Free Tsunami Training: Training the Trainers

South Bend, Washington – The Pacific County Emergency Management Agency (PCEMA) will be offering a free tsunami public education course on February 14, 2013 at the Grays Harbor College Columbia Education Center (208 Advent Ave. S.E.) in Ilwaco. The course will begin at 1:00 p.m. and end at 4:30 p.m. Workbooks will be provided.

Topics for the course include: near and far source tsunami events and scenarios, the Cascadia Subduction Zone, tsunami modeling, inundation mapping in Washington State, local vulnerabilities, emergency management systems, tsunami response, how to reduce risks, and community training.

The Train-the-Trainer program aims to develop an educational curriculum to train qualified tsunami public education instructors. It is a joint effort of the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program and the Washington State Emergency Management Division (WAEMD), and has been organized locally by PCEMA. Participants will gain skills and knowledge regarding: local hazards, risk reduction, tsunami response, and community assessment. The goal of this course is to better prepare the citizens and communities of Pacific County by developing and coordinating disaster preparedness public education programs.

Anyone interested in participating must pre-register with AmeriCorps Member Kirsten Harvill by calling (360) 875-9409 or (360) 642-9409 or email kharvill@co.pacific.wa.us.