Following a tsunami scare in along the West Coast in June, state and federal officials are looking into a series of technical errors that delayed the issuing of a tsunami warning in the San Francisco Bay Area.

On June 15th, a 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Northern California, generating fears that a tsunami could affect the West Coast from Alaska to Mexico. Despite the fact that the tsunami alert was called off within half an hour, emergency officials expressed concern that the Bay Area's residents were not notified of a possible problem until more than an hour after the initial earthquake. A combination of problems included computer and telecommunication malfunctions, in addition to a failure of the California Warning System, part of a national telephone hot line set up for nuclear warnings in the cold war, and the federal emergency alert broadcast system.

Following the Boxing Day tsunami that devastated much of the lands bordering the Indian Ocean, many in the United States questioned this country's readiness to deal with similar disasters. The Federal Emergency Manage-ment Agency noted that tsunamis along the west coast of North America are not all that rare, but stressed that one significant difference between tsunamis in the Indian Ocean and those in the Pacific is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's tsunami warning system.

The Tsunami Warning Center monitors buoys, world seismic networks, and tide gauges set up for that purpose by NOAA. The Office of Emergency Services is expected to immediately notify affected counties and issue a public Emergency Alert System message. Over the last five years, OES and its partners have been mapping the California coast for potential tsunami inundation to assist counties in preparing local plans and evacuation routes.

The San Francisco OES debuted a new tsunami warning system in March. The plan includes a system of warning sirens and also acts as a multi-language public address system, advising residents to hurry to higher ground or instructing them where to board transportation for evacuation.

In July, the National Weather Service Recognized San Francisco as a Storm-ready Community. NWS officials praised the city's emergency management team for meeting a set of rigorous criteria. “As we celebrate San Francisco's achievement of becoming storm-ready, we are already thinking ahead to the next milestone, which is tsunami-ready,” said David Reynolds, meteorologist-in-charge at the NWS Forecast Office in Monterey. “Last month's tsunami warning in California essentially served as a real time, full-scale test of the tsunami warning system for the West Coast. We are working with the emergency management community here and at the state level, to address issues raised by this event.”

Special Reports /

Officials Question Tsunami Warnings

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