France plans alert centre over fears of tsunami attack

The commission will set up a central command next year at their base in Essonne, which will monitor seismic activity across the Mediterranean region from the Azores to Sicily.

In addition three ‘pilot sites’ will be created on the Riviera, one in the Golfe du Lion (Var), another between Juan-les-Pins and Villeneuve-Loubet (Alpes-Maritimes). The third location has yet to be chosen.

The CEA claims that these sites will focus on “establishing scenarios for coping with high waves in certain geographical contexts.”

The announcement comes just a year after savage storms hit the Riviera coastline, during which the Mayor of Nice, Christian Estrosi announced a state of emergency.

Since the Sendai earthquake and resulting Fukashima disaster, French authorities have been keen to show that they are proactive in increasing nuclear safety and disaster planning. Even if the consequences of any potential natural catastrophe are unlikely to be anywhere near the same scale as events in Japan.

TD