Coastal Washington Tribe Creates Higher Ground By Building Tsunami Tower, First Of Its Type Here

By Tom Banse
The first free-standing tsunami refuge in North America is now open in Tokeland in Pacific County, Washington.
There is a new option to escape a tsunami if you’re on the southwest coast of Washington when the Big One strikes. The Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe on Friday dedicated a 50-foot tall evacuation tower in Tokeland, Washington. Tribal leaders and the Federal Emergency Management Agency said the new tsunami refuge platform should be an example and inspiration for other Read More

Rehearsing For ‘The Big One’ On A Room-Sized Chess Board

By Tom Banse
Emergency planners could move pins representing earthquake response resources during an exercise at Camp Murray, Washington, on May 4.
Close to 200 federal, state and tribal emergency preparedness planners gathered around a giant map of the Pacific Northwest this week to rehearse and critique the federal response plan for "The Big One." The three-day Cascadia earthquake discussion exercise partially replaced a much bigger planned dress rehearsal that was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Read More
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