List of tsunamis in Europe

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The following is a list of notable tsunamis in Europe.

Contents

The aftermath of the Messina earthquake and tsunami on December 28, 1908 Messina earthquake.jpg
The aftermath of the Messina earthquake and tsunami on December 28, 1908

Causes

Most of the tsunamis that have occurred within Europe have happened in the Mediterranean Sea because in the Mediterranean Sea there are earthquakes, submarine landslide and volcanoes. Most of the earthquakes occur on the Eurasian plate but earthquakes and submarine landslide also occur in western Europe like France, Norway and the United Kingdom which have been struck by tsunamis.

Tsunamis

DateCountryDeadCauseNotes
~6225-6170 BC Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Scotland, United Kingdom UnknownUnderwater landslide Storegga Slide, Norway [1]
6000 BC Flag of Italy.svg Sicily, Italy UnknownVolcanic eruption
3500 BC Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Northern Isles ManyTsunamiUnclear [1]
1410 BC Flag of Greece.svg Santorini, Greece UnknownVolcanic eruption [2]
426 BC Flag of Greece.svg Gulf of Euboea, Greece UnknownEarthquake 426 BC Malian Gulf tsunami [2]
373 BC Flag of Greece.svg Helike, Greece UnknownEarthquakeAn earthquake and a tsunami destroyed the prosperous Greek city Helike, lying 2 km away from the sea. The fate of the city, which remained permanently submerged, was often commented upon by ancient writers and may have inspired Plato when writing his story of Atlantis in Timaeus and Critias. [2]
227 BC Flag of Greece.svg Dodecanese, Greece UnknownEarthquake 226 BC Rhodes earthquake [2]
210 BC Flag of Portugal.svg Gulf of Cádiz, Portugal UnknownEarthquake [3]
79 AD Flag of Italy.svg Gulf of Naples, Italy UnknownVolcanic eruptionA smaller tsunami was witnessed in the Bay of Naples by Pliny the Younger during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. [4]
21 July 365 Flag of Greece.svg Crete, Greece Thousands8.0 earthquake 365 Crete earthquake [2]
7 July 551 Flag of Greece.svg Menidi, Aetolia-Acarnania, Greece UnknownEarthquake [2]
15 August 554 Flag of Greece.svg Kos, Greece UnknownEarthquake [2]
24 October 842 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Channel Islands United Kingdom UnknownEarthquake [5]
1050 Flag of Greece.svg Santorini, Greece UnknownVolcanic eruption [2]
11 November 1099 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Cornwall, United Kingdom,UnknownUnknown [5]
1 October 1134 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Flag of the Netherlands.svg North Sea, United Kingdom, Netherlands UnknownUnknown [6]
4 February 1169 Flag of Italy.svg Strait of Messina, Italy,UnknownEarthquake [4]
11 May 1222 Flag of Cyprus.svg Cyprus UnknownEarthquake [2]
8 August 1303 Flag of Greece.svg Crete, Greece Thousands8.0 earthquake1303 Crete earthquake [2]
25 November 1343 Flag of Italy.svg Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy Loss of lives recorded unknown number.Earthquake [4]
5 December 1456 Flag of Italy.svg Province of Benevento, Italy30,000–70,000Earthquake [4] Largest earthquake to strike Italy.
3 May 1481 Flag of Greece.svg Rhodes, Greece UnknownEarthquake [2]
6 April 1580 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Strait of Dover, United Kingdom 120Earthquake/Underwater landslideThe 5.9 earthquake caused freak waves in the Strait of Dover which were observed in England and France. [5]
30 January 1607 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Bristol Channel, United Kingdom 2,000disputed tsunami caused by earthquake off Ireland
27 March 1638 Flag of Italy.svg Sicily, Italy9,581–30,000Earthquake [4]
6 April 1667 Flag of Croatia.svg Adriatic Sea, Croatia UnknownEarthquakeThe tsunami struck the city of Dubrovnik. [7]
