Water worries
While vacationing in Maui Hawaii this past February our quarters were located a stones throw to the water of the Pacific Ocean, which placed us in a predetermined evacuation zone. At 5:50 am Saturday morning February 27 / 2010 the Tsunami warning system rang out. For us the horns which produced the sirens were located within 60 feet of our lanai. As you might imagine that sound coming in the lanai door was a little more than your alarm clock. We were also located adjacent to a State Park where local people come to camp on the weekends. By the time we rose and looked outside there was already an exodus of people from the beach and Ron the property manager was making sure everyone was tuning their TV’s to the local channel for real time updates. In doing so we got the news of the earthquake in Chilli and the immanent threat of a Tsunami estimated to reach the Big Island of Hawaii at 11:04am and 22minuites later at 11:26 be landing on Maui’s coastline. Everyone was to be heading for high ground no later than 10:00am so there was a little time to get organized. I headed up to the local gas station to buy water and fill the car with gas. When I arrived regular gas was already sold out premium was the only option, it was a little hectic at the station and a sense of order appeared to be present but you could feel the tension in the air, at that point it was quite easy to see how chaos could start. Our local friends Bobbie and Bill invited us to their friend’s house up country where there was enough room for us to join them for a few days if necessary. As it turned out we found a spot overlooking the ocean where we could hopefully see the arrival of the Tsunami. The arrival times came and went with what is said to be of little consequence, a wave of 3feet is said to have landed with no impact there was a small withdrawal of water when the Tsunami arrived, a few reefs were exposed for a short time. A few hours later the all clear was given and everyone was allowed to return. Hawaii’s Tsunami warning system was tested, the decision to evacuate was made and even though there ended up to be little or no danger it was certainly better to be safe than sorry. In Hawaii people were told to be prepared for seven days away from their homes. Emergency preparedness is a question we all need to ask ourselves. Does your emergency kit contain enough for you to survive any length of time away from your home? |
