Results of the First Probabilistic Earthquake-Induced Tsunami Hazard Assessment for the Coastlines in the North eastern Atlantic, Mediterranean and Connected Seas Region and Preparations for the Third Regional Tsunami Exercise

Two tsunami meetings were organized back-to-back in Tunis, Tunisia from 11-14 September by the Institut National de la Météorologie (INM), the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV, Italy), and the Tsunami Unit of the IOC of. The meetings were hosted at the Headquarters of the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (ALECSO).

The final meeting of the Probabilistic TSUnami Hazard MAPS for the NEAM Region (TSUMAPS-NEAM) (11-12 September 2017) presented the first homogeneous region-wide long-term Probabilistic earthquake-induced Tsunami Hazard Assessment (PTHA) for the coastlines of the NEAM region. The aim of the project has been to establish a base that can be used to develop a common region wide tsunami-risk management strategy from including development of local and national assessments. TSUMAPS-NEAM is a project funded by the European Commission under the auspices of the Directorate General of the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG-ECHO). More information about TSUMAPS is available at http://www.tsumaps-neam.eu/ .

The information meeting (13-14 September 2017) provided a status and overview of the North-eastern Atlantic, Mediterranean and connected sea Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System (NEAMTWS), the planned NEAMWave 17 Tsunami Exercise and the World Tsunami Awareness Day (5 November 2017). Summary recommendations highlighted the need (i) for several ALECSO countries to designate official tsunami warning focal points (TWFP) and national Tsunami Forecast Points. Meeting participants also highlighted the need for additional Tsunami information workshops among Civil Protection Agencies in the region. The full set of recommendations will be published separately in a workshop report.

The meetings were attended by more than 80 participants from Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania and Egypt as well as several TSUMAPS-NEAM scientific partners, and UNDP.