January 1, 1927 Tsunami: S. California, United States
A tsunami of meteorological origin began at S. California, United States on January 1, 1927 at 08:17 UTC. Its effects were recorded at 1 place. It killed 1 person, 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
The tsunami
- Date
- January 1, 1927, 08:17 UTC
- Source
- S. California, United States
- Cause
- Meteorological
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 5.7
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- 1
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Very doubtful tsunami
- Source location
- 32.500° N, 115.500° W
The toll
- Deaths
- 1
- Injuries
- Few (about 1 to 50) with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
- Damage
- $3 million
- Houses destroyed
- Few (about 1 to 50) with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
- Houses damaged
- 20 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.
Sea wave carried off part of embankment at San Pedro, damage estimated at $3 million. 1 killed. Uncertain connection to inland earthquake in the Imperial Valley. Cause could have been a submarine landslide but was most likely meterological.
Montandon (1928) adds [probably arbitrarily] the following to his description of this earthquake: "at...San Pedro, the port of Los Angeles, sea waves carried off part of the new embankment; the damage was estimated at 3 million dollars." (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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Pedro, CA, CA | United States | 291 | Eyewitness observation of water height | 1 |
More
Every tsunami in 1927The 1900sTsunamis of United StatesThe 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 1575.