But James Roddey and Rob Witter said something that is even more important: we need to be prepared.
"We've almost doubled the probability of these events happening," Roddey says. "It just gives a whole lot more urgency to educate the folks at the coast that, 'Hey, you got to get ready.'""The geology and numerical models predict tsunamis could reach as high as 80 to 100 feet in Oregon, which is similar to the tsunami that struck Sumatra," Witter says. "We need to be very cautious and prepare for that event. It may not happen in a person's lifetime, but if it does, it's going to be equivalent to a Katrina-like event."
Being ready can save your life in such an event. Hurricanes and snow storms move slowly enough to allow warning. But earthquakes are sudden and an earthquake driven tsunami could hit the coast within 20 minutes of the earthquake occuring. It might not happen - but if your not prepared when it does happen then you are likely to be hurt...or worse.
That doesn't mean we need to live in fear, though."Once you get prepared and you know where high ground is, once you've talked to your family about an emergency plan and talked about all those kinds of things, you've done your homework. You don't have to think about it again."
Be prepared...have a kit. Find the closest high ground. And talk to your family about an emergency plan. It takes only a few minutes of your time for each step. These are the basic steps to disaster preparedness and they can save your life.