Earthquakes themselves are quite destructive and terrible, but their effects are only exacerbated by huge tsunami waves that can follow massive seismic disturbances on the ocean floor. Often, coastal dwellers have only minutes to flee to higher ground, and any delay can cause colossal casualties. In this compilation, you will learn about the most powerful and destructive tsunamis in history. Over the past 50 years, our ability to study and predict tsunamis has reached new heights, but they still proved insufficient to prevent massive destruction.

10. Earthquake and tsunami in Alaska, 1964

March 27, 1964 was Good Friday, but the Christian day of worship was interrupted by a 9.2 magnitude earthquake, the most powerful ever recorded in North American history. The subsequent tsunami devastated the western North American coastline (also hitting Hawaii and Japan), killing 121 people. Waves up to 30 meters high were recorded, and a 10-meter tsunami wiped out the tiny Alaskan village of Chenega.

9. Samoa earthquake and tsunami, 2009

In 2009 the Samoan Islands experienced a magnitude 8.1 earthquake at 7:00 am on September 29th. Tsunamis up to 15 meters high followed, reaching miles inland, engulfing villages and causing widespread destruction. 189 people died, many of them children, but no further deaths were avoided due to the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center giving people time to evacuate to higher ground.

8. 1993 Hokkaido earthquake and tsunami

On July 12th, 1993, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck 80 miles off the coast of Hokkaido, Japan. The Japanese authorities reacted quickly by issuing a tsunami warning, but the small island of Okushiri was out of the relief zone. Already minutes after the earthquake, the island was covered with giant waves - some of which reached 30 meters in height. Of the 250 tsunami victims, 197 were residents of Okushiri. Although some were saved thanks to the memory of the 1983 tsunami that hit the island 10 years earlier, prompting a quick evacuation.

7. 1979 Tumaco earthquake and tsunami

At 8:00 am on December 12th, 1979, a 7.9 magnitude earthquake began near Colombia and the Pacific coast of Ecuador. The tsunami that followed destroyed six fishing villages and much of the city of Tumaco, as well as several other Colombian coastal cities. 259 people died while 798 were injured and 95 were missing.

6. 2006 Java earthquake and tsunami

On July 17th, 2006, a 7.7 magnitude earthquake shook the seabed near Java. A 7m high tsunami hit the Indonesian coastline, including 100 miles of Java's coastline, which was fortunately unaffected by the 2004 tsunami. The waves penetrated over a mile inland, leveling the settlements and the seaside resort of Pangandaran. At least 668 people have died, 65 have been burned out, and more than 9,000 have required medical attention.

5. 1998 earthquake papua new guinea and tsunami

An earthquake of magnitude 7 hit the northern coast of Papua New Guinea on July 17, 1998, without itself causing a major tsunami. However, the earthquake triggered a large underwater landslide, which in turn produced waves 15 meters high. When the tsunami hit the coast, it caused at least 2,183 deaths, 500 missing, and made about 10,000 residents homeless. Numerous villages were badly damaged, while others such as Arop and Warapu were completely destroyed. The only positive was that it gave scientists valuable insight into the threat of underwater landslides and unexpected tsunamis they could cause, which could save lives in the future.

4. 1976 Moro Bay earthquake and tsunami

Early morning On August 16th, 1976, the small island of Mindanao in the Philippines was hit by an earthquake with a magnitude of at least 7.9. The earthquake caused a huge tsunami that crashed into 433 miles of coastline, where residents did not realize the danger and did not have time to escape to higher ground. In all, 5,000 people died and another 2,200 went missing, 9,500 were injured and more than 90,000 residents were left homeless. Cities and regions throughout the Northern Celebes Sea region of the Philippines were devastated by the tsunami, which is considered among the worst natural disasters in the country's history.

3. 1960 Valdivia earthquake and tsunami

In 1960, the world experienced the most powerful earthquake since the beginning of tracking such events. On May 22nd the Great Chile Earthquake of 9.5 began off the south coast of central Chile, causing a volcanic eruption and a devastating tsunami. In some areas, waves were up to 25 meters high, while the tsunami also swept across the Pacific Ocean, hitting Hawaii about 15 hours after the quake and killing 61 people. Seven hours later, waves hit the coast of Japan, causing 142 deaths. A total of 6,000 died.

