Oregon Scientists Test Tsunami-Resistant Building

Oregon State University scientists are testing a model of what could be a tsunami-resistant City Hall for Cannon Beach on the Oregon coast.

Engineers and seismic experts at the Wave Research Laboratory in Corvallis say they use scale models to study the action of super-sized tsunami waves on buildings.

The gap between an earthquake off the Pacific Northwest coast and the arrival of a tsunami could be about 20 minutes, which isn’t enough for all visitors to reach higher ground. But some could go up into a new, tsunami-resistant City Hall.

A design has been completed but would cost an estimated $4 million to build. Cannon Beach and Oregon legislators are seeking federal funding.