A Citizen Science Initiative to Understand Community Response to the Kaikōura Earthquake and Tsunami Warning in Petone and Eastbourne, Wellington, Aotearoa/New Zealand

Abstract

Research Article| May 01, 2018 A Citizen Science Initiative to Understand Community Response to the Kaikōura Earthquake and Tsunami Warning in Petone and Eastbourne, Wellington, Aotearoa/New Zealand Denise Blake; Denise Blake aJoint Centre for Disaster Research, Massey University, P.O. Box 756, Wellington 6140, Aotearoa/New Zealand, d.blake@massey.ac.nz Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar David Johnston; David Johnston aJoint Centre for Disaster Research, Massey University, P.O. Box 756, Wellington 6140, Aotearoa/New Zealand, d.blake@massey.ac.nz Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Graham Leonard; Graham Leonard bJoint Centre for Disaster Research, GNS Science, P.O. Box 30 368, Lower Hutt 5010, Aotearoa/New Zealand Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Lisa McLaren; Lisa McLaren aJoint Centre for Disaster Research, Massey University, P.O. Box 756, Wellington 6140, Aotearoa/New Zealand, d.blake@massey.ac.nz Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Julia Becker Julia Becker bJoint Centre for Disaster Research, GNS Science, P.O. Box 30 368, Lower Hutt 5010, Aotearoa/New Zealand Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Denise Blake aJoint Centre for Disaster Research, Massey University, P.O. Box 756, Wellington 6140, Aotearoa/New Zealand, d.blake@massey.ac.nz David Johnston aJoint Centre for Disaster Research, Massey University, P.O. Box 756, Wellington 6140, Aotearoa/New Zealand, d.blake@massey.ac.nz Graham Leonard bJoint Centre for Disaster Research, GNS Science, P.O. Box 30 368, Lower Hutt 5010, Aotearoa/New Zealand Lisa McLaren aJoint Centre for Disaster Research, Massey University, P.O. Box 756, Wellington 6140, Aotearoa/New Zealand, d.blake@massey.ac.nz Julia Becker bJoint Centre for Disaster Research, GNS Science, P.O. Box 30 368, Lower Hutt 5010, Aotearoa/New Zealand Publisher: Seismological Society of America First Online: 01 May 2018 Online Issn: 1943-3573 Print Issn: 0037-1106 © Seismological Society of America Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (2018) 108 (3B): 1807–1817. https://doi.org/10.1785/0120170292 Article history First Online: 01 May 2018 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Denise Blake, David Johnston, Graham Leonard, Lisa McLaren, Julia Becker; A Citizen Science Initiative to Understand Community Response to the Kaikōura Earthquake and Tsunami Warning in Petone and Eastbourne, Wellington, Aotearoa/New Zealand. Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America 2018;; 108 (3B): 1807–1817. doi: https://doi.org/10.1785/0120170292 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyBulletin of the Seismological Society of America Search Advanced Search Abstract On the 14 November 2016, an M 7.8 earthquake occurred in the northeast of the South Island of Aotearoa/New Zealand, causing damage to homes and disrupting critical infrastructure. The earthquake produced a local‐source tsunami that impacted the east coast of the South and North Islands, with the first wave (of a few centimeters height) arriving in the Wellington region within 30 min. The largest waves in Wellington arrived between 1 and 5 hrs after the initial wave and were ∼60 cm in height. Initially, an official “no tsunami threat” message was issued based on scientific interpretation directly following the earthquakes. Scientific advice from Aotearoa/New Zealand (supported by overseas) suggested there was not a tsunami threat. Approximately 1 hr later, this was revised to an official warning stating, “Tsunami threat to Aotearoa/New Zealand” based on updated scientific advice (primarily tide gauge readings), and many communities needed to evacuate, including Petone and Eastbourne in the Hutt Valley, Wellington region, Aotearoa/New Zealand. Approximately three and a half weeks after the earthquake, a survey was undertaken with Petone and Eastbourne residents using a citizen science approach to understand tsunami response and evacuation behaviors. A total of 409 surveys were collected, with 245 respondents from Petone and 164 from Eastbourne. Results established the majority of total respondents evacuated (69%), but only 33% evacuated within the 10‐min natural warning evacuation threshold recommended for local‐source tsunamis. This was despite most respondents saying that the earthquake felt longer than 1 min (64%) and was strong to severe (70%). Only 11% evacuated because of the earthquake. Most (64%) respondents used vehicles to evacuate, causing prohibitive traffic congestion during the evacuation. The results emphasize the need to engage communities to enhance capacity to respond appropriately to both natural and agency‐generated tsunami warnings to ensure community safety and wellbeing in tsunami events. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.