Last Friday, a magnitude 7 earthquake struck 12 miles off the northwestern coast of New Guinea, generating a 23-foot tsunami that devastated coastal towns and killed thousands.
Tsunami can strike anywhere, but are most common in the Pacific Ocean.
The National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program, funded in the wake of a relatively small tsunami generated by the northern California Cape Mendocino quake in 1992, is a partnership working to reduce the risk of tsunami along the U.S. West Coast and Hawaii. The partnership members include NOAA, FEMA and the U.S. Geological Survey, state emergency management agencies and universities in Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington.