July 28, 1840 Tsunami: Whitianga, New Zealand
A tsunami of meteorological origin began at Whitianga, New Zealand on July 28, 1840. 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
- July 28, 1840
- Source
- Whitianga, New Zealand
- Cause
- Meteorological
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Erroneous entry
- Source location
- 36.836° S, 175.692° 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.
Reference #5324:
1840, July 28.
According to McKay (1966): “Seismic waves had been experienced on the East Coast on several earlier occasions. In August, 1840 ”a wave of this character threw H.M.S. Buffalo on shore at Whitianga (Mercury Bay) and wrecked her. Tokato block (between Te Araroa and Hicks Bay) was strewn with fish". While the stranding of the fish at Tokato Block near East Cape may be related to a tsunami (see entry for 1840 August), the wrecking of the HMZ Buffalo at Whitianga was unquestionably caused by a storm (see for example, Riddle, J. 1996. Saltspray and sawdust; also reportedly in NZ shipwrecks).
According to McKay (1966): “Seismic waves had been experienced on the East Coast on several earlier occasions. In August, 1840 ”a wave of this character threw H.M.S. Buffalo on shore at Whitianga (Mercury Bay) and wrecked her. Tokato block (between Te Araroa and Hicks Bay) was strewn with fish".
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whitianga | New Zealand | 0 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1840The 1800sTsunamis of New ZealandThis 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 5521.