The tsunami warning in Oregon triggers calls for emergency preparedness

A map shows the possible impact area of the tsunami warning on the coast of California and Oregon.

Following the earthquake and tsunami warning that struck the coasts of California and Oregon on Thursday, the Oregon Department of Emergency Management is urging Oregonians to take hazard preparedness precautions.

Althea Rizzo, OEM’s geological hazards program coordinator, said the scare is a good opportunity to spark discussions about emergency preparedness.

“(Thursday) was really a great example of how you never know when earthquakes and tsunamis are going to happen,” Rizzo said.

Following the magnitude 7.0 earthquake that struck northern California, the National Tsunami Warning Center in Alaska issued a tsunami warning at 10:49 a.m. The warning extended from south of Florence to north of Santa Cruz, California. The warning was then lifted at 11:54 a.m. and no tsunami waves were observed along the Oregon coast, according to the OEM.

What caused the earthquake off the coast of California and the tsunami warning in Oregon?

The earthquake occurred offshore 56 miles east of Petrolia, California, in the Mendocino Triple Junction, a seismically active region where three tectonic plate boundaries intersect.

According to OEM, the fault system where the earthquake originated is located in the Mendocino Fracture Zone, which is the boundary between the Pacific and oceanic Juan de Fuca plates.

NWS Bay Area stated via X that there are two types of tsunamis: distant and local. Thursday’s warning would have been the latter. A distant tsunami occurs far from shore, giving scientists more time to analyze the event and provide more informed advice.

Because Thursday’s earthquake struck just offshore, there was little time to assess the associated risk. Earthquakes just offshore can lead to tsunamis along the coast just minutes later.

“We were very, very lucky today. The type of earthquake, the location and the size of the earthquake meant that the tsunami risk, while not zero, was fairly low,” Rizzo said.

How often do tsunamis occur in Oregon?

According to OEM, the Oregon coast has experienced 21 tsunamis since 1854. The last two devastating tsunamis occurred in 1964 as a result of the Great Alaska earthquake and in 2011 as a result of the Great Tohoku earthquake in Japan, which caused severe damage and contributed to the death of four people on the Oregon Coast.

The last tsunami warning along the Oregon Coast occurred in early 2022 following the eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haʻapai submarine volcano in the South Pacific.

How to Prepare for Tsunamis and Other Hazards in Oregon

Thursday’s tsunami disaster serves as a reminder to think about the “major catastrophe” that could result from the Cascadia subduction zone, Rizzo said. She emphasized that preparation begins with discussions between family and neighbors.

“This was a good opportunity to just take some time and think about what would happen to your family or your neighbors if this had really been the big event,” Rizzo said.

OEM urges people to follow its “Be 2 Weeks Ready” plan, which advises individuals, families and communities to prepare essentials with enough supplies to survive for at least two weeks after a disaster.

The Be 2 Weeks Ready website offers free checklists and advice for dealing with natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, ice storms or wildfires that can leave households without running water, working toilets or electricity. For the holidays, Rizzo suggested that emergency preparedness items can make great holiday gift ideas. Erin Zysett, OEM public information officer, said she recommends everyone get a NOAA weather radio, which can be purchased online for as little as $30.

However, Rizzo said that beyond the long lists of recommended tools, people will now look around their homes and likely find they are more prepared than they think.

“Preparation doesn’t have to be big, scary and expensive,” Rizzo said. “It might be that tonight you go through your junk drawer and see what you can gather that you don’t have to spend money on – just so you know where your flashlight is, where those leather gloves are. Do you know, do you have batteries for this flashlight?”

Rizzo and Zysett said they hope people learn from Thursday’s event.

What to do in the event of a tsunami in the Pacific Northwest?

Tsunamis pose a significant risk to coastal regions. In the event of a local earthquake, the only warning for residents and visitors may be the shaking.

Rizzo said along the coast there may not be time to get an official warning of a tsunami before it is too late. If you are on the coast and feel an earthquake, you should move to higher ground immediately after the shaking has stopped.

“We want people to evacuate without anyone telling them to,” Rizzo said. “There will be no tsunami warnings in Cascadia. Because in some places on the coast the first waves will arrive in just 15 minutes.

“Don’t wait for someone to tell you that you want to get to the hill as quickly as possible.”

Rizzo recommends that anyone living on or visiting the coast study local evacuation plans and plan possible escape routes. Local evacuation plans can be found at https://www.oregon.gov/dogami/tsuclearinghouse/pages/tsunami-evacuation-maps.aspx. Florence also has its own evacuation maps on the city’s website.

“When you start talking about tsunamis and earthquakes, you feel really out of control and really unpredictable,” Zysett said. “We get ice storm warnings, we get warnings so we know it’s wildfire season, we know hurricane season is coming. Therefore, you have to prepare yourself a little more emotionally. But things like tsunamis and earthquakes just happen. People really understand, I think sometimes I get overwhelmed and it can feel really overwhelming to do prep work.

“We don’t want people to feel powerless and scared. We want them to feel empowered and understand that you are already more prepared to survive after a major disaster than you think,” she said.

Oregon Resources for Tsunamis, Earthquakes and Other Hazards

For more information about preparing for earthquakes, tsunamis, and other hazards, see the following local, state, and national resources:

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The tsunami warning in Oregon triggers calls for emergency preparedness

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