Rapid, national, local and community response is key to saving lives during a tsunami

“Major gaps and weaknesses urgently need to be dealt with at the national, local and community levels to ensure that early warning systems -especially in the event of a fast-moving tsunami- save the lives and livelihoods of coastal inhabitants” said Joe Chung, of the U.N. International Strategy for Disaster Reduction, at the end of a three-day conference on early warning systems in the Indian Ocean.