9 October 1680 Flag of Spain.svg Alboran Sea, Spain UnknownUnknown [8]
11 January 1693 Flag of Italy.svg Italy 1000Earthquake [4]
1693 Flag of Iceland.svg Iceland UnknownVolcanic earthquake [9]
21 February 1723 Flag of Greece.svg Lefkada, Greece UnknownEarthquake [2]
20 February 1743 Flag of Italy.svg Apulia, Italy180–300Earthquake [4]
14 May 1748 Flag of Greece.svg Gulf of Patras, Greece UnknownEarthquake [2]
7 July 1757 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Isles of Scilly, United Kingdom UnknownEarthquake [5]
21 January 1760 Flag of Denmark.svg Flag of Germany.svg Baltic Sea, Denmark, Germany UnknownUnderwater landslide [10]
5 September 1767 Flag of Ireland.svg Dublin Republic of Ireland UnknownUnknown [11]
February 5, February 6, February 7, March 1, March 28, 1783 Flag of Italy.svg Calabria, Italy 50,000Earthquakes [4]
1 November 1755 Flag of Portugal.svg Lisbon, Portugal 10,000Earthquake [3]
31 March 1761 Flag of Portugal.svg Lisbon, PortugalUnknownEarthquakeModerate tsunami observed in Cornwall and Barbados.
18 September 1763 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Weymouth, Dorset, United Kingdom UnknownUnknown [5]
2 April 1808 Flag of Italy.svg Coast, Italy UnknownEarthquakeAn earthquake in Italy caused a possible tsunami that was observed in Marseille, France. [4] [12]
23 August 1817 Flag of Greece.svg Gulf of Corinth, Greece UnknownEarthquake [2]
29 December 1820 Flag of Greece.svg Zakynthos, Greece UnknownEarthquake [2]
5 July 1843 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Cornwall, United Kingdom UnknownUnknown [5]
12 October 1856 Flag of Greece.svg Crete, Greece UnknownEarthquake [2]
19 September 1867 Flag of Greece.svg Ionian Sea Greece 12Earthquake [2]
3 April 1881 Flag of Greece.svg Chios, Greece 7,866Earthquake [2]
27 August 1886 Flag of Greece.svg Ionian Sea, Greece UnknownEarthquake [2]
23 February 1887 Flag of France.svg Ligurian Sea, France UnknownEarthquake [4] [12]
14 June 1893 Flag of Albania.svg Adriatic Sea, Albania Unknown7.5 earthquake [13]
31 March 1901 Flag of Bulgaria.svg Black Sea, Bulgaria 07.2 earthquake [14]
16 January 1905 Flag of Norway.svg Loen, Norway 61Landslide [15]
8 September 1905 Flag of Italy.svg Calabria, Italy 557Earthquake [4]
28 December 1908 Flag of Italy.svg Messina, Italy 80,0007.1 earthquake [4]
11 September 1930 Flag of Italy.svg Italy 2Earthquake [4]
26 September 1932 Flag of Greece.svg Ierissos, Greece 491Earthquake 1932 Ierissos earthquake [2]
7 April 1934 Flag of Norway.svg Tafjord Norway 40
Landslide [15]
13 September 1936 Flag of Norway.svg Loen, Norway 74Landslide [15]
September 10, 1953 Flag of Cyprus.svg Paphos, Cyprus 40Earthquake
9 July 1956 Flag of Greece.svg Aegean Islands Greece 3Earthquake [2]
9 July 1956 Flag of Greece.svg Dodecanese Greece 56Earthquake [2]
9 October 1963 Flag of Italy.svg Monte Toc, Italy 1,450Landslide
28 February 1969 Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal 0Earthquake [3]
21 June 1978 Flag of Croatia.svg Vela Luka, Croatia 0Meteorologic [16]
16 October 1979 Flag of France.svg Nice, France 8-23Landslide and underwater landslide [17]
1 January 1980 Flag of Portugal.svg Azores, Portugal 0Earthquake [3]
13 December 1990 Flag of Italy.svg Italy 6Earthquake [4]
30 December 2002 Flag of Italy.svg Stromboli, Italy 0Landslide [4]
21 May 2003 Flag of Spain.svg Balearic islands, Spain 0EarthquakeThe earthquake was off the coast of Algeria. [18] [19]
29 June 2011 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Cornwall, United Kingdom 0Underwater landslide [5] [20] [21] [22]
30 October 2020 Flag of Greece.svg Aegean Islands, Greece 1EarthquakeA magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck off the coast of Turkey, producing a 2.2 meter-high tsunami that would later strike the coast of Turkey, and the Aegean Islands, including Ikaria, Kos, Chios, and Samos. [23] [18]

