Tsunami News & Photos

Probably not an ehxaustive list!


A.D. 79
Aug. 24, Italy: eruption of Mt. Vesuvius buried cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum, killing thousands.
856
Dec. 22, Damghan, Iran: earthquake killed 200,000.
893
March 23, Ardabil, Iran: earthquake killed about 150,000 people.
1138
Aug. 9, Aleppo, Syria: deadly earthquake claimed lives of 230,000 people.
1290
Sept., Chihli, China: earthquake killed about 100,000 people.
1556
Jan. 23, Shaanxi (Shensi) province, China: most deadly earthquake in history; 830,000 killed.
1667
Nov., Shemakha, Caucasia: earthquake killed about 80,000 people.
1727
Nov. 18, Tabriz, Iran: about 77,000 victims killed in deadly earthquake.
1755
Nov. 1, Portugal: earthquake leveled Lisbon and was felt as far away as southern France and North Africa; 70,000 killed.
1783
June 8, Iceland: eruption of Laki volcano lasted until Feb. 1784. Haze from eruption resulted in loss of island's livestock and widespread crop failure; 9,350 deaths, mostly due to starvation.
1792
May 21, Kyushu Island, Japan: collapse of old lava dome during eruption of Unzen volcano caused avalanche and tsunami that killed an estimated 14,300 people. (Most were killed by the tsunami.) Japan's greatest volcano disaster.
1811
Dec. 16, Mississippi Valley nr. New Madrid, Mo.: earthquake reversed the course of the Mississippi River. Fatalities unknown due to sparse population in area. Aftershocks and tremors continued into 1812. It has been estimated that three of the series of earthquakes had surface-wave magnitudes of 8.6, 8.4, and 8.8 on the Richter scale. It is the largest series of earthquakes known to have occurred in North America.
1815
April 5, 10–11, Netherlands Indies (Sumbawa, Indonesia): eruption of Tambora largest in historic times. An estimated 92,000 people were killed, about 10,000 directly as a result of explosions and ash fall and about 82,000 indirectly by starvation and disease.
1877
June 26, north-central Ecuador: eruption of Mt. Cotopaxi caused severe mudflows that wiped out surrounding cities and valleys; 1,000 deaths.
1883
Aug. 26–28, Netherlands Indies (Krakatau, Indonesia): eruption of Krakatau; violent explosions destroyed two-thirds of island, leaving an estimated 36,000 dead. Sea waves occurred as far away as Cape Horn and possibly England.
1886
Aug. 31, Charleston, S.C.: 60 people killed and extensive damage to city. Earthquake's magnitude was 7.7 on the Richter scale.
1902
May 7, St. Vincent, West Indies: Soufrière volcano erupted, devastating one-third of the island and killing some 1,680 people.
May 8, Martinique, West Indies: Mt. Pelée erupted and wiped out city of St. Pierre; 40,000 dead.
1906
April 18, San Francisco: earthquake accompanied by fire razed more than 4 sq mi; more than 500 dead or missing.
1908
Dec. 28, Messina, Sicily: city totally destroyed by earthquake. Death toll 70,000–100,000 in Sicily and southern Italy.
1915
Jan. 13, Avezzano, Italy: earthquake left 29,980 dead.
1920
Dec. 16, Gansu province, China: magnitude 8.6 earthquake killed 200,000 in northwest China.
1923
Sept. 1, Japan: magnitude 8.3 earthquake destroyed one third of Tokyo and most of Yokohama. More than 140,000 killed.
1927
May 22, nr. Xining, China: magnitude 8.3 earthquake claimed approximately 200,000 victims.
1932
Dec. 25, Gansu, China: magnitude 7.6 earthquake killed approximately 70,000.
1933
March 10, Long Beach, Calif.: 117 left dead by earthquake.
1935
May 30, Pakistan: earthquake at Quetta killed 30,000–60,000.
1939
Jan. 24, Chile: earthquake razed 50,000 sq mi; about 30,000 killed.
Dec. 27, northern Turkey: severe quakes destroyed city of Erzingan; about 100,000 casualties.
1950
Aug. 15, India: earthquake affected 30,000 sq mi in Assam; 20,000–30,000 believed killed.
1960
Feb. 29, Agadir, Morocco: 10,000–12,000 dead as earthquake set off tidal wave and fire, destroying most of city.
May 22, Chile: strongest earthquake ever recorded (9.5 magnitude) struck near the coast, killing more than 2,000, wounding 3,000.
1964
March 281, Alaska: strongest earthquake ever to strike North America (9.2 magnitude) hit 80 mi east of Anchorage; followed by seismic wave 50 ft high that traveled 8,445 mi at 450 mph; 117 killed.
