Port Louis, Feb. 27 (Reuters): New hydrographic surveys of Mauritius’s territorial waters will help the tiny, vulnerable island be better prepared for disasters such as tsunamis, Indian hydrographers who completed the studies said.

Officers from the Indian Naval Survey ship, the Sarvekshak, handed over charts and data to Mauritius today which will help the Indian Ocean island predict tsunami-vulnerable coastal areas and evacuate people to higher areas.

In December 2004, the strongest earthquake in at least 40 years triggered a tsunami that killed around 232,000 people in a dozen Indian Ocean nations and left more than 1 million homeless.

While Mauritius was unaffected due to its vast distance from the epicentre of the earthquake, it has left the island’s 1.2 million people concerned about how it would cope should a tsunami hit its shores.

“Tsunamis are a major threat to this region. If water rises by whatever height, you need to know what areas are likely to be affected. We are assisting in that,” Rear Admiral B.R. Rao, India’s chief hydrographer, said.

“If you know vulnerable areas, then you will be able to move people to higher areas ? you are lucky to have mountains here unlike in Maldives, which is completely flat,” he said.

Rao said the surveys included data such as temperature, water levels and sea floor topography ? essential parameters in both prediction and response to tsunamis.

Rao said the surveys would also help Mauritius proceed with plans for oil exploration, and surveys of the Port Louis harbour already showed that it could be extended further, increasing shipping traffic and bringing in more revenue for the country.