Del Norte County is installing tsunami preparedness kiosks at eight coastal locations to help residents and visitors recognize warning signs and find evacuation routes.
The kiosks will include site-specific evacuation maps, descriptions of natural tsunami warnings and links to emergency information.
Emergency Services Coordinator Jessica Seaman said the displays will be especially important for visitors who may not know they are in a tsunami hazard zone.
“When I go to visit someplace, I don’t look at the hazards in that area,” she said. “So hopefully, this will be another helpful tool to our tourists and visitors — that this is what you need to do and this is what to look for. Not to scare them, but to give them more educational awareness.”
The displays are planned for the Crescent City Harbor, several beaches and other areas that draw visitors. The county is also working to place smaller versions of the information at local businesses.
Del Norte County has experienced more than 40 recorded tsunamis since tide gauges were installed in 1933. Nearly half of all recorded tsunami deaths on the U.S. West Coast have occurred there, according to the county.
A tsunami generated by the 1964 Great Alaska earthquake killed 11 people in Del Norte County and destroyed 29 blocks of Crescent City.
The county’s most recent tsunami death occurred in 2011, after an earthquake off Japan sent waves across the Pacific. A 25-year-old man was swept into the ocean near the mouth of the Klamath River while he and two friends were taking pictures.
Crescent City is especially susceptible to tsunamis because the shape of the ocean floor and harbor can focus wave energy toward the coast.
The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services provided the kiosk structures, graphic design and educational material. Del Norte County is covering permitting and installation costs.
