Papua new guinea 1998 tsunami. The biggest tsunamis

The largest tsunamis

Sometimes nature plays cruel jokes and destroys what it once created. One of the most dangerous phenomena is a tsunami. A huge wave resulting from an earthquake can swallow everything in its path. But some tsunamis will be remembered by the whole world for a long time, and they can safely be called the most destructive in history.

The ten most destructive tsunamis:

1. The strongest tsunami in 2006 occurred on the island of Java. The epicenter of the earthquake that triggered the disaster was in the Indian Ocean. And approximately a 40-kilometer stretch of the island's coastline was completely destroyed. The waves demolished telephone lines, buildings, and houses along their path. And since the tremors began in the evening, when many tourists were swimming in the ocean, the number of victims became simply enormous. According to some reports, about 650 people died, and 120 thousand were declared missing. About 47 thousand residents of Java lost their homes. And since new tremors shook the coast for several hours, the search and rescue of victims became much more difficult. And this tsunami is recognized as the most destructive and cruelest in the history of the island.
2. In 1998, a large tsunami hit the shores of Papua New Guinea. Provoked the appearance of waves, the height of which in some places reached 15 meters, powerful earthquake, which began on the northwestern coast of the country. Moreover, the tremors came from the most isolated part of the coastline and led to a huge underwater landslide. There were only two shocks, but even 1100 kilometers from the epicenter they were clearly felt. In remote regions, sea levels have risen by five centimeters, which is a very significant increase. And although the inhabitants of this region are accustomed to natural disasters, this tsunami was still the most powerful in the history of the country. It destroyed thousands of houses and claimed the lives of about 2,000 people, so it is still remembered today and is unlikely to ever be forgotten.
3. In 1960, on May 22, the most powerful earthquake in the entire history of mankind was recorded, the magnitude of which was as much as 9.5. And the Pacific Ocean, of course, responded with a series of tsunamis that hit coastal areas. In some places the wave height reached 25 meters. But not only the Chilean coast suffered from the destructive power of the water. About 15 hours after the first shocks, the waves reached the Hawaiian shores. And after another seven hours they reached the coast of Japan. In total, about 6 thousand people died then. Many were left homeless, as the water rushed at breakneck speed and spared no one or anything.
4. In 1952, a powerful earthquake occurred in Severo-Kurilsk at approximately five in the morning, the magnitude of which, according to various sources, ranged from 8.3 to 9 points. And it entailed a tsunami, consisting of three waves, the height of which reached 18 meters. They completely wiped out an entire city and claimed the lives of 2,336 people. And the cause of this natural disaster was strong tremors that occurred in the Pacific Ocean, about 130 kilometers from Kamchatka. Moreover, the first wave hit the territory an hour after the earthquake. And many residents noticed her in time and managed to retreat to higher ground. But then everyone returned to their homes, believing that the worst was over. And this is what destroyed everyone, because after some time the second wave came, which destroyed almost all the houses and killed the local residents. Then there was a third wave, but it was weak, and the first two had already destroyed everything. And yet many were saved and evacuated to Sakhalin. And later the city began to be built anew.
5. A megatsunami occurred in 1958 in Lituya Bay, Alaska. Because of it, only five people died, but the wave was the highest in the entire history of mankind, because its height was about 500 meters! And the cause of this disaster was an earthquake that occurred 20 kilometers from the bay. After the tremors, which were recognized as the strongest in the history of the state, a huge landslide descended from the mountain into the bay, which provoked waves. They severely damaged many infrastructure facilities: oil pipelines, docks, bridges, and so on. Later, scientists explored a subglacial lake located near the Lituya glacier. It turned out that it dropped more than 30 meters. But still, the flow of water from this reservoir could not provoke such powerful tremors. So the causes of the earthquake and tsunami are still unknown.
6. The tsunami that occurred in 2004 in the Indian Ocean can also be included in the top 10 global disasters. It all started with an earthquake with a magnitude of about 9.3 on the Richter scale, which was recorded at approximately 8 a.m. local time. After it, several countries at once (Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand and part of India) were covered with huge waves that destroyed literally everything in their path. It’s sad that this event happened on December 26, that is, after Catholic Christmas. And therefore, many tourists who decided to celebrate this event at resorts never returned home. The total number of victims has not yet been calculated; according to some sources, it ranges from 240 to 300 thousand people. The epicenter of the tremors was in the Indian Ocean, and just 15 minutes after them, waves up to thirty meters high formed. They reached the coast seven hours later. Moreover, no one expected the disaster, and it took many by surprise and destroyed them.
7. A powerful tsunami hit Japan in 2011. On March 11, an earthquake began near the eastern coast of Honshu Island, the magnitude of which was more than 9 points. The tremors triggered a huge tsunami that affected the northern islands of the Japanese archipelago. According to official data, the total number of deaths due to the earthquake and tsunami was about 15,870 people. And 2,846 people are still missing. The epicenter of the activity was located approximately 130 kilometers from the city of Sendai, located on the island of Honshu. And after the main and strongest shock, the so-called aftershock began, which led to more than 400 shocks. Moreover, a series of tsunamis spread across almost the entire Pacific Ocean, as a result of which mass evacuation was announced in some coastal countries, which saved millions of people.
8. A serious tsunami occurred in 2010 in Chile. And although five people died directly from the wave itself, the destruction was still catastrophic. And if you consider that not only the ocean, but also the earth shook, then you can understand that the damage from this natural disaster was simply colossal. About twenty minutes after the first shock, a wave hit the coast. And although its height was only about 2-3 meters, this did not stop it from destroying most of the territory, thanks to its enormous speed. As a result, two million residents were left homeless. After the earthquake, about 800 people died and 1,200 were missing. The tsunami itself affected 11 cities in Chile, as well as the coastlines of several other countries: New Zealand, Australia, Japan and even Russia.
9. Early in the morning of August 16, 1976, the small Philippine island of Mindanao was struck by a strong earthquake, the magnitude of which was about 8.0. And although it was not the strongest, it still went down in the history of the country as the most destructive and tragic. The tremors triggered a tsunami that literally crashed into the coastline and caught tourists and local residents by surprise. As a result, about 5,000 people died and another 2.2 thousand went missing. The number of injured included 9,500 people, and approximately 95,000 lost their homes. Many cities in the Philippines were literally wiped off the face of the earth.
10. In 1993, an earthquake occurred about 80 miles from Hokkaido, which triggered a powerful tsunami. And although the Japanese authorities, taught by many years of bitter experience, reacted very quickly and clearly, announcing the possibility of a tsunami and starting evacuation, the island of Okushiri turned out to be isolated, so that literally a few minutes after the first tremors it was covered by huge 30-meter waves. Of the 250 local residents, 197 died.

