Tsunamis in Canada

In a total of 11 tidal waves classified as a tsunami since 1903 a total of 45 people died in Canada. Compared to other countries, Tsunamis therefore occur rather rarely.

The strongest tidal wave registered in Canada so far reached a height of 38 meters. At this Tsunami on 12/04/2007 no losses of human lifes have been registered.

The biggest impact in terms of lifes, injuries, destroyed homes and economy had been a tsunami on 03/28/1964.

Other natural hazards in Canada:
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The marked positions on the map represent the most effected regions within the past 120 years.

Tsunamis are caused by earthquakes or other seismic eruptions on ground of an oceans and can cause massive tidal waves, which run with enormous force on land, causing great devastation. Especially in regions with only few tsunamis, the damage is often drastic, as the population does not expect tsunamis and thus hardly takes any protective measures. Even relatively small flood waves can lead to high losses and financial damage.

The largest tsunamis in Canada since 1903

Date	Cause	max wave height	Deaths
10/28/2012	Earthquake in Canada (British Columbia) with a magnitude of 7.7.	12.98 m	0
12/04/2007	Landslide in Canada (Chehalis Lake, Chilliwack)	38 m	0
04/27/1975	Landslide in Canada (Kitimat Inlet, British Columbia)	4.1 m	0
03/28/1964	Earthquake, landslide in the United States (Prince William Sound, Ak) with a magnitude of 9.2. The tsunami caused damages in 5 further countries. A total of 124 humans died.	9.8 m	0
03/28/1963	Eruption in Canada (Graham Island, British Columbia)	5.5 m	1
05/22/1960	Earthquake in Chile (Southern Chile) with a magnitude of 9.5. The tsunami caused damages in 13 further countries. A total of 2,226 humans died.	2.1 m	0
06/23/1946	Earthquake, landslide in Canada (British Columbia) with a magnitude of 7.3.	9 m	0
11/18/1929	Earthquake, landslide in Canada (Grand Banks, Newfoundland) with a magnitude of 7.3.	13 m	28
05/26/1929	Earthquake in Canada (British Columbia) with a magnitude of 7.0.	1.5 m	0
12/06/1917	Explosion in Canada (Halifax, Nova Scotia)	7 m	16
10/20/1903	Eruption in Canada (Blacklead Island, Cumberland Sound)	0 m	0

These statistics are based on datas from the National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service (NGDC/WDS): Global Historical Tsunami Database. doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K. Several data have been summarized and translated.