April 6, 1870 Tsunami: Wellington, New Zealand
A tsunami of unknown cause began at Wellington, New Zealand on April 6, 1870 at 19:30 UTC. The water rose as high as 0.6 meters. 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 6, 1870, 19:30 UTC
- Source
- Wellington, New Zealand
- Cause
- Unknown
- Maximum water height
- 0.6 m (2.0 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Questionable tsunami
- Source location
- 41.290° S, 174.780° 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:
1870, April 6. Heavy ripples seen some way offshore in calm and smooth water conditions within Wellington harbour, probably near Lambton Quay, were followed by rapid ebbs and flows of about 0.15-0.3 mat frequent intervals during the day. The waves occurred for at least 2 hours and possibly for 8-10 hours, and were likened to the effects of the 1868 tsunami. Some attributed the unusual conditions to a heavy southerly sea setting in at the heads. Although the account of waves in Wellington Harbour were recorded in newspapers in Hawke's Bay, Dunedin, and Auckland none reported any effects locally.
There are no large earthquakes, or tsunami events, in ITDB or NGDC for this date. Further there are no earthquakes known to have been felt in NZ on or just before this data. It is relevant to note here that the August 1868 tsunami from Peru had a significant impact in New Zealand and following its occurrence, people were particularly observing the sea and more than usually sensitive to its behaviour and to the potential of earthquakes to cause tsunami. The flurry of "tsunami" reports in the 3 years following the 1868 event probably reflects this.
Tsunami seems unlikely, and it is possible that swell in Cook Strait could have caused the unusual conditions. Hence, a validity of 1 is assigned.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lambton Harbour, Wellington | New Zealand | 0 | 0.6 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1870The 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 5510.