Tsunami alerts can’t be ignored

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Oct 30, 2012

~~<p>Tsunamis emanating from earthquakes far away have caused damage and deaths in Hawaii, so the casual response by some people along the coasts to Saturday night's warning is disturbing. Government and other officials seem to have done what they could to encourage people from coastal areas to seek higher ground, but too many ignored the advice.</p>
<p>Walking the beach made no sense. If the tsunami warning was overly precautionary, there would be no huge waves to observe. If the warning was accurate, such a stroll would have been dangerous, if not deadly. Fortunately, the waves were smaller than feared.</p>
~~

Tsunamis emanating from earthquakes far away have caused damage and deaths in Hawaii, so the casual response by some people along the coasts to Saturday night's warning is disturbing. Government and other officials seem to have done what they could to encourage people from coastal areas to seek higher ground, but too many ignored the advice.

Walking the beach made no sense. If the tsunami warning was overly precautionary, there would be no huge waves to observe. If the warning was accurate, such a stroll would have been dangerous, if not deadly. Fortunately, the waves were smaller than feared. Login for more...