The largest tsunami, like any other tsunami, is the formation of a large wave, the impact of which is caused by a strong earthquake. The mass of water becomes so crushing that it is capable of destroying even coastal houses, and sometimes even demolishing entire villages and towns.

As a rule, the speed of tsunami waves during the formation process exceeds several times the speed of the wind itself that created the wave. In this material we will talk about the process of the appearance of large waves in the seas and oceans, about their crushing energy, and we will also tell you where the largest tsunamis in the world were observed. For convenience, we have compiled a top list of the most devastating tsunamis in history.

Top largest tsunamis in the world

10. Tsunami on the coast of Japan (2004)

This tsunami was caused by two strong earthquakes that occurred 130 km from the coast of Kochi and 110 km from the coast of the Kii Peninsula. The earthquake magnitudes were 7.3 and 6.8, respectively. In this case, the tsunami wave caused was one meter in length. As a result of the earthquake and tsunami, dozens of people were injured.

9. Tsunami in the Solomon Islands (2007)

This tsunami was caused by a powerful earthquake with a total magnitude of 8, which occurred in the southern waters of the Pacific Ocean. In New Guinea, tsunami waves reached more than one meter in height. The tsunami killed 52 people.

8. Tsunami that occurred in Concepción, Chile (2010)

Tremors with a magnitude of 8.8 triggered a powerful tsunami 115 kilometers north of central Chile, near the city of Concepción. The wave height in this case reached three meters. On that day, February 27, 2010, the tsunami killed more than a hundred people.

