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San Mateo County officials unveiled an interactive safety dashboard on Monday that allows users to quickly determine if they are in a tsunami hazard zone and to find safe areas nearby.
The Tsunami Hazard Area Dashboard was developed in direct response to the December 2024 tsunami alert that overwhelmed state resources and crashed state websites.
During a presentation at the Regional Operations Center in Redwood City, San Mateo County Supervisor Ray Mueller said the December tsunami alert sent people to a state website to “see if they were in a zone that could be impacted.”
“Because so many people were looking at that website, that site actually failed that day,” Mueller said. “On the heels of that, our county professional team worked to put together this website that our residents can use—the new SMC tsunami dashboard.”
The county hopes this new dashboard will prevent similar situations, helping residents avoid unnecessary panic and traffic jams. For instance, officials noted that during the December alert, many residents mistakenly fled onto Highway 1, not realizing they were already in a safe location or could quickly reach one nearby.
Mueller said that the panic led to injuries.
“There was no tsunami, but people, frankly, the public, were put at risk. Anyone that day who needed to travel Highway 1 could not do so. There were people who were injured on the coast in car accidents,” he said.
The website shows areas as either yellow or green. Yellow areas are ones that could be at risk in the event of a catastrophic tsunami.
Mueller, referring to the tsunami dashboard, said, “Now, if they look either today to prepare or on the day of the incident, they can find they only need to go a short distance. “If you’re in a yellow zone, simply go to higher ground.
“The yellow area is actually the most catastrophic tsunami that we have information on. So if you’re in a yellow area, this is about the worst it could get,” Mueller added.
Supervisor Lisa Gauthier stressed the importance of making preparedness information accessible, especially for San Mateo County’s diverse populations, who often face additional barriers in emergency situations.
“We cannot control emergencies, but we can control our preparedness,” she said.
Ryan Reynolds, assistant director of emergency management, said the dashboard uses data directly from the California Department of Conservation. “It’s the same exact information as the state’s,” Reynolds said. “But by housing the dashboard locally, we can ensure better reliability and accessibility during high-traffic events.”
The county also improved physical signage about tsunami warning zones throughout coastal areas, officials said.
Residents are encouraged to visit the San Mateo County Tsunami Hazard Area Dashboard and sign up for SMC Alert, the county’s emergency notification system.
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