Deadly Tsunamis - Abby Pincus

Lisbon Earthquake (Portugal)

Nov 1, 1755

There were 10k-100k deaths in this earthquake and tsunami combo. The magnitude reached a 9.0, and the tsunami waves hit 20 feet high. Violent shaking demolished large public buildings. Many citizens were attending the All Saints mass when this event occurred. This was caused by faulting of the sea floor along tectonic plate boundaries of the mid-atlantic.

Krakatoa Eruption (Java/Sumatra)

Aug 26, 1883

There were 36k deaths caused by this event. Waves reached 40 M above sea level, hurling items as heavy as 600 tons. There was a volcanic explosivity index of 6, which rates as colossal. Ash fell as far away as 3,775 miles, landing on ships to the northwest. Volcanic activity is due to the subduction of the indo-australian tectonic plate moving west toward mainland asia.

Aleutian Earthquake (Alaska)

Apr 1, 1946

There were 173 deaths. The magnitude was an 8.6. Waves from the tsunami reached an estimated 100 feet high, at 500 MPH. This tsunami prompted the US to establish the Seismic Sea Wave working system 2 years after. This event caused $26 million in damage. The maximum Mercalli intensity was VI.

Great Chilean Earthquake (Chile)

May 22, 1960

There were 5,000 deaths. The magnitude reached a 9.6, and the Max intensity was a XII. This earthquake lasted ten minutes, and the tsunami had waves that reached 82 feet high. It was caused by the Nazca plate subducting beneath the South American plate.

Good Friday Earthquake (Alaska)

Mar 27, 1964

There were 139 deaths. The earthquake occured at 5:36 PM AST. Occured in the Prince William region of Alaska. The maximum intensity was an XI, and it caused $311 million in damage. The earthquake lasted 5 minutes, and it was the second most powerful earthquake ever recorded with a magnitude of 9.2. The waves reached the height of 220 feet.

Hokkaido Earthquake (Japan)

Jul 12, 1993

There were 230 deaths. It took between 2-7 minutes after the first earthquake for the first of the destructive waves to strike the coastlines of Okushiri island. The maximum intensity was a VIII, and there was $1 billion in damages.

Papua New Guinea Quake (Papua New Guinea)

Jul 17, 1998

There were 1,600 deaths. The magnitude was 7.0. The first earthquake was at 5:44 PM. It lasted 19 seconds. A submarine landslide generated by the earthquake actually triggered the tsunami. Tsunami waves reached 49 feet tall.

Sumatra Earthquake (Indonesia)

Dec 26, 2004

There were 227,848 deaths. The mercalli intensity was an IX. The magnitude was a 9.3. The earthquake reached a distance of 900 miles away, and the epicenter was off the west coast of northern sumatra. It is the tenth deadliest disaster in history.

Samoa Earthquake (Samoan Islands)

Sep 29, 2009

189 were killed in this magnitude 8.1 earthquake. It took place in the Southern Pacific ocean adjacent to the kermadec-tonga subduction zone. The mercalli intensity was VI, and the waves were 15 M above sea level.

Chile Earthquake (Chile)

Feb 27, 2010

525 were killed, 25 missing. The magnitude was an 8.8. Tsunami waves went over 50 feet. The waves traveled across the Pacific Ocean at 450 MPH. The epicenter was located 200 miles south west of the Chilean capital of santiago. The earthquake resulted from a rupture of a 375 mile stretch of the fault that separates the South American plate from the subducting Nazca plate.

Tokoku Earthquake (Japan)

Mar 11, 2011

230,000 people dead in this magnitude 9 earthquake. Waves hit 133 feet high. More than 120,000 buildings were destroyed. There was $199 billion in damage.