June 12, 1766 Tsunami: Santiago DE Cuba
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 6.8 earthquake began at Santiago DE Cuba on June 12, 1766 at 05:00 UTC. Its effects were recorded at 1 place. It killed 40 people, counting the earthquake or eruption that caused it.
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
- June 12, 1766, 05:00 UTC
- Source
- Santiago DE Cuba
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 6.8, 25 km deep
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Erroneous entry
- Source location
- 19.900° N, 76.100° W
The toll
- Deaths
- 40 with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
- Injuries
- 700 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.
Cotilla-Rodriguez (Reference #1910) refers to the earthquake occurring on June 11 as it happened right about midnight local time. He states: "The main event was not associated with a tsunami. No abnormal fluctuations of the sea level during or after the earthquake were reported." He examines each historical report, concluding that there was no evidence to support a tsunami. For example, Rudolph (Reference #1531) said a wave affected a ship 5.6 km from the coast of Jamaica: "It rolled so strongly that its gunwales and decks were immersed." Lander et al. (Reference #537) wrote that a tsunami would not greatly affect ships in deep water. Either the ships were in shallow water or the effect was due to a seaquake. Validity 0.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jamaica: off Shore | Jamaica | 188 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1766The 1700sTsunamis of CubaThe earthquakeThis day in weather historyAlerts 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 489.