The vulnerable ‘Ring of Fire’

As we went to press, the latest toll of the earthquake and subsequent tsunami of 11 March 2011 in north-east Japan was between an estimated 18-24,000 people reported either dead or missing with many more made homeless. It has put the vulnerability of the area in the Pacific known as the ‘Ring of Fire’ firmly in the spotlight. This 40,000km2 area tracing the Pacific Rim in a horseshoe-shaped fashion is the most seismically active region in the world. Nations including the Solomon Islands, Fiji and Tonga are prone to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis. It is worth noting that some of the islands had experience tidal waves as result of the Japanese tsunami. The Japanese disaster has brought the need for state-of-the-art early warning systems and measures to mitigate climate change into sharp focus. Climate change-induced sea level rises already make many low-lying Pacific islands vulnerable to the destruction of tsunamis.   

Debra Percival