7. Tsunami in Papua New Guinea (1998)

This powerful tsunami on the northwestern coast of New Guinea was caused by a powerful landslide, which was triggered by a magnitude 7 earthquake. The height of the tsunami wave reached three meters. The earthquake, landslide and tsunami killed 2 thousand people. This is considered one of the biggest tragedies due to a natural disaster in the 90s of the last century.

6. Tsunami in Alaska, USA (1957)

The tsunami, caused by an earthquake with an almost maximum amplitude of 9.1 points, back in 1957, in Alaska, consisted of two huge waves, 15 and 8 meters high, respectively. As a result of these cataclysms, the Vsevidov volcano, located on the island of Umnak, awakened, the activity of which had not been observed for 200 years. The disaster claimed the lives of more than 300 people.

5. Tsunami in Severo-Kurilsk, USSR (1952)

This tsunami was caused by the most powerful earthquake on the Kamchatka coast, with a magnitude of 9. Three crushing waves with a height of 15 to 18 meters hit the city of Severo-Kurilsk at once, which completely destroyed the entire city and claimed the lives of almost 3 thousand people. This is one of the most terrible disasters in the history of the USSR.

4. Tsunami on the islands of Izu and Miyake, eastern Japan (2005)

A moderate earthquake of magnitude 6.8 caused waves of unprecedented height (50 meters) in eastern Japan. Fortunately, as a result of such a powerful tsunami, not a single person was injured on the islands. All thanks to timely warning. The entire population was evacuated from potentially dangerous areas.

3. Tsunami of Lituya Bay, southwest Alaska, USA (1958)

This tsunami was caused by an earthquake that triggered a massive landslide that came down from Mount Lituya, located directly above the bay just north of the bay, right on the Fairweather Fault. The landslide brought down about 300 cubic million of earth, rock fragments and ice, causing a wave 53 meters high and traveling at 160 km/h.

2. The strongest tsunami in Alaska, USA (1964)

In 1964, the strongest earthquake in history occurred in Alaska with a total magnitude of 9.2. The earthquake occurred in Prince William Sound and caused several dozen powerful waves. The length of the largest wave was 67 meters. The disaster claimed the lives of 150 people.

1. Tsunami that occurred in Southeast Asia (2004)

The largest tsunami in the world in history became a real nightmare for three countries in Southeast Asia. The earthquake with a magnitude of 9.3 caused a series of continuous waves, the height of which reached up to 90 meters. The tsunami killed 180 thousand people in Indonesia, another 39 thousand in Sri Lanka and 5 thousand in Thailand. The total number of deaths was almost 240 thousand people. Unprecedented damage was caused to the infrastructure of south-eastern countries.

Videos of its destruction are still terrifying, 11 years later:

Interesting facts: the process of creating a tsunami

The process of the emergence of large and crushing waves is mainly accompanied by strong underground and underwater tremors, the vibrations of which cause a tsunami. But tsunamis often occur due to strong winds, which are capable of moving water layers at very high speeds. Waves can accelerate to several tens of kilometers per hour and be more than a hundred meters in length. Such waves, as a rule, can travel vast distances across the sea and ocean, which causes danger. But in most cases kinetic energy Such waves die out very quickly due to insufficient wind speed.

A tsunami is a giant wave generated by seismic activity and rapidly moving across the surface of the water. These waves have caused a lot of harm to people throughout history, especially for residents of island countries.

More about tsunamis

The greatest geological activity, contributing to the emergence of the strongest waves, is observed in the waters of the Pacific Ocean. Over the last thousand years there have been at least a thousand of them, that is, on average one tsunami per year. In other oceans the statistics are much more modest. The vast majority of tsunamis are caused by a sudden drop or rise of the ocean floor. However, not every such event is fraught with a giant wave; there are other factors, for example, the depth of the source.

In addition to destruction and loss of life, waves can cause other harm. In particular, this is erosion and severe salinization of coastal land areas. Usually, the approaching catastrophe is first felt by birds and animals, which may behave unusually during this period. Within a few hours or even days, they try to escape away from the shore, and pets try in every possible way to make their owners understand this. It's connected with electromagnetic field. Animals are much more than a person sensitive to it, although some people experience severe headaches.

