COLOMBO, Jan 25: Sri Lanka' Coast Conservation Department has advised the authorities to take precautionary measures against the possibility of a fresh, "stronger" tsunami hitting the island and that could affect buildings such as the President's House, the parliament and a skyscraper in the heart of Colombo.

In an interview with Dawn on Monday, the department's director, Dr R. A. Samaranayake, said Sri Lanka should follow in the footsteps of countries like Japan in erecting dikes to protect buildings in coastal areas from a tsunami strike.

He denied that existing structures such as hotels located close to the coast had to be demolished, adding people's wish to relocate was "personal". Hapless people inhabiting the coastal belt panicked as rumours spread over the weekend about "forced relocation".