1660 Tsunami: Long Island, Papua New Guinea
A tsunami caused by a volcano began at Long Island, Papua New Guinea in 1660. It killed 2,000 people, counting the earthquake or eruption that caused it.
Where the waves reached
The source of the tsunami. No runup with a place is recorded for it.
- Under 1 m
- 1 to 3 m
- 3 to 10 m
- 10 to 30 m
- 30 m and more
- Height not recorded
The tsunami
- Date
- 1660
- Source
- Long Island, Papua New Guinea
- Cause
- Volcano
- Volcano
- The eruption that caused it
- Runups recorded
- 0
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Questionable tsunami
- Source location
- 5.358° S, 147.120° E
The toll
- Deaths
- 2,000 with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
- Damage
- Severe (about $5 to $25 million) with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
- Houses destroyed
- Many (101 to 1,000) with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
1660? Impossible to give accurate estimate of deaths. Legends on Long Island report deaths in pyroclastic flows and tsunamis. On Papua New Guinea mainland widespread legends report deaths as a result of house collapse and starvation. (reference #9675) Note: Reference #9675 indicates deaths from tsunami possible.
More
Every tsunami in 1660The 1600sTsunamis of Papua New GuineaThe eruptionAlerts in force
Sources
Tsunami events and runups from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI tsunami event 5482.