National Report of Democratic People's Republic of Korea

UNESCO Delegates, DPR of Korea

Dear Comrades,

We are very pleased to send National Tsunami Report to ITCG/ITSU, UNESCO/IOC through UNESCO DELEGATES.


With Warm Regards,

State Hydro-meteorological Administration(SHMA), DPR of KOREA.


National report

Basic information


1. ITCG/ITSU National Contact:
Name: Mr. Jang Hyon Chol
Organization: officer, Dep.of External Relations , SHMA, DPRK
Postal Address: Central Meteorological Institute, SHMA, Oesong
                        Dong, Central District, Pyongyang, DPR of Korea
E-mail Address:shma@co.chesin.com
Telephone Number:850-2-321-4539
Fax Number:850-2-381-4410
Cellular phone:


2. Primary Warning Recipient:(Person, Agency or Organization with primary responsibility receiving and acting upon messages issued by PTWC)
Name: Mr. Ri Song Gun
Responsibility organization: Central Meteorological Institute, SHMA,
                                              DPR of Korea
Postal Address: Central Meteorological Institute, SHMA, Oesong
                        Dong, Central District, Pyongyang, DPR of Korea
E-mail Address:shma@co.chesin.com
Telephone Number:850-2-321-3125
Fax Number:850-2-381-4416
Cellular phone:


3. Tsunami Advisor:(Person, Committee or Agency managing Tsunami mitigation)
Name: Mr. O. Ryang Pyong
Postal Address: Central Meteorological Institute, SHMA, Oesong
                        Dong, Central District, Pyongyang, DPR of Korea
E-mail Address:shma@co.chesin.com
Telephone Number:850-2-321-2125
Fax Number:850-2-381-4410
Cellular phone:


4. Local Tsunami Procedures

¡¦ The Seismological Institute is responsible for estimating the position and the magnitude of an earthquake occurred in our seas and the surrounding water regions on the base of data from domestic earthquake monitoring network, and assessing the risk of the local tsunami.
.  Local tsunami waning is issued considering a threshold determined by the position and magnitude of the earthquake, the distance from the earthquake source to a relevant coastal water area, the coastal configurations and geological characteristics of sea bottom.
¡¦The issued tsunami warning is informed to the National or Local Natural Disaster Prevention Headquarter for mitigating hazards from natural disaster events including tsunami and storm surges and to the related agencies.


5. Distant Tsunami Procedures. (when distant tsunami hazard exists)

¡¦The Central Meteorological Institute(CMI) becomes aware of   tsunami-genic events from a distance source. The Institute receives the earthquake and tsunami information from PTWC through GTS.
¡¦Based on this information, a tsunami hazard assessment is given, considering the distance from the source to the relevant coastal areas of our country.
¡¦When the assessment indicates the tsunami warning criteria or threshold, the Institute issues the tsunami warning or messages to the relevant agencies.
¡¦For the local or distance tsunami hazard warning, a numerical tsunami models are used on the operational base. As a result of the tsunami model, the potential run-ups and inundation with time at the coastal areas of our country are obtained.
¡¦The criteria of the tsunami warning is the warning sea levels or risk sea levels being pre-determined at the corresponding places of the coastal areas in our country.
¡¦The CMI, SHMA had recently improved the system of communication network for correctly receiving in time and processing the telegram data of tsunami warning and information from PTWC, and developed a new numerical tsunami model to introduce into operational tsunami watch and prediction.


6. National Sea Level Network. (Please include a table with position and description of stations/sensors)


Station Position Sensor
1 Chongjin East Coast  Auto Sea Level Recorder
2 Wonsan  ¡® Auto Sea LevelRecorder 
3 Kosong  ¡® Coastal Sea Level Ruler
4 Nampo  West coast  Auto sea levelRecorder 
5 Haezu  ¡® Auto Sea Level    Recorder 
6 Monggumpo  ¡® Coastal Sea Level Ruler
 

In addition to these stations, we are also observing the sea level by mainly using rulers at the coastal marine meteorological stations such as Sonbong, Kimchak, Riwon,Kajin, Sinpo, Tongchon.


