The Tsunami Countdown

TWENTY-FOUR

10:41 a.m.

41 Minutes to Wave Arrival Time

The established procedure of the tsunami warning system included notifying the Civil Air Patrol, an auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force that flew search-and-rescue missions and other operations that the military and government didn’t have the resources to do on their own. In the event of a tsunami warning, their duty was simple. Offshore and in remote locations, it was likely that surfers and boaters would not hear the sirens. Helicopters and planes that were equipped with loudspeakers would fly over the coastlines, broadcasting the warning. Each aircraft was responsible for a particular section of the coastline.

During past tsunami warnings, the CAP had met with moderate success. In many cases, the surfers would heed the warnings and paddle in to shore. But there were plenty of others who just waved at the aircraft, obviously enjoying the chance to say they had surfed a tsunami.

One of the CAP volunteers, an eager nineteen-yearold pilot named Matthew Perkins, flew a Cessna outfitted with a loudspeaker that he had installed himself. Although he had tested it extensively on the ground at Hickam, he hadn’t had an opportunity to drill with it yet. The tsunami warning would be his first chance to try it in action.

He had made all the required preflight checks and then took off from the runway that Hickam Air Base shared with Honolulu International. It only took him a few minutes to get to his designated patrol area along Waikiki Beach.

Off the coast of Diamond Head, Lani and Mia continued paddling alongside their two new friends. The view from this far out was spectacular. Lani was having a great time, but Mia was struggling.

After having paddled all the way to Sans Souci Beach, Mia had gotten tired and asked the rest of them if they could turn back. Although Lani was getting sore, she could have gone on awhile longer and was disappointed Mia had given up so soon.

The breeze had picked up, and the previously calm water now rocked their kayaks on undulating waves. At the rate they were paddling, their tired arms would take another half hour at least to get them back to their starting point on Waikiki.

Lani was surprised to see all kinds of aircraft buzzing around. Tourist, news, and military helicopters were everywhere—way more than usual.

Then she heard a small plane approach. It was flying parallel to the beach, almost as if it were coming in for a landing, but the runway was miles away.

“What is that guy doing?” Tom said.

“I don’t know,” Jake said.

“Is he going to crash?” Mia asked.

“No, look,” Lani said, “he’s just flying straight and level.”

“Then what’s he doing?”

As it got closer, Lani could hear words cutting in and out. She couldn’t understand what was being said. In between the words, there was nothing but static.

“It’s probably just some kind of advertisement,” Tom said.

“Yeah,” Jake said, “but the doofus’s speaker is broken or something.”

Lani heard a word more distinctly.

“Did he say onami?” she said.

“See,” Tom said. “It’s probably Konami. That’s a video game company. It’s an ad.”

“Well, it’s not working,” Jake said.

The plane passed over them two more times, but they ignored the annoying whine of the engine and kept paddling lazily back to Waikiki.