November 4, 1923 Tsunami: New Britain, Papua New Guinea
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7.1 earthquake began at New Britain, Papua New Guinea on November 4, 1923 at 00:04:47 UTC. 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
- November 4, 1923, 00:04:47 UTC
- Source
- New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 7.1, 149 km deep
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Very doubtful tsunami
- Source location
- 4.539° S, 153.107° 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.
November 4, 1923, 10:20 [local time]. Whilst I was visting Natava plantation (north coast) on Sunday 4th inst. there occurred about 10:20 a.m. several earthquakes. A few seconds after the first shock commenced the sea receded again. This occurred many times, the water surface during this time being in a very disturbed state. After the second shock on Sunday the 4th no report of any disturbance of the water of the bay at Rabaul was recorded, but a somewhat similar disturbance is reported on the north coast of New Britain about 18 miles from Rabaul by an officer of this department who happened to be there. (reference #99)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rabaul, New Britain | Papua New Guinea | 109 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1923The 1900sTsunamis of Papua New GuineaThe 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 1529.