2. 2011 Tohuku earthquake and tsunami

While all tsunamis are dangerous, the 2011 Tohuku Tsunami that hit Japan has some of the worst consequences. On March 11th, waves of 11 meters were recorded after the 9.0 earthquake, although some reports mention terrifying heights of up to 40 meters with waves traveling 6 miles inland, as well as a colossal 30 meter wave that crashed into the coastal town of Ofunato. Approximately 125,000 buildings were damaged or destroyed, and transport infrastructure suffered heavy losses. Approximately 25,000 people died, the tsunami also damaged the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant, causing a disaster of International Nuclear Scale. The full implications of this nuclear disaster are still unclear, but radiation has been detected 200 miles from the station.

Here are some videos that capture the destructive power of the elements:

1. 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami

The world was stunned by the deadly tsunami that hit the countries surrounding the Indian Ocean on December 26, 2004. The tsunami was the deadliest ever, with over 230,000 casualties, affecting people in 14 countries, with Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand the most affected. The strong underwater earthquake had a magnitude of up to 9.3, and the deadly waves it caused were up to 30 meters high. Massive tsunamis flooded some coastlines as early as 15 minutes, and some as much as 7 hours after the initial earthquake. Despite having time to prepare for wave impacts in some places, the lack of an Indian Ocean tsunami warning system has meant that most coastal areas have been taken by surprise. However, some places were saved thanks to local signs and even the knowledge of children who learned about the tsunami at school. You can find photos of the consequences of the tsunami in Sumatra in a separate selection.

See also video:

Tsunamis produced by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are considered the most dangerous natural phenomena on Earth. In the past two decades alone, giant waves and tremors have combined to kill 55% of the 1.35 million people who have died from natural disasters. Throughout its history, mankind has experienced many such disasters, but in this article we bring to your attention the ten most destructive and deadly tsunamis ever recorded on our planet.

1. Sumatra (Indonesia), December 24, 2004

At the end of December 2004, off the coast of Sumatra, at a depth of about 30 km, there was a powerful earthquake of magnitude 9.1, caused by a vertical displacement seabed. As a result of the seismic event, a large wave with a width of about 1300 km was formed, which, as it approached the coast, reached a height of 15 meters. A giant wall of water hit the shores of Indonesia, Thailand, India, Sri Lanka and a number of other states, leaving between 225,000 and 300,000 dead in their wake. Many people were swept into the ocean, so the exact numbers of deaths are unlikely to ever be known. According to general estimates, the damage from the disaster amounted to about 10 billion US dollars.

2. Pacific Northwest (Japan), March 11, 2011

On March 11, 2011, a huge 10-meter wave moving at a speed of 800 km/h swept over the east coast of Japan and led to the death or disappearance of over 18,000 people. The reason for its appearance was an earthquake of magnitude 9.0, which occurred at a depth of 32 km east of the island of Honshu. Some 452,000 Japanese survivors were moved to temporary shelters. Many live in them to this day. The earthquake and tsunami caused an accident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant, after which significant radioactive releases occurred. The total damage amounted to $235 billion.

3. Lisbon (Portugal), November 1, 1755

An earthquake of magnitude 8.5 in the Atlantic caused a series of three huge waves that covered the Portuguese capital and a number of coastal cities in Portugal, Spain and Morocco. In some places, the height of the tsunami reached 30 meters. The waves crossed the Atlantic Ocean and reached Barbados, where their height was 1.5 meters. Overall, the tremor and subsequent tsunami killed about 60,000 people.

4. Krakatau (Indonesia), August 27, 1883

The volcanic eruption in 1883 was one of the largest in modern history humanity. The explosions of the giant were so powerful that they caused high waves that flooded the surrounding islands. After the volcano split and collapsed into the ocean, the largest tsunami 36 meters high was formed, destroying over 160 villages on the islands of Sumatra and Java. Of the more than 36,000 who died during the eruption, over 90% of the people were victims of the tsunami.

5. Nankaido (Japan), September 20, 1498

According to general estimates, the earthquake that shook the islands in the southeast of Japan had a magnitude of at least 8.4. A seismic event led to a tsunami that hit the Japanese provinces of Kii, Awaji and the coast of the island of Shikoku. The waves were strong enough to demolish the isthmus that previously separated Lake Hamana from the ocean. Flooding was observed throughout the historical region of Nankaido, and the death toll reached, presumably, from 26,000 to 31,000 people.