The moored ships have no chance of salvation

Having noticed the approaching tsunami, you need to take documents with you, gather children and other helpless relatives and go away from the dangerous place, trying to avoid bodies of water - rivers, canals, reservoirs, as well as fragile buildings like bridges or towers. What was the largest tsunami in the world? Let us list the most famous cases.

July 1958, Alaska

On a summer day, a terrible natural disaster occurred in Lituya Bay. The bay protrudes into the land for about 11 kilometers, and, according to geologists, giant waves several hundred meters high have arisen here at least four times over the last hundred years. And in 1958, a powerful earthquake occurred in the northern part of the bay, from which houses collapsed, the coast collapsed, and many cracks formed. At the same time, a landslide that came down from the mountain swept across the bay and caused a wave of unprecedented height - 524 meters, which moved at a speed of 160 km/h.

The first to be affected were the people in the ships anchored in the bay. According to the stories, at first they were thrown out of their beds by a strong push. Having run out onto the deck, they could not immediately believe their eyes: the sea reared up, and even a powerful glacier, previously located far to the north, was carried along the sea and collapsed the bays into the water. It was like a nightmare. The water completely engulfed Cenotaph Island, spread over its highest point and, with its entire mass, crashed into the bay, causing another impressive wave. On the mountain slopes to the north, the largest tsunami in history tore away forests up to 600 meters in height.

The tsunami easily swept over the entire sandbank and tore off the forest cover from the nearby mountain slope

One of the longboats was picked up by the wave and thrown over the shallows into the ocean waters. The fishermen could see the trees below them. The ship crashed against rocks and trees, but the fishermen managed to survive and were later rescued. Another ship, by luck, remained in place, withstanding the tsunami, but the third sank; people from it are considered missing. Half an hour later, the surface of the water was completely calm, only strewn with uprooted trees, slowly floating towards the exit from the bay.

December 2004, Indian Ocean

On December 26, in the early morning, a powerful earthquake occurred near the island of Sumatra, part of Indonesia. Its power reached nine points. At the same time, a strong displacement of two tectonic plates occurred. In just an hour, 1,200 kilometers of rock moved fifteen meters, and with them the small islands located in the area. It was in connection with this displacement that the tsunami arose. Devastating consequences awaited the popular Thai resort of Phuket, although its residents and vacationers practically did not feel the initial tremors or did not pay attention to them.

What happened next was a complete surprise for the defenseless city. Warnings about the danger had not yet come from Indonesia, so people found themselves face to face with a huge tsunami completely unprepared. Everyone was minding their own business, when suddenly there was a sharp and strong low tide, leaving behind a lot of shells and other seafood. Residents were delighted with this catch, and tourists were delighted with the free souvenirs.

But very soon waves 30 meters high rolled up to the shore, sweeping away everything in their path. People desperately tried to escape, but the tsunami instantly swallowed many of them. Light bungalows are definitely lighter than houses of cards. Having retreated, the water left behind hundreds of human bodies and debris of buildings.

Victims terrible disaster became almost 230,000 people

On March 11, northeastern Japan was hit by a powerful earthquake measuring 9.0. According to scientists, an earthquake of this magnitude occurs once every six hundred years. It all started from a point 373 km from Tokyo and at a depth of 24,000 meters. The result of the shake-up was a devastating tsunami that almost completely covered 23 Japanese regions (in total, more than 62 settlements).

Due to a large tsunami, an accident occurred at the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant, which had no protection from the waves. Water flooded the diesel generators responsible for the cooling system.

Thus, the power units overheated to a critical state, and a reaction began with a powerful release of hydrogen. This resulted in several explosions that destroyed buildings. IN environment a mass erupted radioactive substances.

The number of people killed in the disaster exceeded 20,000, and monetary damages exceeded $215 million. Six months after the incident, radiation continued to be found in food products, not only in the Fukushima area, but also far from it, although the volume of emissions was approximately 5 times less than Chernobyl.

The maximum wave height was 40 meters, which greatly exceeded the preliminary calculations of scientists

The largest earthquake in the history of mankind occurred in Chile on May 22 and resulted in three huge tsunamis. 5,000 people died, and several fishing villages were completely wiped off the face of the Earth. The waves also reached the coasts of the USA and Japan, from which these countries also suffered high losses. The earthquake occurred the day before, on May 21, and its continuation the next day had a huge force of 9.5 points and lasted at least ten minutes.

