If there is any place in Hawai'i that is prepared for the next tsunami, you would think it would be Hilo. Yet, when we asked the question to businesses in downtown Hilo, only a third said Hilo was prepared. With this information in hand, the Pacific Tsunami Museum embarked on a project with the County of Hawai'i Planning Department to assess and assist businesses with their tsunami preparation and planning. The result was one-on-one consultation, small group sessions, a Tsunami-Safe Fair in April, and the publication of a document entitled “How to Prepare Your Business for the Next Tsunami”.
There was tremendous community collaboration and support for the project. The county Planning, Research and Development and Fire Departments, as well as Hawai'i County Civil Defense were all major contributors. Community support came from the Hilo Downtown Improvement Association, the Kanoelehua Industrial Area Association and the Hilo Bay Watershed Advisory Group. All of this effort brought to fruition a major action of the Envision Downtown Hilo 2025 to develop and conduct a tsunami education, preparation and recovery program for both Pacific-wide and locally generated tsunamis.
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Civil Defense Administrator, Quince Mento, (right) gave a talk on the importance of personal preparedness. Genevieve Cain, Tsunami Outreach Coordinator on left. |
