March 15, 1924 Tsunami: Tatar Strait, Russia
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 6.8 earthquake began at Tatar Strait, Russia on March 15, 1924 at 10:31:24 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
- March 15, 1924, 10:31:24 UTC
- Source
- Tatar Strait, Russia
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 6.8, 15 km deep
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Waters
- A lake or river, not the ocean
- How certain
- Very doubtful tsunami
- Source location
- 49.179° N, 142.436° E
The toll
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 million)
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.
February 3, March 15, April 13, April 16 dates given, most likely March 15, 1924, [10:31]. 49 N, 142.5 E, Tatar Strait, magnitude 7.0, shallow depth. Great agitation in river according to Ulanov. Sieberg who gives 3 dates in Feb. and Apr. without explanations, says that great damage resulted from flood waves, but this appears to be an exaggeration. More likely to be a seiche than a tsunami. (reference #79)
1924. At the time of the so-called Uglegorsk earthquake of 1924, with its intensity of M 6-3/4 and its epicenter in the Tatar Strait on the west coast of Sakhalin, as reported by Ulanov (1932), "the water in the river became terribly agitated." Apparently there remains a possibility of the occurrence, if not of a tsunami, then of some other disturbance of the level of the sea. (reference #413)
Reference #12345 lists two events on 15 March 1924 in Tartar Strait caused by earthquakes, both with validities 1 (very doubtful tsunami). (accessed May 2024)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Uglegorsk River | Russia | 30 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1924The 1900sTsunamis of RussiaThe 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 1531.