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The wreckage caused by a tsunami is enormous. The Hilo museum explores the causes of the killer waves. |
KILLER WAVES EXPLORED IN VIVID DETAIL AT PACIFIC TSUNAMI MUSEUM IN HILO, HAWAII
STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS
PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER
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Dramatic displays tell the story of how humanity is affected by tsunami's horrors. |
In Hilo, Tsunami sirens are on alert and school children are taught to watch for warning signs: tremors, roars from the ocean, receding waters exposing the sea floor. All spell impending doom. Evacuation Zones are marked and families store emergency kits.
Since 1812, more than 160 confirmed tsunamis have been recorded on the islands, causing countless deaths and damage topping $625 million. The April, 1946, tsunami in Hilo alone, killed 159 people and destroyed $26 million in property. Its cause was an undersea earthquake off the Alaskan coast triggering the massive Big Island tsunami.
IT SEEMS fitting, then, that the world's only museum dedicated entirely to the tsunami is located in Hilo.
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Tsunamis around the world are explored in well designed displays with photographs, news clips. |
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Getting a breath of fresh air after the intensity of the fine Pacific Tsunami Museum. |
Where tsunamis were caused by earthquakes, the quake's magnitude is analyzed through wave energy creating this fearsome natural disaster.
TSUNAMIS GO back centuries. The oldest recorded one occurred in 479 BC, destroying a Persian army attacking Potidaea, Greece.
Fast forward to 1958, in a display recounting effects of a huge tsunami triggered by an Alaskan landslide. Its 1,700-foot wave -- the largest ever recorded -- inundated five square miles of land and cleared thousands of trees.
Another catastrophe occurred on the Amalfi coast, where we've many times visited. In its maritime republic days, it was a thriving port with a wealthy population of 70,000.
That was until 1343 when it was wiped out. A massive earthquake under the Tyrrhenian Sea sparked a devastating tsunami along southern Italy's coast. Amalfi’s harbor and its boats were destroyed; the lower town fell into the sea. A once thriving city shrank to a village of 6,000, ending Amalfi's days as a sea power.
The lovely stretch of coastline from north of Naples to south of the Cilento National Park bore the brunt of the huge killer wave, which wiped out the towns of Bussanto and Blanda, near present-day resorts of Sapri and Maratea. Both Naples and nearby Salerno suffered huge damage, including a death toll of tens of thousands.
TSUNAMIS GO back centuries. The oldest recorded one occurred in 479 BC, destroying a Persian army attacking Potidaea, Greece.
Fast forward to 1958, in a display recounting effects of a huge tsunami triggered by an Alaskan landslide. Its 1,700-foot wave -- the largest ever recorded -- inundated five square miles of land and cleared thousands of trees.
Positano today is a highlight on Italy's Amalfi coast. In 1343, it was the scene of a huge tsunami which destroyed the town, ending the republic's sea power days. |
That was until 1343 when it was wiped out. A massive earthquake under the Tyrrhenian Sea sparked a devastating tsunami along southern Italy's coast. Amalfi’s harbor and its boats were destroyed; the lower town fell into the sea. A once thriving city shrank to a village of 6,000, ending Amalfi's days as a sea power.
The lovely stretch of coastline from north of Naples to south of the Cilento National Park bore the brunt of the huge killer wave, which wiped out the towns of Bussanto and Blanda, near present-day resorts of Sapri and Maratea. Both Naples and nearby Salerno suffered huge damage, including a death toll of tens of thousands.
The museum is a testimony both to the power of the tsunami and the power of the human spirit.
More information on this intriguing museum: www.tsunami.org
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A refreshing green tea drink is served at Just Matcha Tea Shop, one of seven varied stops on a highly recommended "Taste of Victoria" food tour. |
Fascinating. Did not realize such a museum existed. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteHope we can visit next time we go to the Big Island. Fascinating.
ReplyDeleteSo grateful to see this story on a museum we are all proud of here in Hawaii.
ReplyDelete