April 25, 1928 Tsunami: Grecian Archipelago, Crete, Greece
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 5.2 earthquake began at Grecian Archipelago, Crete, Greece on April 25, 1928 at 00:31:18 UTC.
Where the waves reached
The source of the tsunami. No runup with a place is recorded for it.
- 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 25, 1928, 00:31:18 UTC
- Source
- Grecian Archipelago, Crete, Greece
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 5.2
- Runups recorded
- 0
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Very doubtful tsunami
- Source location
- 38.000° N, 23.000° 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.
1928, April 25. Aegean Sea, shore of Greece and islands. The sea level on the shore of Attica and in Lavrio rose approximately 0.3 m within the time interval between
06h and 08h; rises gradually decreased in the morning of next day, and the sea level returned to its normal position.
Continuous 0.4 m amplitude rises and drops in the level alternating every 10 min were noted on the Island of Syros between 09h and 20h. A tidal flow stronger than usual and lasting 3 hours was observed on the shore of the Corinth Isthmus after midday. According to the passengers of ships in the Guls of Argolis and Saros, the sea was excited, especially in the Guy of Argolis. According to with the same
information, unusual tidal movements of the sea were very intensive in Nafplio and Aermion and to a somewhat lesser degree in Spetses, Ydra, Methana, Aegina.
Professor Sieberg was on board the ship sailing from Heracleon (Candia) to Piraeus in the night between April 24 and April 25. At approximately 03h, when the ship was seen fiom the Island of Milos and the sea was calm, a strong swell suddenly set in and lasted 15 - 30 min. The ship was turned from one side to the other with such a force that some passengers became sea - sick.
No usual tidal oscillations were observed on the northern shore of the Aegean Sea in Kavala in the night between April 24 and April 25. One of two assumptions can be made concerning the causes that resulted in the April 25 tsunami: either 1) the oscillations that started on April 24 continued; or 2) the tsunami was originated by the earthquake, the data on which were given above. The material available is inconclusive.
(above from reference #2130)
April 25, 1928, Greece, Piraeus. Moderate tidal wave. Sea rose to great height and receded. (reference #132)
More
Every tsunami in 1928The 1900sTsunamis of GreeceThe 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 1598.