6. Nankaido (Japan), October 28, 1707

Another devastating tsunami, caused by an earthquake of magnitude 8.4, hit Japan's Nankaido in 1707. The wave height was 25 meters. The settlements on the coast of Kyushu, Shikoku and Honshu were damaged, and the large Japanese city of Osaka was also damaged. The disaster resulted in the destruction of over 30,000 homes and the death of about 30,000 people. It is estimated that about a dozen tsunamis hit Japan that day in just 1 hour, some of them traveled several kilometers inland.

7. Sanriku (Japan), June 15, 1896

The tsunami in the northeastern part of the island of Honshu was caused by an earthquake of magnitude 7.2, caused by a shift in the lithospheric plates in the area of ​​the Japan Trench. After the earthquake, the Sanriku region was hit by two waves one after the other, rising to a height of up to 38 meters. Since the arrival of the water coincided with the tide, the damage from the disaster was incredibly high. More than 22,00 people died and over 9,000 buildings were destroyed. The tsunami also reached the Hawaiian Islands, but here their height was much less - about 9 meters.

8. Northern Chile, August 13, 1868

The tsunami in northern Chile (at that time off the coast of Arica in Peru) was caused by a series of two large-scale earthquakes of magnitude 8.5. Waves up to 21 meters high flooded the entire Asia-Pacific region and reached the Australian Sydney. The waters crashed onto the banks for 2 or 3 days, eventually resulting in 25,000 deaths and $300 million worth of damage.

9. Ryukyu (Japan), April 24, 1771

Boulders thrown by the tsunami

An earthquake of magnitude 7.4 caused a tsunami that flooded many Japanese islands. Ishigaki and Miyako suffered the most, where the wave height reached 11 to 15 meters. The disaster resulted in the destruction of 3,137 houses and the death of about 12,000 people.

10. Ise Bay (Japan), January 18, 1586

Ise Bay today

The earthquake that caused the tsunami in Ise Bay on the island of Honshu received a magnitude of 8.2. Waves rose to a height of 6 meters, causing damage to settlements on the coast. The city of Nagahama suffered not only from water, but also from fires that broke out after the earthquake and destroyed half of the buildings. The tsunami in the bay killed more than 8,000 people.

The most powerful tsunamis resulting from earthquakes can be listed in the following chronological order:

The oldest tsunami known to mankind occurred on July 21, 365 AD. in the Mediterranean Sea after a strong earthquake, which the Chinese chronicles have preserved under the name "hungtao". A tsunami wave destroyed the city of Alexandria in Egypt and claimed the lives of thousands of people.

• November 1, 1775, Portugal, the capital of the country Lisbon was destroyed by a powerful earthquake. The wave of the Atlantic Ocean collapsed, which arose due to the earthquake, hit the 6-meter waves on the shores of Portugal, Spain and Morocco. Miroshnikov L.D. Man in the world of geological elements. SPb., 2013. P.43.
• August 27, 1883: Indonesia. Krakatoa volcano erupted. The tsunami wave generated by the volcanic eruption hit the shores of the island of Java and the island of Sumatra with all its might, taking the lives of 36,000 people. The volcanic eruption was so powerful that for several nights the skies blazed with reflections of burning lava.
• December 17, 1896: USA, California - a tsunami destroyed a powerful sea ​​wall in Santa Barbara and covered all the streets of the city.
• January 31, 1906: An ocean wave, caused by an earthquake in the Pacific Ocean, hit the mainland, destroyed the cities of Tumaco and Mikay in Colombia, the city of Rioverde in Ecuador, destroying all the houses. 1500 people died.
• April 1, 1946: United States, tsunami wave that swallowed the Alaska coast lighthouse, along with the staff, and then hit the city of Hilo-Hawaii, killing 159 people
• May 22, 1960: A 11 meter high tsunami kills 1,000 people in Chile, 61 people in Hawaii. The ocean wave was so powerful that it reached the other side of the Pacific Ocean and shook the Philippines and the Japanese island of Okinawa.
• March 28, 1964: United States, the "Blessed Easter Friday" tsunami erased 3 villages from the maps of the country: 107 people died in Oregon, 15 people died in California.
• August 16, 1976: A Pacific tsunami kills over 5,000 people in Moro Bay, Philippines.
• July 17, 1998: An earthquake hits northern Papua New Guinea, causing an ocean wave that kills 2,313 people. 7 villages were wiped off the face of the earth, thousands of people were left homeless.