The resulting high wave caused irreparable damage - destruction, casualties, trees uprooted. It is not possible to provide exact numbers; all data is very approximate, since it was not possible to collect reliable statistics, except for eyewitness accounts. Some, for example, believe that there were not 5 thousand dead, but 10 thousand. One way or another, the disaster is simply stunning.

From the air, you can see the outlines of farms and villages underwater, stretching 100 kilometers from the former coastline

About ten thousand hectares of coastal lands were flooded, they are under water to this day. It was assumed that this was due to the fact that as a result of the shift of tectonic plates, sea levels rose. But it turned out that, on the contrary, the surface of the earth became lower.

A 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit the Philippines on August 16. A huge tsunami covered 700 kilometers of coastal territory, killing 5 thousand people and taking away another 2200. 9.5 thousand were injured, and almost one hundred thousand lost their homes.

The worst natural disaster in the history of the state completely destroyed several cities to the ground

On July 17, the northwestern part of the state was shaken by earthquakes with a magnitude of 7. For this reason, in the most remote part of the coast, a deadly wave rose high, the height of which reached 15 meters. More than 2 thousand people fell under it, and several thousand more were left homeless. Before the terrible tragedy, there was a small and very beautiful lagoon there, but due to the earthquake it was blocked by an underwater landslide. There have never been earthquakes of this magnitude in this area before, although smaller ones occur regularly.

As a result of the 1998 tragedy, a completely new large lagoon was formed

Another major tsunami also occurred in Alaska, just six years after the devastating 1958 wave. It all started with an earthquake measuring more than nine points. Already 120-150 people have died because of it. The resulting wave, almost 70 meters high, demolished three villages, taking 107 people with it. The wave then swept along the west coast of the United States, destroying several business offices in downtown Anchorage, as well as fish and crab processing plants on Kodiak Island. The ruins looked as if they had been bombed.

Then the tsunami moved to the city of Crescent City. Residents were warned and managed to evacuate, but later, deciding that there was no more danger, they returned to their homes. This was a big mistake. Strong waves flooded the streets of the city, overturning cars and filling all passages with debris from buildings. The events were truly terrible: the pier was practically twisted into a spiral, some houses moved from place to place.

Total damage was estimated at $400 million, and the President issued an executive order to reconstruct Alaska after the tragedy.

Powerful waves, as you can see, can be extremely dangerous. Like other natural disasters, terrible tsunamis often lead to devastating consequences and take lives. The only reassuring thing is that the residents of Russia do not have to worry in this regard; our regions are not too susceptible to such a disaster, except for certain regions, for example, the island of Sakhalin.

1) Tsunami in South-East Asia – 26.12.2004
Giant waves formed by a powerful underwater earthquake with a magnitude of 9.3 on the Richter scale. Waves of gigantic height hit the coasts of several countries in Southeast Asia at different times and reached the shores of even West Africa. World system The warning did not save us from the destructive wave, despite the fact that American satellites detected the beginning of the tsunami 15 minutes after the earthquake. American meteorologists were unable to report the tragedy that claimed the lives of approximately 300 thousand people. American politicians took the rap for them, delivering humanitarian aid and declaring that helping the affected countries was in the political interests of the United States.

2) Alaska, USA – 03/28/1964
On March 28, 1964, at 5:30 p.m., an earthquake with a magnitude of 9.2 Richter occurred in Prince William Sound. It was the most powerful earthquake in Alaska - it has been compared to an explosion equivalent to 12,000 atomic bombs! The disaster led to the death of 122 people, most of them missing - most likely, they were washed away by water. The tsunami waves reached 67 meters - this is the maximum recorded height.
On “Blessed Easter Friday,” a high wave wiped out 3 Alaskan villages, killing 107 people. 4 people died in Oregon and 11 people in California. This happened while a giant wave was passing along the West Coast of the United States. The city of Valdez was completely destroyed, most of the office and business buildings in the center of Anchorage were completely destroyed. Fish and crab processing plants on Kodiak Island looked as if they had been hit by a series of explosions.

