Most Damaging Tsunamis

Lisbon Earthquake-Portugal

Nov 1, 1755

The Lisbon earthquake had a magnitude of 9.0 and a death toll of approximately 20,000 people. The earthquake happened on all saints day. Many people were in church when it happened.

Krakatoa Eruption-Java,Sumatra

Aug 26, 1884

The Eruption killed about 36,000 people. The eruption made the loudest sound ever recorded. The temperature in the northern hemisphere dropped.

Aleutian Earthquake-Alaska

Apr 1, 1946

It had a magnitude of 8.1 and a death toll of 160. The tsunami destroyed a newly built coast guard lighthouse. There was 26 million dollars in damage after the event.

Great Chilean Earthquake-Chile

May 23, 1960

The earthquake had a magnitude of 9.5 but only killed around 61 people. This was the largest recorded earthquake of the 20th century. It is considered a megathrust earthquake.

Good Friday Earthquake-Alaska

Mar 27, 1964

This earthquake had a magnitude of 9.2 and a death toll close to 130. This was the largest recorded earthquake in north america. It lasted 5 minutes.

Hokkaido Earthquake-Japan

Jun 12, 1993

The earthquake had a magnitude of 7.8 but shifted Japans main island Honshu east ward 8 feet. 120 people died from the event. The earthquake sent infrasound to space that was detected by satellite.

Papua New Guinea Quake-Papua New Guinea

Jun 17, 1998

The magnitude of the earthquake was 7.1 and killed 2,100. The earthquake occurred between the Australia and Pacific tectonic plates. The tsunami was triggered by an under water landslide.

Sumatra Earthquake-Indonesia

Dec 26, 2004

The earthquake had a magnitude of 9.1 and killed 230,000 people. The earthquake lasted 10 minutes. the tsunami traveled 3,000 miles.

Samoa Earthquake-Samoan Islands

Sep 29, 2009

the magnitude of this earthquake was 8.1 and killed around 200 people. This was the largest earthquake of 2009. The tsunami waves were said to be 46 feet at its highest.

Chile Earthquake-Chile

Feb 27, 2010

This earthquake killed around 700 people and had a magnitude of 8.8. This was also the biggest earthquake to hit chile in 50 years. It happened 325km south west of capital

Tohoku Earthquake-Japan

Mar 11, 2011

The quake had a magnitude of 9.1 and killed about 20,000 people. This was the biggest earthquake to hit japan. It had shifted earths axis at least 10 centimeters.