Widespread disasters that devastate multiple communities take a considerable toll on national and international resources. Models and information products that use the most current and relevant information can provide focus for response and recovery efforts. In March 2011, a 9.0-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Honshu, Japan. The earthquake generated a tsunami which in turn triggered a nuclear disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant, requiring massive evacuations and negatively impacting economies around the world.
As the tsunami waves spread across the ocean, PDC went into emergency operations support mode. The tsunami warning, officially issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, and a tsunami travel time map was pushed to disaster managers via PDC applications. The information was also shared with the general public through PDC’s website, Disaster Alert mobile app, and social media channels. In addition, PDC team members immediately began responding to requests for detailed maps and data, rapidly generating hundreds of new products within the first two months following the disaster. The products aided authorities in damage assessment activities and helped response agencies track displaced persons and plot shelter capacity as well as supported recovery processes.
Cover photo: U.S. Air Force by Tech. Sgt. Daniel St. Pierre
ABOUT PDC
Pacific Disaster Center (PDC Global) is a leading scientific innovator in disaster risk reduction science and technology. As a University of Hawai’i applied science and research center, our work intersects with government, community, academic, and scientific organizations at home and around the world to build resilience to natural and man-made hazards. We enable communities to confront disasters more effectively by enhancing the capacity to rapidly anticipate and prepare for new and emerging threats using our AI-powered multi-hazard early warning technology, DisasterAWARE, predictive analytics, data science, and machine learning. For more than 30 years, PDC innovations have equipped decision-makers with the powerful tools and insights they need to navigate today’s complex and interconnected risk landscape.
PDC received prestigious recognition from the United Nations for its international impact in 2022, being granted the once-in-a-lifetime U.N. Sasakawa Award for Disaster Risk Reduction.
Jul 20, 2026 | DisasterAWARE, Early Warning
Pacific Disaster Center (PDC), in partnership with the U.S. Pacific Command (US PACOM), and twenty-nine other nations, international organizations, and interagency partners, supported the humanitarian assistance and disaster response (HADR) component of Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2026…
Jul 20, 2026 | Disaster Response, DisasterAWARE, Early Warning
As Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) braced for impacts from a second super typhoon in less than three months, the Pacific Disaster Center (PDC) joined regional preparedness coordination and relief efforts…
Jul 9, 2026 | Disaster Response, DisasterAWARE, Early Warning
Joining one of the largest-scale relief efforts in history, PDC embedded analysts and its DisasterAWARE technology ecosystem into mission operations to help save lives during response to the event…
Jun 19, 2026 | Disaster Response, DisasterAWARE, Early Warning
The June 8 Mindanao earthquake demonstrated how years of investment in PhilAWARE, training, and operational integration of critical life-saving data enabled immediate situational awareness and coordinated decision-making across the Philippines national disaster response system…
Jun 12, 2026 | DisasterAWARE, Early Warning
With more than 6.5 million fans from over 100 countries converging on cities across the United States, Mexico, and Canada for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the public health stakes are significant. The team is leveraging DisasterAWARE for timely, integrated situational awareness…
May 12, 2026 | DisasterAWARE, Early Warning
NOAA forecasters are sounding the alarm: super El Niño is coming and it could mean record impacts during hurricane season—especially across the Eastern and Central Pacific basins…