Tsunami preparedness week is coming to Saanich, and the district wants people to beef up their emergency planning to include information about the tsunami risks where they live.
Thankfully, most people don’t have far to go to reach safety in Saanich, according to Erin Stockill, the district’s emergency program officer.
“In most cases moving outside a tsunami hazard zone means crossing the street or leaving the beach,” she said in a press release. “For example, if you are visiting Cadboro Bay Beach, you only need to walk a few blocks inland from the beach.”
The Greater Victoria area has a Capital Region Tsunami Information Portal that locals can use to check if their homes are inside or outside the tsunami hazard zone. Stockill is urging residents to take this week to familiarize themselves with tools like this in order to better understand their risk and to update emergency plans.
“Tsunami Preparedness Week is a great opportunity for Saanich residents to understand the risk of tsunami where they live, work and play,” Stockill said.
She added that it is a good idea to practice evacuation routes on foot or bike, and to involve friends and family.
Tsunami preparedness week is April 14 to 20, but the education effort in the district is not ending there.
On May 7, the Saanich Emergency Program is hosting guest speaker Theron Finley, a University of Victoria Earth and Ocean Sciences PhD candidate, at the Cedar Hill Recreation Centre to discuss the recently discovered fault at Elk Lake.
The talk will begin at 7 p.m., with Finley expected to speak for an hour about the seismic risks associated with the fault and how to best prepare for an earthquake or tsunami.
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