April 26, 1916 Tsunami: Bocas del Toro, Panama
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7 earthquake began at Bocas del Toro, Panama on April 26, 1916 at 02:21:52 UTC. The water rose as high as 1.3 meters. Its effects were recorded at 6 places in at least 2 countries.
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
Travel times
How long the first wave took to reach each part of the ocean, one line for each hour up to 24, estimated from the source and the depth of the sea.
The travel times are computed in your browser, which needs JavaScript.
- 1 to 4 hours
- 5 to 6 hours
- 7 to 14 hours
- 15 hours and more
Computed in your browser the way NOAA’s own travel time maps are: the wave travels at the square root of gravity times the depth, over NOAA’s ETOPO1 depths averaged to a 10 arc-minute grid. Checked against NOAA NCEI’s maps for 21 tsunamis over the first 24 hours, these lines fall within 10 minutes of NCEI’s at half the points compared and within 52 minutes at 9 in 10. They give when the first wave could arrive, not how high it is; bays, harbors and island chains finer than the grid can see it later. Not for use in a warning: see tsunami.gov.
The tsunami
- Date
- April 26, 1916, 02:21:52 UTC
- Source
- Bocas del Toro, Panama
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 7, 25 km deep
- Maximum water height
- 1.3 m (4.3 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 6
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Definite tsunami
- Source location
- 9.600° N, 82.000° W
The toll
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 million); $25,000 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.
1916, April 24th 2:45 a.m. (08:01:44 UTC). A heavy earthquake was felt at Almirante. April 25th, at 9:03 p.m. (02:21:52 UTC, April 26) came the climax. At Bocas a slight tidal wave carried canoes and debris 200m inland. The telephone cable connecting Bocas with the mainland was pulled apart in two places. (reference #502)
1916, April 25 20:45 local time. 9.2 N, 83.1 W. A severe earthquake [Ms 7.3] caused considerable damage at Bocas del Toro and Almirante [MMI = VIII-IX], disrupting electric and water service. The severe earthquake caused tsunami runups in Bocas del Toro, Isla de Carenero, Careening Cay, Isla Bastimentos, and Isla Colon. At Bocas a slight tidal wave carried canoes and debris two hundred meters inland. The telephone cable connecting Bocas with the mainland was pulled apart in two places. (referene #1492)
1916, April 26 02:21 UTC, 9.2 N, 83.1 W, magnitude 6.9 MS, Bocas del Toron, Panama. (reference #273)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Isla Bastimentos | Panama | 35 | Eyewitness observation of water height | ||||
| Isla Colon | Panama | 38 | 0.5 | Eyewitness observation of water height | |||
| Isla DE Carenero | Panama | 39 | 1.2 | Eyewitness observation of water height | |||
| Bocas del Toro | Panama | 40 | 0.6 | 200 | Eyewitness observation of water height | ||
| Careening Cay | Panama | 40 | 1.3 | Eyewitness observation of water height | |||
| Sixaola | Costa Rica | 68 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1916The 1900sTsunamis of PanamaThe 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 1434.