Palm Tree vs.Tsunami?

Question

In some tsunami shows that have been on TV recently, they have shown and mentioned that the Palm Trees where still standing.

I don’t understand why or how?
1. Palm trees have a relatively shallow root system, hence not much support
2. They are growing close to the coast so the soils are sandy and weaker
3. A tsunami is not something a tree could grow/evolve to withstand (like a cyclone) because they are very very rare.

Answer 1

The way Palm trees survive Cyclones/ Hurricanes is probably the same reason why they survive Tsunamis. The trunk is very flexible, being able to practically go horizontal with strong winds. The way the palm trees "rings" grow up and out also mean it has a slip stream effect on anything trying to raise it out of the ground. The leaves might get stripped bare but with a decent foot hold and the things above it might well survive a strong wave or two.