Associate Professor Dale Dominey-Howes, of the University of New South Wales' Australian Tsunami Research Centre, led 80 scientists from 20 organisations in a landmark study of the devastating September 30 tsunami which reportedly arrived within 10 minutes of the magnitude 8 quake. Without a warning, little could have been done to save the lives of the 143 people who were died, he said in the report obtained by The Dominion Post.
However, the research team praised Samoa's Disaster Management Office (DMO), which had worked hard with the Samoan people to raise awareness of tsunamis, develop evacuation procedures and test those procedures with drills.
"The impossible issue here is that the earthquake that caused the tsunami occurred so close to the south coast of Samoa that there was simply not enough time to process the seismic data and issue a warning," Prof Dominey-Howes said.
The research team reported the tsunami had widespread impacts on the natural environment, including erosion and deposition of sediments and damage to coastal plants and trees. Damage to agricultural gardens affected households' capacity to provide food. Building damage was extensive. The team also collected survivor accounts of the tsunami and noted that people were experiencing severe trauma.
"In spite of historical accounts of some 40 or more tsunamis since 1837 -- and evidence for a similarly large event back in 1917 -- there is no social or cultural memory/oral traditions of tsunami," Prof Dominey-Howes said.
"We find this very puzzling. The DMO faces a significant challenge in convincing the people of Samoa that tsunamis are a real threat to coastal communities."
