Backup South China Sea Tsunami Advisory Center (Hong Kong) commences operation (with photos)
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The Under Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Miss Diane Wong; the Director-General of the National Marine Environmental Forecasting Center (NMEFC), Professor Yu Fujiang; and the Director of the Hong Kong Observatory (HKO), Mr Chan Pak-wai, officiated at the opening ceremony of the BSCSTAC at the HKO this afternoon.
Professor Yu thanked the HKO for accepting the invitation to establish and operate the BSCSTAC, assuring the provision of tsunami monitoring and alert services by the SCSTAC. He hoped that the NMEFC and the HKO would have closer co-operation in respect of early warnings of marine hazards.
Officiating at the opening ceremony, Miss Wong expressed her gratitude to the NMEFC for their trust in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government's capabilities in tsunami monitoring and alerts, enabling the HKO to undertake and operate the BSCSTAC. She said, "Our country renders full support and attaches much importance to the HKO which greatly inspires the Observatory's team. Being a team member of the Bureau of the Observatory, I feel deeply honoured by this. As an international metropolis with close connections to the world, coupled with a special geographical location as well as unique advantages under 'one country, two systems', Hong Kong will continue to enhance its momentum in development and foster international and regional co-operation in disaster prevention and mitigation, making greater contributions to the high-quality development of the country and the well-being of people."
Speaking at the ceremony, Mr Chan said, "Earthquake monitoring and tsunami warnings are among the key public services of the Observatory. The Observatory participated in the international co-operation to monitor global earthquakes and tsunamis in the Pacific Ocean as early as the 1950s and 1960s. The operation of the BSCSTAC not only enhances the Observatory's international status in global tsunami monitoring and early warnings, but also strengthens its capability in the early warning operation of tsunamis. The HKO is very pleased to collaborate with the NMEFC to establish the BSCSTAC to enhance the capability of tsunami-related disaster prevention and mitigation in the region."
All operating systems of the BSCSTAC at the HKO are on hot standby mode on normal days and are ready to take up tasks to support the SCSTAC in providing a tsunami alert service for the South China Sea region as and when necessary.
The SCSTAC is one of the three tsunami advisory centres (Note) operating in the Pacific Ocean under the framework of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO to provide tsunami alert services for the areas including the South China Sea, the Sulu Sea and the Celebes Sea, covering the main seismic belts in the region. It provides round-the-clock tsunami monitoring and alert services to the countries around the South China Sea including Brunei, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam to enhance the capability of tsunami-related disaster prevention and mitigation in the region.
The introduction video of the BSCSTAC can be viewed at the following link: youtu.be/AuSyk3fvAfI.
Note: The remaining two tsunami warning centres are the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Northwest Pacific Tsunami Advisory Center operated by the Japan Meteorological Agency.
Ends/Wednesday, March 29, 2023
Issued at HKT 19:22
Issued at HKT 19:22
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