Once on the portal, they can consult an interactive map to find out if they live, work or are staying in a tsunami-prone area by entering an address in the search bar.

Authorities are encouraging people in a high-risk area marked in yellow on the map to prepare evacuation routes on foot or by bicycle, as well as ready-to-hand emergency kits with first-aid kits, medicines, cash and copies of important documents.

Greater Victoria is at potential tsunami risk, particularly due to the Cascadia Subduction Zone, a 1,000 km long fault stretching from northern Vancouver Island to northern California. A subduction earthquake occurs when one tectonic plate slides under another.

However, according to Ben Arril, team leader for the province’s geospatial services (GeoBC), most of the coastline in the capital region is elevated, limiting the risk of tsunamis. However, he argues that it is important for people to know where these risk areas lie in order to understand other risks.

” Knowing the tsunami zones allows you to prepare now to act later. »

Most people don’t have to go very far to get to safetyhe assures.

What to do in case of an earthquake?

According to John Cassidy, a seismologist at Natural Resources Canada, tsunamis are most commonly caused by subduction earthquakes.

In the event of a perceived earthquake, people who are in a risk zone have to leave it as soon as the shaking stops, Ben Arril recalls.

People who are already outside a danger zone should stay there and be ready to help families and friends who need protection.

Staying in place will free up space and roads for people in a danger area to escape as quickly as possiblehe explains.

Ben Arril reminds you to look out for warnings from the British Columbia Emergency Management Service (EMBC) and never go to the beach to watch the waves because a tsunami moves much faster than a human can walk, he warns .

The information portal was created by GeoBC and funded with federal and state funds. In addition to the interactive map, the portal contains links to the websites of the local authorities or even more details on how best to prepare for an evacuation.

Ben Arril says he’d like to push modeling beyond the limits CRDbut it will be necessary to evaluate the success of this particular application [à la région du Grand Victoria] before continuing.

A well-received teaching tool

Director of User Engagement at Ocean Networks Canada, Benoit Pirenne, welcomes this new information portal. He believes that any tool that helps the population prepare for and respond to a tsunami after the event is always useful.

Learn to have the reaction [en cas d’évacuation] is a good thinghe says.

Although Greater Victoria is at risk of being hit by a tsunami because it is a coastal region, he says the area is well protected by the Juan de Fuca Strait.

The Tofino and Ucluelet regions are more exposed to the tsunami risk, he said.