The most powerful known tsunami, later named Sanriku, came from an underwater earthquake 240 km from the coast of Japan on June 15, 1896. Then a huge wave 30 m high hit the island. Honshu. 27122 people died. 19,617 houses were washed into the sea. The first "seaquake" in Russia was registered in Kamchatka in 1737. It has already been mentioned above. According to an eyewitness, “waves of terrible and incomparable shaking followed, then water soared ashore at a height of 30 sazhens, which, without standing in the least, fled into the sea. From this flood, the inhabitants there were completely ruined, and many died miserably in their lives.” Miroshnikov L D. Man in the world of geological elements, St. Petersburg, 2013, p.46.

In 1979, a tsunami with a wave height of 5 m hit the Pacific coast of Colombia. 125 people died.

In 1994, a 15 m high tsunami in the Philippines destroyed 500 houses and 18 bridges to the ground. More than 60 people died.

In the case of a recent disaster that began on the morning of December 26, 2004 at 7 hours 58 minutes 53 seconds local time in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Indonesia and Thailand, the epicenter of the first earthquake was located near the northern tip of the island of Sumatra, at a point with coordinates 3 ° 30 "north latitude and 95°87" East. In geological terms, in this area there is a boundary between two lithospheric plates - large blocks of the earth's crust. In this case, there is a subsidence, subduction (subduction) of the oceanic Indian plate under the more eastern continental plate. The deep-sea trench, which runs parallel to Sumatra, is a trace of such a subsidence. Danilova V.S., Kozhevnikov N.N. Basic concepts of natural science. M., 2014. P.145.

The tsunami that hit the shores of South Asia on December 26, 2004 was the most catastrophic in the last 40 years, and was caused by the 5th strongest since 1900, a 9-magnitude earthquake. The tsunami claimed the lives of more than 225,000 people. More than 1,000 km of fault line, created by the earthquake and the movement of large layers of the earth's crust on the ocean floor, created a colossal release of energy in the ocean, which, combined with an equally colossal energy arising from the shifting of the continents, created the most destructive tsunami in history peace.

The tsunami waves hit the countries of South Asia: Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia, Thailand, Bangladesh, Myanmar, the Maldives and Seychelles, and reached the African continent, hitting the coast of Somalia, located at a distance of 5,000 kilometers from the epicenter of the earthquake.

The hypocenter of the first shock of the earthquake was shallow, as they say, shallow-focused and was located at a depth of about 30 km. A sharp, almost instantaneous displacement of the oceanic plate by tens of meters caused a deformation in the surface of the ocean floor, which provoked the emergence of a tsunami that immediately hit the islands of Sumatra and Java. After about 10-20 minutes, the wave reached the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and then the western coast of Thailand and the resort island of Phuket. There.

It took longer, almost two hours, for the tsunami to hit Sri Lanka ( former island Ceylon), the east coast of India, Bangladesh and the Maldives. In the Maldives, the wave height did not exceed two meters, but the islands themselves rise above the surface of the ocean by no more than a meter and a half, so two-thirds of the territory of Male - the capital of the island state - were under water. However, in general, the Maldives did not suffer too much, as they are surrounded by coral reef structures that took on the blows of the waves and extinguished their energy, thereby providing passive protection from the tsunami. Six hours later, the wave reached the east coast of Africa. The greatest number of victims and destruction of the tsunami caused in Indonesia and Sri Lanka. The total death toll is estimated at over 280,000. Shchetnikov N. Tsunami. M., 2014. P. 97,

According to seismic stations, the earthquake that caused the tsunami in the Indian Ocean, or rather, its first shock, had a magnitude of 8.6-8.9 or even 9.1 on the Richter scale, that is, close to the maximum possible. Information appeared that it contributed to a sharp shift in the Earth's axis of rotation by 3 cm, and the Earth's day decreased by 3 microseconds. The second shock, the epicenter of which was somewhat north of the first, had a magnitude of 7.3 and caused the formation of a second tsunami wave. After the first, strongest aftershocks on December 26, earthquakes in this region occurred almost daily for several weeks with a fairly high magnitude of about 5-6. Such earthquakes following the main seismic shock are called aftershocks. They testify to the resorption of stresses, their relaxation.

When Japan was hit by a tsunami wave, called the "Big Meiji" of monstrous destructive power and claimed the lives of 21,000 thousand people.

