Would the Panama Canal locks hold in the case of a Tsunami?
The Panama Canal is an engineering marvel that cost a fortune to build, caused political turmoil and cost many lives because of the excavation risks and malaria. A description of the canal is given on the Panama Canal Authority’s website. It reads: “The Panama Canal is approximately 80 kilometers long between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. This waterway was cut through one of narrowest saddles of the isthmus that joins North and South America. The Canal uses a system of locks compartments with entrance and exit gates. The locks function as water lifts: they raise ships from sea level (the Pacific or the Atlantic) to the level of Gatun Lake (26 meters above sea level); ships then sail the channel through the Continental Divide. Each set of locks bears the name of the town site where it was built: Gatun (on the Atlantic side), and Pedro Miguel and Miraflores (on the Pacific side). The lock chambers – steps – are 33.53 meters wide by 304.8 meters long. The maximum dimensions of ships th
There are plans to build a regional center for Tsunami preparedness to help plan for a Tsunami. Peter Koltermann, executive secretary of the United Nations Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, told a meeting of around 30 Caribbean states that the likelihood of a tsunami hitting the region at some point was “probable.” He said a regional warning center could help prevent disasters like the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, which killed around 230,000 people. Koltermann had said during a session on Wednesday that “the situation in the Indian Ocean was similar to the Caribbean. Nobody believed it would happen, but it happened.” He said Panama’s interoceanic canal could be vulnerable to a sea surge from an underwater earthquake, and any shutdown would hit global trade. “If this canal does not work for one week, four weeks, or six weeks because of a tsunami, it is a huge danger and loss for the economy.” Participating countries included Jamaica, Barbados and Central American nations. Althou
The Panama Canal is an engineering marvel that cost a fortune to build, caused political turmoil and cost many lives because of the excavation risks and malaria. A description of the canal is given on the Panama Canal Authority’s website. It reads: “The Panama Canal is approximately 80 kilometers long between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. This waterway was cut through one of narrowest saddles of the isthmus that joins North and South America. The Canal uses a system of locks compartments with entrance and exit gates. The locks function as water lifts: they raise ships from sea level (the Pacific or the Atlantic) to the level of Gatun Lake (26 meters above sea level); ships then sail the channel through the Continental Divide. Each set of locks bears the name of the town site where it was built: Gatun (on the Atlantic side), and Pedro Miguel and Miraflores (on the Pacific side). The lock chambers – steps – are 33.53 meters wide by 304.8 meters long. The maximum dimensions of ships th
There are plans to build a regional center for Tsunami preparedness to help plan for a Tsunami. Peter Koltermann, executive secretary of the United Nations Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, told a meeting of around 30 Caribbean states that the likelihood of a tsunami hitting the region at some point was “probable.” He said a regional warning center could help prevent disasters like the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, which killed around 230,000 people. Koltermann had said during a session on Wednesday that “the situation in the Indian Ocean was similar to the Caribbean. Nobody believed it would happen, but it happened.” He said Panama’s interoceanic canal could be vulnerable to a sea surge from an underwater earthquake, and any shutdown would hit global trade. “If this canal does not work for one week, four weeks, or six weeks because of a tsunami, it is a huge danger and loss for the economy.” Participating countries included Jamaica, Barbados and Central American nations.
