April 12, 1878 Tsunami: Northern Chile
A tsunami caused by an earthquake began at Northern Chile on April 12, 1878. 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 12, 1878
- Source
- Northern Chile
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- The earthquake
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- 0.5
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Questionable tsunami
- Source location
- 20.200° S, 70.100° W
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.
April 12, 1878, 20:00 local time. At Iquique, there was a mild but prolonged earthquake with underground rumbling. On the 13th, at 3:45, an enormous wave suddenly fell onshore at Buchupureo and penetrated 60 m inland. (reference #415)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buchupureo | Chile | 1,779 | 60 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1878The 1800sTsunamis of ChileThe 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 1100.