1970
Jan. 5, Yunnan province, China: magnitude 7.7 quake killed 15,621.
May 31, Peru: earthquake left more than 50,000 dead, 17,000 missing.
1972
Dec. 22, Managua, Nicaragua: earthquake devastated city, leaving up to 6,000 dead.
1976
Feb. 4, Guatemala: quake left over 23,000 dead.
July 28, Tangshan, China: worst earthquake to hit China in 20th century; devastated 20 sq mi of city, leaving 242,000 dead (official). Estimated death toll as high as 655,000.
Aug. 17, Mindanao, Philippines: earthquake and tidal wave left up to 8,000 dead or missing.
1978
Sept. 16, Tabas, Iran: earthquake destroyed city in eastern Iran, leaving 25,000 dead.
1985
Sept. 19–20, Mexico: magnitude 8.1 earthquake devastated part of Mexico City and three coastal states; estimated 25,000 killed.
Nov. 14–16, Colombia: eruption of Nevada del Ruiz, 85 mi northwest of Bogotá. Mudslides buried most of the town of Armero and devastated Chinchiná; estimated 25,000 killed.
1988
Dec. 7, Armenia: earthquake measuring 6.9 in magnitude killed nearly 25,000, injured 15,000, and left at least 400,000 homeless.
1989
Oct. 17, San Francisco Bay area: earthquake measuring 7.1 in magnitude killed 67 and injured over 3,000. Over 100,000 buildings damaged or destroyed. Damage cost city billions of dollars.
1990
June 21, northwest Iran: earthquake measuring 7.7 in magnitude destroyed cities and villages in Caspian Sea area. At least 50,000 dead, over 60,000 injured, and 400,000 homeless.
July 16, northern Philippines: magnitude 7.7 quake killed nearly 2,000.
1991
July 15, Luzon Island, Philippines: eruption of Mt. Pinatubo buried over 300 sq mi under volcanic ash and resulted in more than 800 deaths.
1993
Aug. 8, Guam: earthquake measuring 8.1 in magnitude caused severe damage to many structures but no fatalities. Damages were estimated at nearly $300 million.
1994
Jan. 17, San Fernando Valley, Calif.: earthquake measuring 6.6 in magnitude killed 61 and injured over 8,000. Damage estimated at $13–20 billion.
1995
Jan. 17, Osaka, Kyoto, and Kobe, Japan: 5,100 killed and 26,800 injured; estimated damage $100 billion. Magnitude: 7.2.
1997
May 12, northeast Iran: severe earthquake measuring 7.1 in magnitude left more than 1,500 people dead and at least 4,460 injured.
June–Sept., southern Montserrat: ongoing eruption of Soufrière Hills volcano since July 1995; killed 20 people in major eruption on June 25, 1997, rendered southern two-thirds of Montserrat uninhabitable, and forced some 8,000 of the island's 12,000 residents to abandon the island.
1998
May 30, northern Afghanistan: magnitude 7.1 earthquake and aftershocks killed an estimated 5,000 and injured at least 1,500. A quake on Feb. 4 in same area had killed about 2,300.
1999
Jan. 25, Armenia, Colombia: 1,185 dead and more than 4,000 injured in magnitude 6.2 earthquake. More than 200,000 left homeless.
Aug. 17, northwest Turkey: magnitude 7.4 quake centered near Izmit killed over 17,000 and injured about 44,000. Damage estimated at $8.5 billion. Another severe 7.2 temblor killed more than 700 in Ducze and nearby towns in Nov.
Sept. 21, central Taiwan: severe 7.7 earthquake and aftershocks killed 2,295 and injured 8,729.
2001
Jan. 13, El Salvador: magnitude 7.7 earthquake set off some 185 landslides across El Salvador; at least 850 died and nearly 100,000 houses were destroyed.
Jan. 26, Bhuj, India: magnitude 7.7 earthquake rocked western Indian state of Gujarat, killing more than 20,000 people and leaving 600,000 homeless.
2002
March 25, northeast Afghanistan: series of earthquakes—the largest measuring 6.1 in magnitude—rattled an area 100 mi north of Kabul. Estimated 1,000 people killed and 7,000 families homeless. The city of Nahrin, a densely populated district capital, was completely razed.
2003
May 21, Northern Algeria: magnitude 6.8 earthquake caused the collapse of numerous buildings, killed at least 2,266 people, and injured 10,000. The epicenter was 40 mi east of Algiers, the capital city.
Dec. 26, Bam, Iran: magnitude 6.6 earthquake devastated the ancient historic city of Bam in southeast Iran, killed more than 30,000 people, injured 30,000, and left 75,000 homeless, as mud-brick buildings collapsed.

