June 17, 1928 Tsunami: S. Mexico
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7.7 earthquake began at S. Mexico on June 17, 1928 at 03:19:33 UTC. The water rose as high as 0.2 meters. Its effects were recorded at 10 places in at least 4 countries. It killed 4 people, 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
- June 17, 1928, 03:19:33 UTC
- Source
- S. Mexico
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 7.7, 35 km deep
- Maximum water height
- 0.2 m (0.7 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 10
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- 1
- Tsunami magnitude (Iida)
- 3
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Definite tsunami
- Source location
- 16.028° N, 97.036° W
The toll
- Deaths
- 4 with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 million); Moderate (about $1 to $5 million) 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.
1928, June 17, 03:19:27 UTC. 16.25 N, 98 W, M=7.8. A very strong earthquake in the states of Oaxaca, Guerrero, Pueblo, Tlaxcala, Mexico, Michoacan, Veracruz, Hidalgo and partly in the state of Tabasco generated a tsunami.
At Puerto Angel, the water advanced 55 m, destroying the warehouse on the embankment. At Chakahua, the water advanced 45 m inland.
The tsunami was registered by tide gauges in California: at La Jolla with am amplitude of 10 cm and at San Francisco with an amplitude of less than 10 cm.
After 8.4 hours (at 1:18 on the 17th), the tsunami reached Hilo (Hawaiian islands), where it was registered by a tide gauge. The water rose and fell 0.4 m (1.3 feet); the wave period was 12-22 minutes; the oscillations lasted more than a day. At Honolulu, the tsunami had an amplitude of 5 cm and a period of 16 min on the record of the tide gauge.
The tsunami was registered by the tide gauge at Apia (Samoa Island) 14.7 hours after the earthquake.
(above from 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chacalma (Chakahua, Chacahua) | Mexico | 58 | 45 | Eyewitness observation of water height | |||
| Puerto Angel | Mexico | 71 | 55 | Eyewitness observation of water height | |||
| Huatulco | Mexico | 79 | Eyewitness observation of water height | ||||
| San Diego, CA, CA | United States | 2,745 | 0.02 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | |||
| La Jolla, CA, CA | United States | 2,762 | 0.1 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | |||
| San Francisco, CA, CA | United States | 3,471 | 0.1 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | |||
| Tofino (Clayoquot),british Columbia, BC | Canada | 4,510 | 0.04 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 17, 20:20 | ||
| Hilo, Hawaii, HI, HI | United States | 6,134 | 0.2 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 16, 11:18 | ||
| Honolulu, Oahu, HI, HI | United States | 6,407 | 0.05 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 16, 12:00 | ||
| Apia, Upolu Island | Samoa | 8,858 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 16, 18:01 |
More
Every tsunami in 1928The 1900sTsunamis of MexicoThe 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 1605.