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Indonesia to build tsunami wall in Palu. Observers say it won't work
As Palu and its surrounding areas are rebuilding themselves brick by brick, the government has hatched a plan to build a seawall along the beaches facing the bay, intended as protection against incoming tsunami waves.
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In an effort to help revive the economy of disaster-stricken Palu and Donggala in Central Sulawesi, the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has distributed fishing equipment to 2,650 affected fishing families in the region. (JP/Ruslan Sangaji)
M
ost of Central Sulawesi’s Palu residents were getting ready for maghrib (sunset) prayer or dinner when a 7.4-magnitude earthquake from the nearby Palu-Koro fault jolted the city and its surrounding areas on Sept. 28, 2018.
The quake later caused a submarine landslide in Palu Bay, triggering tsunami waves measuring up to 7 meters in height. The wave led to severe casualties and damage, killing more than 4,000 people and destroying thousands of buildings.
As Palu and its surrounding areas are rebuilding themselves brick by brick, the government has hatched a plan to build a seawall along the beaches facing the bay, intended as protection against incoming tsunami waves.
When the plan was announced, it immediately drew ire from scientists and activists, who say the seawall would not do well against future tsunamis.
The plan was first conveyed in a reconstruction plan for regions in Central Sulawesi affected by the earthquake and tsunami made by the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas) in early 2019. According to the plan, the 6-meter vertical seawall was proposed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
Widjo Kongko, a tsunami expert from the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT), was among the scientists opposing the seawall plan.
“Seawalls have yet to be proven effective in preventing an area from being swept by tsunami waves, including in Japan,” Widjo told The Jakarta Post recently.
