A U.N. General Assembly committee on Friday adopted a resolution declaring Nov. 5 as World Tsunami Awareness Day to highlight the dangers posed by the killer waves ahead of the fifth anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11.
"Even though tsunami are relatively rare phenomena among natural disasters, they can cause tremendous damage both in terms of the loss of human lives and the destruction of property," said U.N. Ambassador Motohide Yoshikawa before the text was adopted by consensus in the Economic and Financial Committee.
"Much of this damage can be avoided if the community is aware of the risks in advance. Therefore, raising awareness is a worldwide challenge," he said.