Earthquakes of colossal power occur with a frequency of once every 150-200 years. There is reliable historical information about this, including about the tsunami caused by earthquakes. During the explosion of the Krakatau volcano in the Sunda Strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra in 1883, a giant wave washed away more than 36,000 people into the sea; in 1896 in Japan, waves 15 m high led to the death of several thousand people; in 1933, off the coast of Sanriku in Japan, where the height of the tsunami reached 24 m, 3,000 inhabitants were killed. In 1952, an 18 m high tsunami destroyed the city of Severo-Kurilsk, located on Paramushir Island, the northernmost island of the Kuril island arc, killing several thousand inhabitants, since there were three waves. The list of such disasters can be continued. Avakyan A.B., Polyushkin A.A. Floods. M., 2014. P.75.

The question arises: is it possible to foresee a tsunami and warn the inhabitants of the regions about the impending wave? It is basically impossible to predict the day and hour of an earthquake, since this is a non-linear process. But it is possible to establish areas where the risk of an earthquake is high, and to determine its probable strength, that is, to carry out seismic zoning of territories of various levels of detail.

The main places of occurrence of tsunamis are the Pacific Ocean, on the periphery of which more than 80% of the tsunami falls. The famous "fiery" ring of the Pacific Ocean is characterized not only by a large number of active volcanoes, but also by frequent strong earthquakes, mountainous terrain and a chain of deep-sea trenches. In these places, called active continental margins, heavy, cold oceanic plates sink under lighter and higher continental ones. The processes of interaction between plates lead to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis in the ocean.

Whether a huge wave will hit the shore after an earthquake in the ocean or not is unknown. Residents of coasts located in a dangerous seismic zone, having felt an earthquake, should immediately run away from the coastal zone. This way you can save yourself from a tsunami that has formed close to the coast, when the arrival time of the wave is 15-30 minutes. If the tsunami occurs far away and the waves move over the surface of the ocean for several hours, then there is enough time to prepare for the impact of the elements and take people to safe places. But for this, a huge amount of work needs to be done: to install automatic seismographs in seismically dangerous areas of the oceans or seas, to develop a system for alerting the population so that panic, which is inevitable in such cases, does not arise. It is necessary that tourists who come to rest in earthquake-prone areas know about this and have a clear idea of ​​​​what to do in case of an alarm that can be announced by sirens, howlers, by radio and by any other means. Unfortunately, in the area of ​​the earthquake that occurred on December 26, 2004, the observation network simply did not exist, and the earthquake and tsunami warning system was not organized.

In Russia, back in the late 50s - early 60s of the last century, Far East a tsunami warning service was created covering Kamchatka, the Kuril Islands, Sakhalin and Primorye. In the Hawaiian Islands, which have been repeatedly affected by the tsunami, there is the Richard Haguemeyer Warning Center. Now in the Indian Ocean, near Indonesia, it is planned to organize an observation network, and in the future there are intentions to make a global tsunami warning network and equip it with the latest seismographs, special sensors and buoys on which recording equipment will be placed, and combine all this with a satellite system. Gorokhov V.G. The concept of modern natural science and technology. M., 2013. P.425.

It turned out, however, that in the history of the Caspian Sea there are events that could be called “tsunamis”. The earliest of them dates back to 957, when the sea in the Derbent region receded by 150 meters during an earthquake.

Something like a tsunami, albeit in a weakened form, occurred in 1868, when the sea near Baku first rose, then dropped by almost half a meter, and the so-called Burnt Plate, located 90 kilometers south of Baku, towering 2 meters above sea level, plunged into him.

Much more terrible waves arose during the 9-point Krasnovodsk earthquake in 1895. They covered the village of Uzun-Ada, the bay of its buildings and the pier with water and formed a quagmire. Two-meter-wide cracks appeared in the streets, from which water spouted. And in 1933, 40 kilometers from the same Krasnovodsk, a one and a half meter rise in sea level was observed, lasting about 10 minutes. There is also evidence of other phenomena of this kind. Gorokhov V.G. The concept of modern natural science and technology. M., 2013. P.431.

It would be natural to include those areas of the sea where seismic activity is especially high as possible zones for the generation of Caspian tsunamis. To date, seven local zones of increased seismicity are known in the Caspian, and the largest of them coincides with the extreme eastern section of the Terek-Caspian deep fault. It is there that strong earthquakes are most often repeated.

