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Essay about Tsunami Hazards And Mitigation In Canada

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Introduction

Tsunamis are not very common natural disasters, but the fact that they can occur without warning makes it worth to try and find out what are the hazards associated with them. This paper will try to first define tsunamis, determine what are the hazards associated with them (especially in Canada) and give some examples of mitigation that can be used to prevent life loss during tsunamis.

What is a Tsunami?

Tsunamis are series of waves, generated by earthquakes, landslides, volcanic eruptions, explosions, or even impact of cosmic bodies, that travel across the ocean and have extremely long wavelengths. A tsunami can be created when a disturbance displaces a large water mass from its equilibrium position. In …show more content…

Tsunamis flood low-lying coastal areas and are amazingly powerful. Even a tsunami 20cm high could knock somebody off his/her feet. During a tsunami, people may drown or be injured by floating debris. Floating debris are also dangerous during the return flow in which the wave draws back, bringing the debris back with it. Inundation causes saltwater contamination. This can damage vulnerable ecosystems, land productivity, buildings and structures. The effects of saltwater flooding may last long after the water has retreated. While destructive on their own, tsunamis are often associated with another natural disaster that has already caused much damage (an earthquake, for example) (Murty, 1977, Okal, 1993, Clague et al., 2000, Bryant, 2001, Clague et al., 2003, Yalciner, 2003).

Tsunamis occur mostly in coastal regions situated around the "Ring of Fire" of the Pacific Ocean. Canada has experienced many tsunamis, but few have caused lots of damage. The worst tsunami disaster that has occurred in Canada is the one triggered by the Grand Banks earthquake of November 18, 1929, which killed all the population (29 people) in Newfoundland's Burin Peninsula except for one individual (see figures 1 and 2). The tsunami caused by Halifax harbour explosion of December 6, 1917, also killed many people. There is also a third large destructive tsunami that occurred in 1964

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