7. Information on Tsunami occurrences. (Please include records, pictures, etc.)

Recently, there were no significant tsunami events in the coastal areas of our country.


SUMMARY


The Tsunami Warning System in the DPR of Korea consists of the National Tsunami Warning Center, Tsunami Watch and Communication Networks, and the Headquarter for Protecting Tsunami Hazard.

The CMI, SHMA, as the National Tsunami Warning Center, issues storm surge and tsunami warning in the areas of our seas and informs the concerned agencies to take measures for protecting or mitigating surge hazard.

The earthquake watch network consists of coastal and inland earthquake stations, and the sea level network consists of coastal oceanography stations located at the major sports of the east and west coasts of our country.

Nowadays, we had improved the domestic tsunami information system to more rapidly receive and process the earthquake and sea level observation data from earthquake and sea level networks for enhancing the capability of the National Tsunami Warning System.

The communication network had been improved so that earthquake and sea level data could be transformed immediately into the Seismological Institute and the Communication Center for Meteorological Data at the Central Meteorological Institute.

 Also, The data correcting and processing programs have been improved to monitor the information from PTWC.

So, we are receiving the earthquake information or tsunami messages from PTWC on the regular operational base.

Recently, a study on tsunami and storm surge models was accomplished to improve the tsunami and storm surge waning capacities in our country. ¡ÈA tsunami calculation method in coastal water areas of our country¡É, which was newly studied and introduced to operational tsunami waning work, well describes the time and positions of tsunami occurrence, the run up and inundation at concerned positions in more detail than other tsunami prediction models. We are now using this model for tsunami prediction at corresponding coastal areas based on initial data of an earthquake occurred in water regions of our country at any time.

Research works on earthquake and tsunami characteristics are implemented systematically at the West Sea Oceanographic Institute of SHMA, the Department of Oceanography of Kim IL Song University and the Seismological Institute.      

In the future, the major concerns of the National committee for Oceanography and the National Tsunami Warning Center should pay to the following issues to improve the national capability for tsunami warning and   preventing and mitigating tsunami hazards;
¡¦ to improve observational and communication capacities of earthquake and sea level networks
¡¦ to develop a more sophisticated tsunami prediction models
¡¦ to strengthen the tsunami warning transmission system and to actively take activities for public awareness on the tsunami damages, which are necessary to make the more perfected measures against tsunami damages.       


Narrative


In our country, some measures have been taken for improving the capability of the national tsunami waning system;
¡¦The telephone and computer network for transmitting the information of tsunami events  have been equipped or supplied with some equipments so that the communication capacity between the Tsunami Waning Center and the Seismologic and sea level networks was strengthen.
¡¦The earthquake and tsunami monitoring and information system have been established between the national tsunami waning center and earthquake and tsunami communication center, by which the national tsunami waning center watches tsunami messages from PTWC at real time and assesses the criteria for issuing the tsunami warning.
¡¦The paper titled  ¡ÉA calculation method of tsunami in the coastal regions of our country ¡È, which was studied in recent years by the West Sea Oceanographic Institute of SHMA is used in operational works for tsunami.
This method has recognized more effective, more quickly and more detail than the previous one for measuring a tsunami magnitude, estimating its tsunami time history, predicting its damage on any major spot in the coastal plain of the Korean East Sea and West Sea and issuing warning.

¡¦There had been the meetings and discussions twice this year on information and research for protecting marine meteorological hazards such as tsunami, and measure to immigrate natural hazards between Kim IL Sung University, the Earthquake Institute and SHMA through the National Committee for Oceanography, and we had made work plans.
¡¦In order to raise the public awareness and concerns on natural hazards including tsunami, some of papers were issued on magazines and news, and introduced by means of the radio or television broadcast. Also, Talks on the tsunami risks and characters were made with local communities at potential tsunami hazards. 
¡¦We had made some of scientific and technological investigations and researches to consider tsunami risks in constructing coastal structures and developing coastal areas.


Date:   1 July 2003

Mr. O Ryang Pyong
ITCG / ITSU National Tsunami Advisor
The Central Meteorological Institute, SHMA, Pyongyang, DPR of Korea
  


 

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