised site, you’ll be safer.