Orange County emergency officials are better prepared for a tsunami than any other comparable stretch of California coast, but they must do more to prepare visitors and tourists, according to a grand jury report released today.

The recent development of coordinated, countywide tsunami response plans, after a 2004 tsunami from the Indian Ocean devastated surrounding areas, has created new signage and public education tools that are a significant improvement, the report says.

However, the information available to visitors and perhaps even to some residents is insufficient to reduce casualties in the event of a local tsunami disaster because the signage is too small and, in some cases, fails to provide adequate notice to visitors entering the tsunami hazard zone, the jury concluded.

Some other findings:

– Sirens may be ineffective unless those hearing the warning know what to do, through signage or other means. Public education is largely directed at permanent residents and overlooks visitors. Yet, on warm summer days, visitors may outnumber residents and be at greater risk in a tsunami due to inadequate information about tsunamis.

– Maps used by the Sheriff Department’s Emergency Management Bureau are dramatically inconsistent with those used by the cities of Huntington Beach and Newport Beach and appear to minimize the threat.

– Huntington Beach has the most signs (122) while Laguna Beach has the fewest (6).

Read the report here.