The smaller area is located within the Apsheron Sill - on the underwater section of the same trough. Comparison of areas in which something like a tsunami has ever been observed, and zones of increased seismicity, proves that they certainly coincide. To analyze the causes of such a local tsunami action, modeling was carried out, and it turned out that relative shallow water and bottom structure prevent it from spreading further.

Here are collected the most powerful and destructive tsunamis, evidence of which has survived to this day.

The tsunami with the highest wave known to science occurred on March 9, 1958 in Alaska in Lituya Bay. After the earthquake, a landslide occurred near the bay, as a result of which 300 million cubic meters went into the bay. m. of earth, stones and ice. A giant wave 524 m high formed in a small bay. There were no victims, because no one lives there.

But we will be interested in the most terrible and powerful tsunamis with the maximum number of victims. No wonder they say in Japan that there is only one thing to be afraid of - the tsunami.

5th place. Tsunami in Chile 1960

the date: May 22, 1960
Countries: Chile, Hawaii, Japan
Magnitude: 9.5 points
wave height: 9 meters
Number of victims: near 3,000 people

The strongest known earthquake of magnitude 9.5 occurred off the coast of central and southern Chile. For comparison: explosion atomic bomb in Hiroshima in 1945 caused ground vibrations of magnitude 5.7. 15 minutes after the tremors, a wave hit the Chilean coast, flooding the coastline 500 miles long. As a result of the earthquake and tsunami, every third house was destroyed. The damage amounted to more than 550 million dollars, about 2,000 people died.

But the tsunami was far from over. After 15 hours, waves hit Hawaii, killing 61 people and injuring 282. After the first siren, people returned to their homes, but the second wave was 6 meters high. 22 hours after the earthquake, the wave reached the shores of Japan. Its height was about 4 meters, 122 people died. Most people died not from the earthquake, but from the tsunami. According to some estimates, the death toll was much higher than the official 3,000.

4th place. Tsunami in Messina Reggio 1908

the date: December 28, 1908
Country: Italy
Magnitude: 7.2 points
wave height: from 6 to 12 meters
Number of victims: near 100,000 people

The earthquake in the Italian city of Messina occurred early in the morning on December 28, almost immediately after Christmas. Within 30 seconds, several houses were destroyed, burying all its inhabitants under them. But those who survived were still not safe. A few minutes later came the first tsunami wave with a height of 6 to 12 meters. Then the next, the waves gradually became lower until they completely disappeared.

The city of Messina, which had about 150,000 inhabitants, was completely destroyed. The same fate befell the neighboring city of Reggio di Calabria and smaller coastal towns and villages. The earthquake, along with the tsunami, caused the deaths of about 100,000 people.

3rd place. Tsunami in Lisbon 1755

the date: November 01, 1755
Country: Portugal
Magnitude: 9 points
wave height: up to 30 meters
Number of victims: near 100,000 people

At 9:40 am, an earthquake struck the capital of Portugal, Lisbon. The tremors were followed by tsunamis and fires. The shocks lasted a total of about 10 minutes, cracks up to 5 m formed on the surface of the earth. 30 minutes after the earthquake, a tsunami wave came, followed by two more. In some places, the wave height reached 30 m. In Lisbon, 85% of the buildings were destroyed, fires blazed everywhere, which lasted for several days.

2nd place. Tsunami in Krakatoa 1883

the date: August 27, 1883
Country: Indonesia
Magnitude: there was no earthquake
wave height: up to 40 meters
Number of victims: near 36,000 people

On this day, one of the most powerful volcanic eruptions in the history of mankind and the tsunami that followed it occurred. The sound from the explosion of the Krakatoa volcano was heard at a distance of 4000 km - this is the loudest documented sound. The plume from the volcano is described as "colossal", it was about 30 km high and 400 km long. Under its own weight, the volcano fell into underground voids, dragging masses of water with it. From contact with red-hot magma, an explosion occurred, as a result of which rock scattered within a radius of 500 km. Ash fell on an area of ​​4 million square kilometers, and the volume of the ejected rock was about 18 cubic kilometers. The force of the explosion was 200,000 times greater than the explosion of the atomic bomb in Hiroshima in 1945. A significant amount of ash remained in the atmosphere for several years. From the rising wave, 295 villages and 36,000 people were destroyed.

