Tsunami survivor to speak at emergency preparation meeting

The Blaine emergency response team will host a community event on surviving natural disasters, with a special presentation from Birch Bay resident Monica Ribeiro Connelly, who survived the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami in Thailand. 

The presentation will be held at the Blaine Senior Center, 763 G Street, on Tuesday, April 9 at 6:30 p.m.

Ribeiro Connelly, who recently authored a memoir “Surviving a Tsunami at Thirteen” about her experiencing losing both her parents to the world’s largest recorded tsunami, will offer her insight on how to survive the natural disaster, and how first responders can prepare to address such tragedies.

“We were close enough for the worst possible scenario because there was no warning,” Ribeiro Connelly told The Northern Light in a November 2023 interview. 

“There were no authorities and no alarm bells. It was just another day, and then, the water was gone. Being a foreigner, you don’t know that’s not normal.”

An estimated 227,899 people lost their lives in the tsunami, and Ribeiro Connelly hopes to spread the word on how to be prepared for the worst in the coastal communities of Blaine and Birch Bay. 

Madisun Tobisch contributed to the reporting of the story.