2004
Feb. 5 UT, Papua, Indonesian A 7.0 magnitude earthquake killed 31 people (Feb. 6, local time).
Feb. 24, northern Morocco: A 6.4 magnitude earthquake in northern Morocco near the coastal city of al Hoceima killed 628 people and left 15,000 homeless.
March 8, Antalaha, Madagascar : Cyclone Gafilo with winds of 160 mph and heavy rains left hundreds of thousands homeless and killed 295 people. More than 100 were on a ferry that sank off the island of Comoros.
May 28, Iran: A 6.3 magnitude earthquake in Northern Iran killed 35 people.
June, July, and Aug., South Asia: The worst monsoon flooding in fifteen years in India, Nepal, and Bangladesh left up to 5 million homeless, killed more than 1800 people with at least 600 in Bangladesh, and destroyed much of the infrastructure. Many people died from drinking polluted water. Hundreds of people in South Asia die every year from the flooding and landslides caused by the monsoon rains.
Oct. 20, Japan: Typhoon Tokage, the deadliest typhoon to hit Japan in more than two decades, killed at least 80 people as heavy rains flooded tens of thousands of houses and triggered numerous landslides. The typhoon produced a record (since 1970) 80 ft (24 m) high wave, eight-stories high. A record ten typhoons have struck Japan this season, killing more than 100 people, and causing damages estimated at $6.7 billion.
Oct. 23, Niigata, Japan: A 6.6 magnitude earthquake, the deadliest in more than a decade, hit Japan, killing 40, injuring more than 3,100, and destroying more than 6,000 buildings. A series of quakes triggered more than 1,000 landslides, derailed a high-speed train, disrupted power, and damaged many roads in the area. Communications to the area were cut off leaving many without food and supplies. Tens of thousands of people were evacuated to shelters.
Nov. 7, southern Philippines: Southern Philippines hit by tropical storm Lingling experienced flash floods and landslides that killed at least 115. Nov. 11, Kepulauan Alor, Indonesia: A 7.5 earthquake, the largest in 2004, killed 28 people.
Nov. 22–26, Philippines and Vietnam: Tropical storm Muifa sank several boats and pounded the Philippine coast, killing at least 60. In Vietnam, torrential rains from Muifa killed at least 45 people, flooded more than 170,000 houses, and blocked roads, hampering rescue efforts and the delivery of relief supplies. Flooding also threatened the World Heritage site of Hoi An in Vietnam.
Nov. 26, West Papua province, Indonesia: A magnitude 7.1 earthquake destroyed 328 buildings and killed at least 32.
Nov. 29, eastern coast and Quezon province, Philippines: Flash floods and landslides from Typhoon Winnie killed more than 500 people and hundreds are still missing. Because of the many landslides, many areas were inaccessible to rescue and clean-up crews. The landslides were caused by the deforestation from both illegal and legal logging.
Dec. 2–3, eastern coast and Luzon, Philippines: Typhoon Nanmadol, a major storm, hit an area already devastated by two previous torrential storms that struck the northeastern region of the Philippines in the last two weeks. More than 1800 people died in storm related deaths from the three storms since November. It was the worst storm season for the Philippines in 13 years. Much of the devastation is due to massive landslides resulting from the deforestation by both legal and illegal logging. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has canceled all logging permits and security forces are cracking down on illegal logging.

And now 70,000+ dead?


It makes you think that Northern Europe is the safest place to live.....

BUT...

Despite 'Global Warming' we are apparently well overdue another mini 'Ice Age'!