For most of its history, the United States lacked facilities dedicated to alerting the public about tsunamis. Then in 1949, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center was built in Ewa Beach, Hawaii. But after the 1964 Good Friday earthquake rocked Alaska and sparked a number of devastating tsunamis in Prince William Sound, Congress provided funds to build another warning center - this time, in Palmer, Alaska. Rebecca Sheir pays a visit to the West Coast/Alaska Tsunami Warning Center, and learns how to distinguish a tsunami from a tidal wave, how to "practice an earthquake," and, most of all, how to catch the waves... before the waves catch you.
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Piece Description
For most of its history, the United States lacked facilities dedicated to alerting the public about tsunamis. Then in 1949, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center was built in Ewa Beach, Hawaii. But after the 1964 Good Friday earthquake rocked Alaska and sparked a number of devastating tsunamis in Prince William Sound, Congress provided funds to build another warning center - this time, in Palmer, Alaska. Rebecca Sheir pays a visit to the West Coast/Alaska Tsunami Warning Center, and learns how to distinguish a tsunami from a tidal wave, how to "practice an earthquake," and, most of all, how to catch the waves... before the waves catch you.
Broadcast History
This story originally aired on "AK," the Alaska Public Radio Network's weekly public affairs program, on March 15th, 2008.
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