ITIC TRAINING PROGRAMME (ITP) LAC PTWC New Products

Regional Training: ICG/PTWS Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) New Enhanced Tsunami Products

2 – 4 Jun 2014, Guayaquil, Ecuador

The Pacific Ocean and its adjacent seas is the largest, most diverse and most prone to tsunamis of all the Earth oceans. Pacific nations must be prepared to face the dangers of tsunami from distant, regional and local sources. Over the last 10+ years, with improvements in data quality, quantity, and real-time availability, PTWC response time has dropped significantly from an hour to < 10 minutes for distant events. At the same time, with each great earthquake and tsunami since 26 December 2004 helping to increase scientific understanding, better techniques have been developed to quickly characterize the earthquake and numerically model the tsunami. This in turn has led to significant improvements in a warning center ability to accurately forecast coastal wave height and impact, and an ability to provide timely advice to support local tsunami warning decision-making. At its 25th session of the Intergovernmental Coordination Group for the Pacific Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System (ICG/PTWS), Vladivostok, Russian Federation, 9-11 September 2013, Member States approved the start of the PTWC Enhanced Products on October 1, 2014. These products, the first large-scale modifications in decades, fundamentally change the way in which countries assess their national tsunami threats. The PTWC will cease providing Warnings and Watches, and instead issue tsunami wave forecasts. Public text products will continue to be issued, but the additional graphical and statistical products will only be sent to designated PTWS Tsunami Warning Focal Points. This 3-day training will cover the explanation and use of the PTWC New Enhanced Tsunami Forecast Products by National Tsunami Warning Centers and Emergency Response Agencies. Topics will cover the end-to-end warning process, warning center and emergency response standard operating procedures and their challenges, advanced topics in warning operations, and the methodologies, limitations, and interpretation of the PTWC Enhanced Products.

Location

Instituto Oceanográfico de la Armada del Ecuador
Ave. 25 de Julio, (Avenida de la Marina)
via Puerto Nuevo
Base Naval Sur 5940
Guayaquil
Ecuador

Organisers and Staff

Organisers
Mr Bernardo Aliaga Rossel
Dr Laura Kong
Ms. Patricia Arreaga
Staff
Mr Bernardo Aliaga Rossel
1.1

Opening Ceremonies

1.2

Logistics and Administrative Items, Introductions, Course Overview

2.1

ICG/PTWS-XXV Outcomes, specifically for the PTWS Enhanced Products

2.2

Responding Rapidly and Effectively: Tsunami Warning and Emergency Response Requirements and Timeline-driven SOPs

2.3

What do Tsunami Warning Centers (TWCs) provide to Tsunami Emergency Response (TER) agencies?

2.4

What do TERs do with TWC information? Challenges in Alerting, Evacuation, and Safe-to- Return (All-Clear)

2.5

Comisión Permanente de Pacífico Sur (CPPS)

2.6

Country SOPs using PTWC Enhanced Products - 10-15 min/country (6 countries: Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador)

2.7

Discussion: Country Readiness for Changeover - What is left to do, gaps, needs?

3

DAY 2: TWC Operations, PTWC Enhanced Products, Country Guidance

3.1

Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) New Enhanced Products Overview – What, Why, SOPs (Criteria, Formats, Staging)

3.2

TWC Operations: Real-time Earthquake Detection and Fast Source Characterization – Sparse networks, Magnitudes, W-Phase Centroid Moment Tensors – Techniques, Use, Limitations, Challenges

3.3

TWC Operations: Travel Time and Wave Forecasting – Techniques, Use, Limitations, Challenges, Sensitivity Studies (Location, Depth, Magnitude)

3.4

PTWC Enhanced Products – Staging and Explanation of Each Product: Text, Forecast Polygon Map, Graphical Deep-Ocean Energy, Coastal Forecast, Forecast Tables, KMZ file

3.5

National SOP for PTWC Enhanced Products – Guidance and Examples: Flow Charts, Criteria Tables, NTWC Message Templates

3.6

Using Tsunami Warning Decision Support Tools for Monitoring, Detection, Assessment, Warning, Cancellation, Demonstration of Tide Tool v10.20 with Tsunami Travel Times

3.7

PTWC Enhanced Products – Guidance on use for National Warnings and Evacuation – Land and Marine Threats and Public Safety

3.8

Event Timeline-driven SOP – Intl TWC, NTWC, NDMO/DMO actions

4

DAY 3: Tsunami Hazard Scenarios, Tsunami Exercise

4.2

Understanding PTWC Enhanced Products - Regional and Local Tsunami Hazard Scenarios

4.3

Tsunami Table Top Exercise - Decision-making using PTWC Enhanced Products

4.4

Post-Exercise Evaluation

4.5

Final Discussion: Country Readiness for Changeover - Questions, Answers, Next Steps

5

Closing Ceremonies

Agenda Documents

Agenda Code Title
1.2 Course Overview Regional Training on the ICG/PTWS PTWC Enhanced Products
2.1 ICG/PTWS-XXV Outcomes for PTWS Enhanced Products
2.2 Responding Rapidly and Effectively: Tsunami Warning and Emergency Response Requirements and Timeline-driven SOPs
2.3 What do Tsunami Warning Centers provide to Tsunami Emergency Response Agencies?
2.4 What do TERs do with TWC information? Challenges in Alerting, Evacuation, and Safe to Return
2.7 Discussion: Country Readiness for Changeover What is left to do, gaps, needs?
3.1 PTWC Enhanced Products Overview
3.2 Earthquake Seismology for Tsunami Warning: Nomenclature, Faulting, Magnitude
3.2 PTWC Operations: Real-Time Earthquake Location and Magnitude Estimation
3.2 SUMMARY - LIMITATIONS: Earthquake Source Characterization for Tsunami Warning:
3.3 Tsunami Operations: Travel Time and Wave Amplitude Forecasting
3.4 PTWC Enhanced Products Overview
3.5 National TWC SOPs – Using PTWC New Products for Threat Assessment: Criteria Tables, Message Templates
3.7 PTWC Enhanced Products Guidance for National Warnings and Evaluation: Land and Marine Threats and Public Safety
3.8 National TWC SOPs – Using PTWC New Products for Threat Assessment: Criteria Tables, Message Templates
4.1 Small Groups: Regional and Local Tsunami Scenarios
4.1 Understanding PTWC Enhanced Products The Distant Tsunami Hazard
4.2 Small Groups: Regional and Local Tsunami Scenarios
4.2 Understanding PTWC Enhanced Products The Local Tsunami Hazard - Exercise
4.3 Small Groups: Regional and Local Tsunami Scenarios
4.3 Group Exercise – Distant Event

Participant Stats:

Staff and organisers 4
Confirmed 30
Not Confirmed 0
Not-participating 0
Total 34
Groups: CD, IOC , ITIC, TSR
Created at 09:10 on 28 April 2014 by OceanExpert Manager
Last Updated at 11:14 on 16 March 2026 by Ms. Sofie de Baenst
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