January 1699 Tsunami: Catania, Italy
A tsunami caused by an earthquake began at Catania, Italy in January 1699. Its effects were recorded at 1 place.
Where the waves reached
The source (white) and every runup with a place, colored by the water height recorded there. A ring is a runup NCEI marks doubtful.
- 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
- January 1699
- Source
- Catania, Italy
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- 4
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Questionable tsunami
- Source location
- 37.150° N, 15.100° E
The toll
The record gives no deaths, injuries or damage for this tsunami.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
Strong underground shocks were felt in Catania as well as on the Island of Malta. It is possible that the year of 1699 was indicated erroneously, instead of 1693 (this description is much the same as the description of the events of January 11, 1693) (reference #2130).
Every runup
Nearest the source first. Heights are above sea level at the time; a tide gauge reads half the wave’s full height.
| Where | Country | Km from source | Water height, m | Inland, m | Measured by | First wave, UTC | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Catania, Sicily | Italy | 39 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1699The 1600sTsunamis of ItalyAlerts 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 3142.