China tests tsunami preparedness through drill

China on Sunday conducted a tsunami drill as part of the transnational and pan-Pacific drill, “Exercise Pacific Wave 13″, the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) announced. The drill aims to test the marine environmental forecasting authorities’ capacity in receiving and distributing alert information and their emergency response, according to Xinhua news agency. The drill in China was organized by the SOA and carried out by the National Marine Environmental Forecasting Center (NMEFC). It simulated a scenario where a 9.0-magnitude earthquake jolted the ocean off the Philippines at 1:50 p.m Sunday, triggering a huge tsunami. The NMEFC immediately began analyzing its impact on China and reported it to the SOA. The SOA sent the tsunami alert to all potentially-impacted coastal areas and oceanic forecasting agencies across the country soon sent warnings to nuclear facilities, ports, petrochemical projects and inventories in the hazardous zone. Finally, the NMEFC removed the warning after confirming the tsunami had drawn to an end. The “Exercise Pacific Wave 13″ was launched by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of the UN Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (IOC/UNESCO) across the Pacific region. The transnational drill lasts from May 1 to May 14.