See also

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The 1293 Kamakura earthquake in Japan occurred at about 06:00 local time on 27 May 1293. It had an estimated magnitude of 7.1–7.5 and triggered a tsunami. The estimated death toll was 23,024. It occurred during the Kamakura period, and the city of Kamakura was seriously damaged.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1944 Tōnankai earthquake</span> Earthquake and tsunami affecting southern Japan

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The 1941 Andaman Islands earthquake struck the Andaman Islands on June 26 with a magnitude of 7.7 to 8.1. Details of this event are poorly known as much of Southeast Asia was in the turmoil of World War II. The quake caused severe damage in the Andaman Islands. The tsunami it triggered was reported along the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India and British Ceylon. There may have been damage and deaths in Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Thailand due to the tsunami.

The 1897 Mindanao earthquakes occurred on September 20, 1897, at 19:06 UTC and September 21, 1897, at 05:12 UTC. The estimated epicentres of the two earthquakes are identical, lying just off the southwestern coast of Mindanao in the Philippines, south of Basilan island. The earthquakes were originally given estimated magnitudes of 8.6 and 8.7 on the surface wave magnitude scale by Charles Richter, but these were revised downwards by Katsuyuki Abe to 7.4 and 7.5 Ms, respectively. Contemporary reports noted that with few exceptions, all the masonry buildings in Zamboanga and Basilan were left in ruins.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1918 Celebes Sea earthquake</span> Earthquake in the Philippines

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The 1941 Hyūga-nada earthquake occurred off the coast of Kyushu, Japan at 19:02 local time on November 19. The earthquake measured 8.0 Mw  and had a depth of 35 km (22 mi). A JMA seismic intensity of 5 was observed in Miyazaki City and Nobeoka City in Miyazaki Prefecture, and Hitoyoshi City in Kumamoto Prefecture. Due to the earthquake, a tsunami with a maximum wave height of 1.2 m was observed in Kyushu and Shikoku. The tsunami washed away many ships. Twenty-seven homes were destroyed and two people were killed. In Miyazaki, Ōita and Kagoshima prefectures, telephone services were disrupted. Subsidence by 8 cm (3.1 in) was recorded at Hyūga, Miyazaki. At Nobeoka, stone walls and embankments were damaged while roads cracked. It was felt as far as central Honshu.

References

  1. 1 2 Bondevik, Stein; Mangerud, Jan; Dawson, Sue; Dawson, Alastair; Lohne, Øystein (1 August 2005). "Evidence for three North Sea tsunamis at the Shetland Islands between 8000 and 1500 years ago". Quaternary Science Reviews. 24 (14): 1757–1775. Bibcode:2005QSRv...24.1757B. doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2004.10.018. hdl: 1956/735 . ISSN   0277-3791.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=Greece". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=Portugal". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=Italy". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=UK". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  6. ↑ National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Location=North Sea". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  7. ↑ National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=Croatia". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  8. ↑ National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=Spain". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  9. ↑ National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=Iceland". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  10. ↑ National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=Germany". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  11. ↑ National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=Ireland". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  12. 1 2 "Evaluating and preventing the tsunami risk for France's metropolitan and overseas coasts - Sénat" . Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  13. ↑ National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=Albania". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  14. ↑ National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=Bulgaria". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  15. 1 2 3 National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=Norway". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  16. ↑ "Riješena zagonetka plimnog vala koji je pogodio Vela Luku 1978. godine". Dubrovački vjesnik. Archived from the original on 31 January 2016. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  17. ↑ National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=France". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  18. 1 2 National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service: NCEI/WDS Global Historical Tsunami Database. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. "Tsunami Events Search Results Country=Algeria". doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7 . Retrieved 13 October 2024.
  19. ↑ "Tsunamis in Spain" . Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  20. ↑ Bowater, Donna (29 June 2011). "Landslide causes tsunamis off the coast of Cornwall". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on July 2, 2011. Retrieved 2011-09-19.
  21. ↑ "Home of the Daily and Sunday Express | UK News :: Tsunami waves hit UK coastline". Daily Express. 2011-06-30. Retrieved 2011-09-19.
  22. ↑ "South coast hit by tsunami after ocean landslide". Daily Mirror. 2011-06-30. Retrieved 2011-09-19.
  23. ↑ "Serious tsunami hits Greece and Turkey after 7.0 earthquake". UNESCO. 12 Nov 2020. Retrieved 2021-07-03.
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