Manila, Nov. 6 -- An Indonesian disaster expert on Thursday said coastal communities should not wait for official tsunami warnings before evacuating, as destructive waves could reach shore before authorities can issue alerts.

Dr. Abdul Muhari, Deputy Minister for Prevention of Indonesia's National Disaster Management Authority, made the reminder during the Office of Civil Defense's (OCD) Over Coffee Dialogues held on Thursday in Sta. Ana, Cagayan in observance of World Tsunami Awareness Day (WTAD).

Drawing on his specialization in coastal disasters and tsunami engineering, and his experience with major tsunami disasters in Indonesia and Japan, Muhari explained that tsunamis are not always preceded by extremely strong ground shaking or ...