Tsunamis in 1922

September 1, 1922 Tsunami: Taiwan

September 1, 1922 · 5 deaths · 139 houses destroyed · Very doubtful tsunami

A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7.6 earthquake began at Taiwan on September 1, 1922 at 19:16:06 UTC. Its effects were recorded at 1 place. It killed 5 people, counting the earthquake or eruption that caused it.

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

Tsunami warnings in force

The tsunami

Date
September 1, 1922, 19:16:06 UTC
Source
Taiwan
Cause
Earthquake
Earthquake
Magnitude 7.6
Runups recorded
1
Waters
Ocean
How certain
Very doubtful tsunami
Source location
24.500° N, 122.000° E

The toll

Deaths
5 with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
Injuries
7 with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
Damage
Moderate (about $1 to $5 million) with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
Houses destroyed
139 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.

September 2, 1922, 03:16:06 local time, Off the southeast coast of Yilan, Taiwan Province, 24.5 N, 122 E, magnitude 7.6. The shock was felt in the whole island, the seashore

of Fujian was also affected. (reference #3939)

Every runup

Nearest the source first. Heights are above sea level at the time; a tide gauge reads half the wave’s full height.

WhereCountryKm from sourceWater height, mInland, mMeasured byFirst wave, UTCDeaths
Fujian ProvinceChina302Eyewitness observation of water height

More

Every tsunami in 1922The 1900sTsunamis of TaiwanThe 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 1503.