September 5, 1949 Tsunami: Northern Luzon Island, Philippines
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 6.4 earthquake began at Northern Luzon Island, Philippines on September 5, 1949 at 02:54:01 UTC. The water rose as high as 0.1 meters. 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
- September 5, 1949, 02:54:01 UTC
- Source
- Northern Luzon Island, Philippines
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 6.4, 80 km deep
- Maximum water height
- 0.1 m (0.3 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- -4
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- An event that only caused a seiche
- Source location
- 17.000° N, 121.500° 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.
Reference #414:
1949, September 5, 10:54 [local time], 17 N, 121.5 E, depth 80 km, magnitude 6, erroneous tsunami. There was an earthquake with source on the north of Luzon Island. It was felt with a force of 4-5 degrees (V Rossi-Forel) at Tuguegarao, 4 degrees (IV) at Manila, with oscillations lasting 30 seconds, 3 degrees at Aparri arid 2 degrees at Ragio and Vigan. Two aftershocks were felt (Minoza et al. , no date). There is an unclear record from the tide gauge at Manila, which can be interpreted as a tsunami or seiches with a height of 10 cm and a period of 17 min. [Undoubtedly seiches.] [5.IX; 2h54m01s; 17 deg N., 121.5 deg E; 80 km; M=6.4,]. Listed as “erroneous reference to a tsunami which has entered the scientific literature”
Reference #79:
1949, September 5, 02:54 UTC, 18.5 N, 122 E, Babuyan Channel. Tsunami observed at Manila 0.1 m. Uncertain record.
Reference #10958 lists as doubtful tsunami event with seiches noted in Northern Luzon
Note: Reference #12345 lists this event as validity 3 (probable). (accessed August 2024)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manila | Philippines | 271 | 0.1 | Other |
More
Every tsunami in 1949The 1900sTsunamis of PhilippinesThe 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 1797.