In a total of 3 tidal waves classified as a tsunami since 1857 a total of 11 people died in East Timor. Tsunamis therefore occur only rarely here.
The strongest tidal wave registered in East Timor so far reached a height of 4 meters. At this Tsunami on 05/14/1995 a total of 11 people have been killed.
The marked positions on the map represent the most effected regions within the past 30 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 East Timor since 1857
Date
Cause
max wave height
Deaths
Total damage
11/11/2004
Earthquake in Indonesia (Kepulauan Alor) with a magnitude of 7.5.
2 m
0
05/14/1995
Earthquake, landslide in Indonesia (Timor Sea) with a magnitude of 6.9.
4 m
11
05/13/1857
Earthquake in Indonesia (Bali Sea) with a magnitude of 7.0.
3.4 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.