Cowell’s Cove is a beach in Santa Cruz, California noted for good surfing. The Santa Cruz coastal area is in the form of a broad (5 km) short (1.5 km) bay, facing south

Question

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On the west side of the beach is a long (1 km) raised peninsula with a steep rocky cliff edge. The top is about 5 m above the water level. Behind the peninsula, the ground rises in a neighborhood of twisty, one-lane streets to a level 15 m above sea level. The nearest stairway is about 100 m away. To the east, the beach is flat leading to a popular tourist boardwalk. Your car is parked behind the boardwalk about 200 m away. Behind this area a straight two-lane road goes through the downtown area for about 5 km before reaching Highway 101 and hilly country.
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The sea is calm and flat except for a regular line of clean surf breaks surf breaks about 1 m high along the peninsula. You feel a slight jolt. Some rocks tumble from the cliffs, and you can hear car horns honking at areas along the beachfront. After looking around for a few minutes, you notice that the edge of the water is receding quickly, and hear sirens from emergency vehicles in some directions.
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Assume that you are physically fit, and that your car is in good working order. What do you do? Explain your reasoning.
What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

ANSWER: Here is a sample response:
I would want to get higher and further away from the coast immediately, because I think a tsunami is coming. It might be easier to get far away from the beach if I got my car, but that will take a while and there may be traffic on all of the streets. The boardwalk is bound to be crowded and traffic will be bad on that side, even if I have a straight road inland. I don’t have time to drive. I aim to get above the waterline first, then worry about distance. I leave my stuff on the beach and run for the stairway on the cliff. Once I’m at the top, I will run for the hill on that side of town. Once I get there, it would probably be a good idea to see if I can get to a high floor in a building or onto somebody’s roof.
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A successful answer will -
- identify the importance of gaining both height and distance.
- emphasize an immediate, speedy response, e.g. running, leaving possessions behind, choosing the quickest route.
- must select foot travel at the west side of the beach as the best immediate escape route due to the height and location and other complications
- must include travel beyond the cliff to maximize safety
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Creative responses that involve illegal activity (e.g. stealing a bicycle, motorcycle, or emergency vehicle) should be graded on their avoidance of danger, not legality.