Hundreds of thousands of residents and tourists along the Cadiz coastline in southern Spain will receive emergency alerts on their phones on Thursday (November 20) as Andalusia stages the largest tsunami drill ever carried out in Spain. At 10.03am, every mobile device located in officially mapped inundation zones will ring with an ES-Alert message, warning of a simulated earthquake triggered by a “Lisbon-style” 7.6-magnitude earthquake.
The system will activate across some of the region’s most popular tourist areas along the Costa de la Luz, including Cadiz city, Chipiona, Rota and Conil. The Campo de Gibraltar will also be in the firing line, with residents in Algeciras, La Linea and Los Barrios getting loud bleeps. The exercise is designed to test exactly how fast Andalusia could react if a deep-ocean earthquake off Cape St Vincent, Portugal, were to occur and send a huge wave racing towards the coast.
The drill is meant to simulate an earthquake similar to that which struck Portugal, the Iberian Peninsula, and Northwest Africa on November 1, 1755 – known as the Great Lisbon earthquake – which measured at least eight on the Richter scale, caused fires to break out due to candles burning at many church services at the time, as well as a 30-foot tsunami. It is estimated to have killed around 50,000 to 60,000 people.
During Thursday’s drill, more than 20,000 people will take part, including 1,000 emergency workers and over 19,000 residents, schoolchildren, businesses and hotels.
Local councils in expat-heavy areas such as La Linea will activate their emergency plans, open local command centres, and even carry out full school evacuations, according to The Olive Press.
The drill is the fourth major emergency simulation carried out by Andalusia since 2021, but it is its most ambitious to date.
Guests staying in hotels will also be expected to participate in “vertical evacuations” – moving to higher floors to simulate seeking refuge from an incoming wave – including the Playa Victoria, Senator Cadiz and the Parador Atlantico in Cadiz.
In many zones, police, firefighters and Proteccion Civil will practise vertical evacuations, evacuations inland and mass-alert procedures using loudspeakers, church bells and the ES-Alert mobile system. Councils are also urging residents to warn elderly neighbours, who may be startled by the sudden phone alert.
Residents in risk zones do not need to take any action other than to remain calm when the alert sounds, unless they are participating in an organised evacuation exercise.
In the event of a real tsunami, the public is urged to move immediately to higher floors or safe inland points, avoid lifts and cars, help anyone struggling and keep a battery-powered radio handy. They should avoid calling emergency services on 112 unless there is an immediate life-threatening emergency.
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
