EXERCISE TO TEST THE ALERT AND PRONTITUDE LEVEL OF REACTION TO A TSUNAMI
2017-11-02 (IPMA)
The National Civil Protection Authority (ANPC) and the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA) will hold the NEAMWAVE'17 exercise tomorrow, November 3, from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
NEAMWAVE'17 aims to test the effectiveness and readiness of the Tsunami alert system implemented in the North-East Atlantic, Mediterranean and Related Seas region.
This is a communication exercise during which the various national and international players will exchange technical-operational notifications related to the eventuality of an earthquake responsible for the generation of a Tsunami with an impact on the Portuguese coast.
In the edition of NEAMWAVE'17 all the coastal counties included between Vila Real de Santo António and Lourinhã, that is to say, the districts of Faro, Beja, Setúbal and Lisboa districts whose riverside fronts are susceptible of being affected by a Tsunami.
Portugal participated in the different phases of the exercise through ANPC and IPMA.
The exercise involves the various levels of the structure of the national civil protection system, namely the ANPC, through the National Relief Operations Command and the district disaster relief commands of those districts, and the municipal civil protection services of the mentioned municipalities.
IPMA is responsible for the detection and dissemination of the Tsunami alert to ANPC, the Directorate General of the Maritime Authority (DGAM) and the Navy Search and Rescue Service (MRCC), as well as the emergency management entities of several countries in the Northeast Atlantic, namely Morocco, Spain, England, Denmark and Ireland, among others
NEAMTWS is the designation of the warning system for the North-East Atlantic, Mediterranean and Related Oceans (Tsunami Early Warning and Mitigation System for the North-eastern Atlantic, Mediterranean and Connected Seas) coordinated by the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, after of the Indian Ocean Tsunami of December 26, 2004.
The warning system NEAMTWS focuses its action in three main areas:
1. Tsunami risk assessment;
2. Preparation and sensitization of the population;
3. Implementation of warning systems in case of emergency.
Currently, four service providers (based in France, Greece, Italy and Turkey) are operating in this region of the globe, which warn the authorities of NEAM member states in the event of a Tsunami event or occurrence.
