August 4, 1946 Tsunami: Northeastern Coast, Dominican Republic
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7.9 earthquake began at Northeastern Coast, Dominican Republic on August 4, 1946 at 17:51:05 UTC. The water rose as high as 5 meters. Its effects were recorded at 8 places in at least 4 countries. It killed 1,790 people.
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
- August 4, 1946, 17:51:05 UTC
- Source
- Northeastern Coast, Dominican Republic
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 7.9, 15 km deep
- Maximum water height
- 5 m (16.4 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 8
- Tsunami magnitude (Iida)
- 2.2
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Definite tsunami
- Source location
- 19.250° N, 69.000° W
The toll
- Deaths
- 1,790
- Damage
- Severe (about $5 to $25 million)
- Houses destroyed
- Many (101 to 1,000)
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.
A magnitude 8.1 earthquake devastated the Dominican Republic, extended into Haiti, and shook many other islands. Lynch and Bodle (reference #251) suggest that the epicentral region was very extended. It originated 64 km offshore, northeast of the village of Julia Molina (now called Nagua) in the Mona Passage. The greatest damage and loss of life occurred at Matanzas (Matancitas) and nearby coastal towns where a 2.5 m tsunami flattened homes and buildings. Approximately 1,790 people were killed by the tsunami.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cabo Samana | Dominican Republic | 17 | Eyewitness observation of water height | ||||
| Matanzas | Dominican Republic | 88 | 2.5 | 1,000 | Eyewitness observation of water height | 1,790 | |
| Nagua | Dominican Republic | 88 | 5 | Eyewitness observation of water height | |||
| Rio Boba | Dominican Republic | 94 | 5 | Eyewitness observation of water height | |||
| San Juan, PR | US Territories | 314 | 0.66 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 4, 18:27 | ||
| Bermuda | Bermuda (UK Territory) | 1,515 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 4, 19:58 | |||
| Daytona Beach, FL, FL | United States | 1,642 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 4, 21:50 | |||
| Atlantic City, NJ, NJ | United States | 2,289 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 4, 22:40 |
More
Every tsunami in 1946The 1900sTsunamis of Dominican RepublicThe 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 1765.