March 30, 1965 Tsunami: Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, AK, United States
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7.6 earthquake began at Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, AK, United States on March 30, 1965 at 02:27:03 UTC. The water rose as high as 0.1 meters. Its effects were recorded at 3 places in at least 2 countries.
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 30, 1965, 02:27:03 UTC
- Source
- Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, AK, United States
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 7.6, 20 km deep
- Maximum water height
- 0.1 m (0.3 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 3
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- -1
- Tsunami magnitude (Iida)
- -2.3
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Definite tsunami
- Source location
- 50.320° N, 177.930° 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.
This magnitude 7.4 earthquake was felt on Adak and Amchitka Islands; a resultant small tsunami was recorded on the tide gage at Massacre Bay, Attu. (reference #542)
1965, March 29, 16:27. An earthquake, felt on Amchitka and Adak Islands, caused a tsunami registered by tide gauges on Attu Island and at Hilo (Reference #414).
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attu, Massacre Bay, AK, AK | United States | 431 | 0.1 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | |||
| Hilo, Hawaii, HI, HI | United States | 4,147 | 0.1 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 30, 07:51 | ||
| Pago Pago, American Samoa, AS doubtful | US Territories | 7,242 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) |
More
Every tsunami in 1965The 1900sTsunamis of United StatesThe 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 1967.