April 26, 1861 Tsunami: SW. Sumatra, Indonesia
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7 earthquake began at SW. Sumatra, Indonesia on April 26, 1861. 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
- April 26, 1861
- Source
- SW. Sumatra, Indonesia
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 7, 70 km deep
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- 1.5
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Definite tsunami
- Source location
- 1.000° N, 97.500° 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.
1861, April 26, 6:00 (local time), 1 S, 97.5 E, depth 70 km, magnitude 7. There was a strong earthquake lasting 2-3 minutes at Pariaman. It lasted 1 1/2 minutes at Singkel. At Padang and Ajerbangis horizontal undulating movements about 2 minutes in duration were observed. Light shocks were felt at Fort de Kok. At Singkel, the sea level rose so high, that the floor in the commander's home was covered with a layer of water 25 cm deep. In the next two days, the water rose more than once to the same height, though no new underground shocks were felt. (reference #414)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singkel, Sumatra | Indonesia | 145 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1861The 1800sTsunamis of IndonesiaThe 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 909.