3) Lituya Bay, (southwest Alaska, USA) – 07/9/1958
The Fairweather Fault earthquake triggered a massive landslide from the mountainside above Lituya Bay (more than three hundred million cubic meters of rock, soil and ice). This gigantic mass fell into the waters of the northern part of the bay and caused a giant wave 52.4 meters high, traveling at a speed of 160 km/h.

4) Izu and Miyake Islands (eastern Japan) – 01/09/2005
In 2005, an earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale occurred on the eastern shores of Japan. Japan's meteorological services reported the approach of a tsunami about 10 minutes after the first underwater tremors.
After the alarm sounded, rescue services evacuated residents of the Izu Islands from the coast to safer places, with the exception of special observers. It took about 30 minutes for the wave to reach Miyake Island. According to experts, such a fast wave, even half a meter high, could be a threat to people.

5) Severo-Kurilsk (USSR) – 11/5/1952
In the fall of 1952, the eastern coast of Kamchatka, the islands of Paramushir and Shumshu, found themselves on the path of a raging disaster. The 1952 tsunami in Severno-Kurilsk is recognized as one of the five largest in the history of the 20th century.
Severo-Kurilsk was completely destroyed. The Kuril and Kamchatka villages of Levashovo, Utesny, Pribrezhny, Reefovy, Kamenisty, Galkino, Podgorny, Okeansky, Major Van, Shelekhovo, Baykovo, Savushkino, Kozyrevsky, Babushkino were razed to the ground...
That autumn of 1952, the country suspected nothing. The Soviet press did not receive information about the tsunami in the Kuril Islands, or about the hundreds and thousands of dead and missing.
6) Alaska, (USA) – 03/9/1957
Another terrible tsunami caused by an earthquake in Alaska was on March 9, 1957 on the Andrean Islands. The earthquake reached 9.1 on the Richter scale. The shocks generated two whole tsunamis, the approximate wave heights reached 15 and 8 meters, respectively. The disaster claimed the lives of 300 people. The earthquake triggered the eruption of the Vsevidov volcano on the island of Umnak, which had been dormant for more than 200 years.
The consequences of the tremors were also felt on the island of Andrianova Spit, where buildings were damaged, two bridges were destroyed, and roads were cracked. The subsequent tsunami caused more global destruction; it reached the Hawaiian Islands, the coasts of California, Japan and Chile. In Hawaii, two villages were completely wiped off the face of the earth, causing property damage of $5 million.

7) Papua New Guinea – 07/17/1998
On the evening of July 17, an earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale occurred in Papua New Guinea. The epicenter was located 640 km from the coast in the open ocean, just opposite the small town of Aitape. The tremors were practically not felt on land. Several people woke up, but hardly paid much attention. After 15-20 minutes, the first of 3 giant waves hit the island.
Retreating, the waves dragged people, cars and buildings along with them. The weak houses could not withstand the pressure of the waves; they were also dragged into the ocean. 2200 people died.

8) Concepcion Chile – 02/27/2010
An earthquake with a magnitude of 8.8 on the Richter scale was recorded 115 kilometers north of the city of Concepcion, located close to the center. The earthquake caused great destruction. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued information that the tremors caused a tsunami. Experts clarified that the wave height reached three meters. The number of victims reaches 300 people.

9) Solomon Islands (archipelago) – 04/2/2007
On April 2, 2007, at 7 a.m. local time, an earthquake measuring 6.9 on the Richter scale occurred in the South Pacific Ocean. The tremors were recorded near the Solomon Islands at a depth of ten kilometers.
A number of countries in the South Pacific have issued tsunami warnings. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center announced the possibility of waves near the Solomon Islands and the nearby island of New Guinea. A low threat level was declared for other states in the South Pacific. There was no evacuation.

10) Coast of Japan – 09/06/2004
110 km from the coastal part of the Kii Peninsula and 130 km from the coast of Kochi Prefecture, two fairly strong earthquakes struck, with a power of about 6.8 and 7.3 on the Richter scale, which resulted in a tsunami. The waves reached a meter in height. Several dozen people became victims of the water disaster.

The worst earthquake and tsunami in the last decade occurred in Japan in 2011 ().