Physical waste results from the damages done to edifices and displacement of objects by the turbulent waters. Tsunami waste includes vegetation, soil, sediment, destroyed buildings, etc. It is important to purge the environment of its physical waste because it is detrimental to the ecosystems and people. Garbage needs to be collected and removed safely and at the same time, in a quick manner before chemicals accumulate and seep into the ground to affect the groundwater.
   In the case of the Maldives Islands in the December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, most of the debris comprised of demolition waste (destroyed buildings) and vegetation¹. The citizens helped to clear out the debris from their properties. While the garbage is being collected by the local townspeople and volunteers and relocated to the designated disposal sites, the debris needs to be sorted in order to separate the hazardous wastes from combustible and normal solid waste. Hazardous wastes have the potential to seep into the ground and contaminate groundwater. Hazardous wastes mainly come from power stations, oil/fuel supply storage areas, fertilizer and pesticide storage areas and the like. In the Thilafushi landfill that handled wastes from the Maldives, a central storage and separation of oils program has been implemented¹.
   Waste is handled depending on certain characteristics of the waste, such as ignitability, reactivity, corrosivity, compatibility, and physical state². So as to not pack all the debris in a landfill, the segregation of debris will allow for the burning of some materials. Burning of debris is limited, due to the fact that burning wastes produce gases noxious to humans, such as formaldehydes and sulfur dioxide¹. We will consider dumping the garbage more than burning because of this fact.
   The waste in the designated disposal sites will be transferred to dumps and landfills. It can be transported by garbage trucks, given that the roads are clear enough to begin mass transport of debris. Landfills must be located in a site where there is maximum separation between the waste and groundwater². The advantages of this option are that much of the physical waste can be disposed in a timely manner, as long as the transportation of garbage is efficient. The downside to this option is that the landfills need to be managed over time (a person needs to periodically check the leakage systems to verify that the waste will never have contact with the groundwater).
   Waste collection can be carried through a Public Works Sector, funded by the government or NGO's. They can supply equipments such as bulldozers and garbage trucks.

   Immediately following the wave impact (after the area has been declared safe and there is no danger of aftershock waves), any breaches in flood levees or seawalls need to be closed using sandbags or other methods to prevent more water from the inundating the city. Hurricane Katrina provides a perfect example of what to do should a city be inundated with water. By August 31, 2005, Army Corps of Engineering (ACE) began to repair a breach in the 17th Street Canal using 3000 pound sandbags and Chinook helicopters³. In the event that a Micronesian or Peruvian seawall breaches, smaller sandbags, crushed stone, or concrete could be placed to close the breach until permanent repair work begins. Some barriers may need to be mechanically breached in order to allow trapped floodwater to drain out naturally⁴.
   After the wave passes through, a pump team of trained volunteers from the area can begin pumping, using stored portable pumps. The drainage workers must assume that any existing sewer or pipeline systems will be clogged. Many existing pumps or sewers are vulnerable to tsunamis, and we must account for the lack of money and/or supplies. It would be beneficial to erect a permanent sewer system. Portable pumps, such as those volunteered by Dutch Water Management Department, can expel 3,000 cubic meters of water an hour. Each pump can run for 48 hours continuously on one tank of diesel fuel. Dutch water pumps have been used with great success in several countries including Suriname, Poland, and the Netherlands⁵. Rather than rely on existing pump infrastructures within flooded New Orleans, Army Corps of Engineers coordinators employed three mobile water pumps in Plaquimines Parish, establishing mobile pump stations there to begin pumping while the permanent pump stations in that area underwent repairs⁵. The pumps should be stored in a high-elevation area away from possible tsunami dangers, perhaps with other emergency equipment.
   In larger towns, permanent pumps will be initially covered by floodwater but will come into view as the floodwaters drain. These pumps should be cleaned by the pump team and put into action. After the bulk of the city has been drained, the portable pumps can be used to drain the last remaining water pockets around sewers or especially low-lying areas. The general template for drainage activities based on a worst-case scenario is that each individual situation should be assessed by the inhabitants of the area. A trained group of civilians who know how to operate and repair the pumps could also assess where their services are most needed. Some locations may require the portable pumps to lower water levels until permanent pump stations might be repaired; most locations will not possess a permanent pump station. An early pump assessment by an ACE engineer shows the need for an adaptable pumping plan which allows for flexibility in the face of haphazard damages:
   "On the morning of Sept. 7, approximately 60 percent of the city is still under water. Three pumps are now operating at the 17th Street Canal and are discharging water at around 2,250 cubic feet per second, or cfs. Pump station 19 at the Industrial Canal, just north of Florida Avenue, is currently pumping 1,300 cfs. An additional generator is to arrive today that will allow the Corps to activate another pump at this location and remove an additional 1,000 cfs. Pump station 8, located in St. Bernard Parish in the vicinity of St. Mary, is running at full capacity at 837cfs."⁴
   After pumping is finished, the brackish muck remaining from the flood should be cleaned and buried. Toxicity and disease are large concerns, especially in more populated areas. A Time reporter describes the brackish mix as "A solution of oil, feces, battery acid, human and animal rot, burst containers of bug spray and paint thinner and nail polish and antifreeze... and a million other nasty things floating everywhere..."⁶ The locations that are defined to be at-risk in Peru and Micronesia are smaller than the regions defined in New Orleans. Despite the smaller scale of debris and cleanup activities, all emergency workers must receive tetanus and hepatitis shots, as ACE workers were required to do before entering affected areas.
   While the New Orleans drainage team used Lake Ponchartain as a reservoir for the flood muck, freshwater reservoirs in the Peruvian coastal desert and Micronesia are too precious to be used like this. The most practical solution is to empty floodwaters into the ocean; this should be monitored and kept clear of any existing fisheries or water supplies. In areas where the floodwater is not likely to disperse easily (such as a barrier island/lagoon structure in Micronesia) or could harm coral reef structures, care should be taken to disperse water where it will cause the least damage. Although this is not a great solution, diverting floodwaters to an inland reservoir is simply not an option. Cheap, simple filters such as those used to purify water in developing nations could be used to strain the worst muck and toxicity out of the effluent.
   When the water is fully drained from the land, then the damaged area may proceed to structural reconstruction.