Challenge: You Are in Your Home Marina, and There's a Tsunami Warning . . .

[dacust]

Am I willing to bet my life that the time they say is accurate, the height is accurate, that I know how deep the water needs to be to make me safe, that I know the direction it is coming from?

Nope.

If they say hours, I might take time to throw on some extra lines and take a photo of it before leaving the dock.

Charleston is low enough (the parking lot floods at extreme high tides), I'd get on I-26 and drive until I got hungry. I think Columbia might be far enough (120 miles)

Hey, there are times I am a wuss. And proud of it.

Actually, Charleston is a big bay with a small entrance. It'd take a big wave to really create a tidal bore. To go to deep water, it'd take me about 2 hours at 20kn to get to a depth of 100 feet. And another 1.5 hours to 1000 feet. About 70 miles total.

If I wasn't there, it'd be another matter. I live 6 hours away. I'd just have to watch it on the news.

-dan

[tager]

I would do nothing. The lake is pretty immune.

[delmarrey]

Originally Posted by Mark1977

My motor has been winterized but on any given circumstance such as this given the time i would go to sea.....

Part of winterize on most boats should include pulling the impeller from the raw water pumps, securing sea cocks, removing electronics that are detachable from the boat, draining fresh water tanks, removing food products and clothing. Some of this would take time to restore.

In a warmer climate one would have a better chance.

[Rex Delay]

Originally Posted by roger.waite

Interesting variant in responses. We do this, primarily because there is a good chance a really 'big one' could destroy the house. In which case, if the marina is not affected badly , we can survive on the boat for a while.

I would also suggest fish bait and a hunting rifle would be good things to have very quick access to.

[roger.waite]

Evans' makes a good point point about how far water can recede before a tsunami. We must cross shallows and a bar before getting to deep water. I really don't want to be hard aground watching that tsunami rolling in!

Then all of Da Cust's points kick in for me ...

Others will think differently, more boldly, or just moor in different settings. We saw folk swimming and strolling the beach during 'peak time' of Saturday's (NZST) tsunami alert ... lemmings!

[scook1]

How deep does water need to be, to insure safety?
Spencer

[capnorv]

I've thought We were pretty immune to tsunami waves down at the end of Puget's Sound, but after the 6" surge and wave frequency I saw Friday morning at 11:05 from a quake 8000 miles away, maybe a rethink is in order. I already told the wife I'm going to triangulate the roof beam looking out over the water. I think the boat would be good on our mooring, but in the winter it's in the marina 4 miles away. I think I'd make it a quick family decision. The house is insured, probably has an earthquake exemption, the boats not, it's our responsibility.

[delmarrey]

Originally Posted by scook1

How deep does water need to be, to insure safety?
Spencer

Basically, you'll want to get past any shelf along the coast and/or far enough out where surf has never been. Any long slopping shallow shoreline would be a problem. Look at Gords example post here: http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...tml#post640128

[bobofthenorth]

This is not theoretical. I was on the boat in Sidney when I got a call from my wife on the prairies early Friday morning, really early. According to the news when I got the radio on I had 2-1/2 hours before the wave was expected on the west coast. I battened everything down, pushed the start pins on the Lehmans and waited until I heard that Hawaii hadn't been hit hard and then decided to stay put. Had I decided to move I can be in 200+ feet in less than an hour and that's exactly what I had in mind to do. God spare me from ever putting any faith in an insurance company. If I have the power to save myself and my assets then that's exactly what I intend to do.

[Wannafish]

Ok.. Looks like I'm in the minority here. Though I think the world of my boat, she's the LAST thing I'd be thinking of. If she can't take care of herself, so be it but it's MY problem. The other things that are my problem happen to be my family, then those around me. I am I the only person who feels this way??
I can't believe more people aren't chiming in. Maybe this isn't the site for me...

[delmarrey]

Originally Posted by Wannafish

Ok.. Looks like I'm in the minority here. Though I think the world of my boat, she's the LAST thing I'd be thinking of. If she can't take care of herself, so be it but it's MY problem. The other things that are my problem happen to be my family, then those around me. I am I the only person who feels this way??
I can't believe more people aren't chiming in. Maybe this isn't the site for me...

I don't believe the OP mentioned anything about family being at risk. I'm sure (some) others here would put family first.

[Wotname]

Originally Posted by Rob Toronto

There has been a tsunami warning and you've got 1 hour to save your boat...

At the risk of sounding insensitive, and considering the loss of life and and property that many people have suffered in the recent earthquake and tsunami I hesitate to post this, but I would really like to know what the experienced sailor would do.
I think many of us have seen the images and video posted on the news of the Japanese disaster and it has made me rethink my preparations for such a disaster, but I think it is an important scenario to consider.

Here is the full scenario;
You are at your home marina. Its early on a Saturday morning and you were planning a day of boat maintenance and a warning comes over the radio. There has been a major earthquake and a tsunami warning has been issued. The best guess it that the (possible) tsunami wave is one and one and half hours away. The estimate is a wave height between 1 and 3 meters high may hit. What do you do? What magnitude of tsunami would make you do something else? Assume it is with your current boat.

I'm very interested in hearing what you all have to say.

Given your scenario, you are situated right bang in the middle of the danger zone, ie right on the shore line (marina); there is no worst place to be WRT a tsunami.

I would stop whatever I was doing an consider the known information.

1. A 1 metre tsunami is very serious (potentially life threatening), a 3 metre one is extremely serious (very little chance of survival).

2. Can't stay where I am, too dangerous.
3. Therefore leave, but where to.
4. Take the boat out and hope to reach deep water which probably means heading toward the tsunami OR leave the boat and head for high ground by car etc.

For me, it is a no brainer, the safer (by far) is to head for high ground ASAP.

Taking the boat out to deep water is fraught with risks and the only way to be safe is to actually reach the deep water - consider the forecast may be adversely incorrect, you may be stranded as the water recedes before the wave, you may have unexpected boat trouble (engine, fuel, sails etc) and even if you do make it OK, you probably won't have safe port to return to.

Australia is fairly immune from serious tsunamis but our neighbours are not, witness Indonesia, Japan, New Guinea, New Zealand etc. To my way of thinking, a tsunami is more serious than volcanic eruptions, lava flows, earth quakes, floods, fires, storms etc.

[SkiprJohn]

I had typed a long response and it got dumped. Yes, its better to go to sea if you and the boat are prepared and you have enough warning. We need at least 3 hours warning to get to the boat and deep water here in Hilo where we have many warnings and watches for tsunamis. This last tsunami gave us many lessons and the biggest one was that you need to have a kit packed for survival for a couple days and the boat needs to be prepared enough to sail to another port because your mooring or docks could be wiped out.
kind regards,

[Jesse]

Our boat is ready to go, full tanks and larder, fishing gear and shotgun. We would be underway in minutes leaving the house, cars, and stuff to fend for themselves.

[sailorboy1]

Motoring at max rpm I don't believe I could be far enough out in the open water. So for me I'm getting in the car and driving in the other direction as I have no desire to go down with the boat. Sounds like I'm going to hve a new boat afterwards.