However, this tsunami pales in comparison to what happened in the Indian Ocean in 2004.

1 place. 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami

the date: December 26, 2004
Countries: Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, Maldives
Magnitude: 9.1-9.3 points
wave height: over 15 meters
Number of victims: from 225,000 to 300,000 people

The epicenter of the earthquake was located in the Indian Ocean northwest of the Indonesian island of Sumatra. This is one of the most powerful earthquakes recorded by man. As a result of this earthquake, some small Indonesian islands moved up to 20 m away. As a result of the earthquake, a tsunami was generated. It managed to fix and track the distribution. However, rather poor countries were under attack, which did not have a warning system for an impending tsunami. In addition, the population density in many areas was quite high.

The islands of Indonesia were the first to take the blow of the waves, almost immediately after the tremors. After 1.5-2 hours, the wave reached Sri Lanka and the east coast of India. After another 2 hours, Thailand and Phuket were under attack. In South Africa, this is 8500 km from the epicenter, after 16 hours tidal waves up to 1.5 meters high were recorded.

The USGS estimated that the tsunami killed 227,989 people, but true number the dead will never be known due to the fact that no one reported the loss of many people and they were not taken into account in the calculation. More than a third of all the dead are children.

not listed Tsunami in Japan 2011

the date: March 11, 2011
Country:Japan
Magnitude: 9.0 points
wave height: over 15 meters
Number of victims: March 26: More than 10,000 dead, more than 16,600 missing.

There is only one thing to be afraid of - the tsunami.

On December 26, 2004, one of the most powerful tsunamis in history hit southern Asia, causing catastrophic destruction. Today we remember the most powerful waves that humanity has ever faced.

Tsunami in South Asia

On December 26, 2004, a powerful earthquake with an amplitude of 8.9 points was recorded near the island of Sumatra. The resulting wave hits the coasts of Thailand, Sri Lanka, India and Indonesia. Several hundred thousand victims (including many tourists) and hundreds of destroyed cities make this tsunami one of the most destructive and powerful in the history of mankind.

Tsunami in Alaska

On March 28, 1964, the most devastating tsunami in the history of the Northern Hemisphere occurred, which is commonly called the "Tsunami in Alaska". Tremors at its epicenter, which was the Prince William Sound, reached 9.2 on the Richter scale, and their echoes were felt throughout the western part of the continent. It is hard to imagine the horror of the inhabitants of the coast, who, on a fine pre-Easter day, saw a huge 30-meter wall of water on the horizon. Killer waves left tens of thousands of residents of the United States and Canada without a roof over their heads and wiped out many coastal cities of North America from the face of the earth.

Tsunami off Samoa

September 2009 was fatal for many Samoans. On a hot day, when most of the islanders were closer to the saving coolness of the ocean, 15-meter waves hit them. The earthquake was incredibly strong - 8.1 on the Richter scale, while the vibrations occurred in such a way that the bulk of the water rushed deep into the island, sweeping away everything in its path. The inhabitants of the archipelago would have absolutely no chance of salvation if the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center had not had time to evacuate part of the population to elevated areas.

Tsunami at Okushiri Island

The Japanese authorities are extremely attentive to the prevention of earthquake and tsunami threats. Country rising sun more than once suffered from destructive elements, but the government did everything possible to prevent human casualties. However, in every system there is a failure, and an example of this is the sad fate of Okushiri Island, which turned into ruins from a prosperous settlement in a few minutes. In 1993, 27-meter waves literally washed away the island, taking with them most of the inhabitants. Tremors reached a force of 7.8 points.

Tsunami off the coast of Ecuador

In 1979, deadly waves again swept along the west coast of America, this time already the South. The tsunami originated off the coast of Ecuador due to a 7.9 magnitude earthquake, which was later dubbed "Tomako". This tragedy will forever remain in the memory of Ecuadorians and Colombians. About a dozen fishing villages were completely destroyed, many families were left without breadwinners, hundreds of parents mourned their dead children, and 95 people are still considered missing.

Tsunami off Java

In 2006, the measured life of the island of Java was disrupted by a deadly tsunami that claimed 668 human lives. The bodies of another 65 people could not be found. Seven-meter waves covered the island, leveling the resort town of Pangandaran and depriving more than 6,000 people of their homes. 9,000 people needed medical attention, most of the roads and almost all the buildings of the island were destroyed.