Tsunami advisory lifted for coastal B.C. following volcanic eruption, no damage reported
Posted January 15, 2022 8:20 am.
Last Updated January 15, 2022 6:34 pm.
A volcanic eruption near the Tonga Islands, Friday led to a Tsunami Advisory for parts of B.C.’s coast.
As of 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Emergency Info BC lifted the advisory for the North Coast and Haida Gwaii, as well as the central coast including Bella Coola and Port Hardy.
Emergency Info BC said the wave activity was meant to happen Saturday before 9 a.m.
Seismologist John Cassidy with Natural Resources Canada notes it’s usually subduction, such as a powerful earthquake, which generates a tsunami of this magnitude.
“There’s still a lot to be learned about exactly what happened. A good chunk of the [volcanic] island is missing now, but it looks like it was an undersea eruption that just forced the ocean water up and started this Pacific-wide wave,” he said.
“These are really rare events, to have an undersea volcano erupt with such force that it would generate a tsunami that travelled all the way across the Pacific Ocean.”
TSUNAMI ADVISORY CANCELLED for BC Coast. The Tsunami Advisory for #BC Notification Zones C & D has been CANCELLED, no further Advisory remains for BC. More info: https://t.co/PoX2nEFzVs #BCTsunamihttps://t.co/PRk5sKraC6
— Emergency Info BC (@EmergencyInfoBC) January 15, 2022
Once they’re in the ocean, the waves can travel at the same speed as a commercial airliner, he says.
“In our case, there were many hours of warning before the waves arrived here,” said Cassidy, which allowed officials to shut down local beaches on the west coast of Vancouver Island.
The intensity of the tsunami does appear to have been stronger down the coast, with California seeing reports of meter-high tsunami waves at one point.
No damage has been reported on the B.C. coast so far.
Live images of Tofino beaches showed minor wave activity as of 11 a.m. Saturday.
Although Tofino has closed all beaches, no evacuations have been issued.
Emergency Info BC recommended not to go to the shore to observe. The agency also urged British Columbians to stay away from beaches, bays, marinas, and inlets, and not to return to the coast until local emergency officials say it is safe.
For Tsunami alerting in #BC, you’ll receive a notification on a compatible mobile device if a Tsunami Warning is issued. The Alert Ready system is not used for Tsunami Advisories where the risk is limited to increased tidal currents. Learn more: https://t.co/oFaCrfqfub #BCTsunami
— Emergency Info BC (@EmergencyInfoBC) January 15, 2022
Despite the warning, many were seen walking along the beaches in live footage.
As for boat operators, Emergency Info BC said to move boats out to sea to a depth of at least 180 feet; if at sea avoid entering shallow water, harbors, marinas, bays, and inlets to avoid floating, submerged debris, and strong currents.
For all information and updates visit Emergency Info BC.
The volcanic eruption
The explosion of the Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha’apai volcano was the latest in a series of dramatic eruptions.
Earth imaging company Planet Labs PBC had watched the island in recent days after a new volcanic vent there began erupting in late December.
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Satellite images captured by the company show how drastically the volcano had shaped the area, creating a growing island off Tonga.
Following Saturday’s eruption, residents in Hawaii, Alaska and along the U.S. Pacific coast were advised to move away from the coastline to higher ground and to pay attention to specific instructions from their local emergency management officials, said Dave Snider, tsunami warning coordinator for the National Tsunami Warning Center in Palmer, Alaska.
