Tsunami warning poster on a beach in Lima, Peru, on January 16. EL COMERCIO / ZUMA PRESS / CONTACTOPHOTO (Europa Press)
The Peruvian Prime Minister, Mirtha Vásquez, has requested a report from the Navy on the technical criteria for the issuance of a tsunami alert, after said body warned late on Saturday of an "anomalous wave" after the eruption of a volcano in Tonga.
Hours later, two women drowned inside a truck that was swept away by the waves while driving near the shore of Naylamp beach, on the north coast.
The eruption of the volcano was at 11:30 p.m. on Friday (Peru time). However, the first statement from the Directorate of Hydrography and Navigation (DGN) of the Peruvian Navy was released at 4:19 p.m. on Saturday, despite the fact that news of the eruption had been circulating since morning in the Peruvian press. “Given the volcanic eruption in Nukualofa - Tonga, this does not generate a tsunami on the Peruvian coast. It is requested to remain calm and inform yourself through the special notices issued by the Hydrography Directorate,” tweeted the Navy entity on Saturday afternoon.
The Navy only communicated at night about the “presence of abnormal waves”, after the sea rose 100 meters on the beach of El Chaco —in the southern region of Ica— and the videos of bathers and ice cream vendors went viral. fleeing to the dry streets.
That was when Heyner Quiroz Obligas, 46, and Wendy Altamirano Montenegro, 23, died on Naylamp beach in the Lambayeque region.
On Sunday, the state channel TV Peru indicated that the truck was dragged on a beach not suitable for bathers, since it is located at the mouth of a river, and indicated that the driver of the vehicle managed to save himself.
In an interview on a Cusco channel on Sunday night, the prime minister described the reaction of the Navy, which determines the alerts for this type of phenomenon, as "disorderly and late".
“We want to review why this alert was not disseminated on time, and review – it may be that there is a technical reason – why in Chile and Ecuador yes (there was a tsunami alert), and in Peru no. We have asked the Ministry of Defense for the Navy to clarify the reasons and criteria,” Vásquez added. The Prime Minister also argued that what happened requires "improving the prevention and disaster risk system." "We take into account the criticism (about the omission of the tsunami warning) because it implies a very great responsibility: how do we prevent a situation that can generate not only a disaster but also the cost of living like the two people who have died," he said.
Lieutenant Commander Giacomo Morote, head of the Navy's Oceanography Department, commented that they did not declare the alert because three aspects of the protocol were not complied with: an earthquake of magnitude greater than eight, that occurs on the seabed, and that is not of great depth, reported the newspaper
El Comercio
.
"Being a different event, it cannot be considered within our protocol," he added.
The officer confirmed that there is an internal investigation to determine if the protocol was properly followed.
On Sunday, the National Protected Areas Service suspended aquatic and tourist activities in the Paracas National Reserve and Ballestas Islands (on the coast of the Ica region).
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