March 31, 1928 Tsunami: Northern Chile
A tsunami of unknown cause began at Northern Chile on March 31, 1928. 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 31, 1928
- Source
- Northern Chile
- Cause
- Unknown
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- 2
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Very doubtful tsunami
- Source location
- 23.700° S, 70.400° W
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.
March 31, 1928. At Antofagasta, enormous waves poured over the parapet of the embankment at Molito Port. [There are no instrumental or macroseismic data on the earthquake.]
(reference #415)
March 31, 1928, Chile, Antofagasta, Molito. (reference #79)
March 31, 1928, 23.6 S, 70.4 W. (reference #552)
March 31, 1928, Chile, Antofagasta. Huge waves were noted here today sweeping over the embankment at the port of Molito. (reference #39)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Antofagasta | Chile | 6 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1928The 1900sTsunamis of ChileThis 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 1595.