The Disaster Management Centre (DMC) announced that Sri Lanka will take part in a nationwide tsunami mock exercise on November 5, organized by the Indian Tsunami Early Warning Centre (ITEWC) with participation from 28 countries across the Indian Ocean region.
DMC Director General Major General (Retd.) Sampath Kotuwegoda said the island-wide drill will focus more on Kalutara, Matara, Jaffna, and Batticaloa districts, while engaging all coastal and inland administrative divisions in preparedness and communication testing.
Officials plan to simulate magnitude 9.2 earthquake in the Sumatra Trench (off Northern Sumatra, Indonesia).
The drill is being organized by the Intergovernmental Coordination Group for the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System (ICG/IOTWMS) under UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC).
The exercise aims to enhance tsunami preparedness, assess response capabilities across participating nations, and strengthen regional coordination. It will test the standard operating procedures (SOPs) of emergency services and evaluate their readiness to respond to tsunami-like emergencies. (Newswire)