June 17, 1973 Tsunami: Hokkaido Island, Japan

Name: June 17, 1973 Tsunami: Hokkaido Island, Japan
Start: 1973-06-17
Location: Hokkaido Island, Japan

June 17, 1973 · 5.96 m · $5 million · 2 houses destroyed · Definite tsunami

A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7.7 earthquake began at Hokkaido Island, Japan on June 17, 1973 at 03:55:02 UTC. The water rose as high as 5.96 meters. Its effects were recorded at 72 places in at least 5 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

Tsunami warnings in force

Travel times

How long the first wave took to reach each part of the ocean, one line for each hour up to 24, estimated from the source and the depth of the sea.

The travel times are computed in your browser, which needs JavaScript.

1 to 4 hours
5 to 6 hours
7 to 14 hours
15 hours and more

Computed in your browser the way NOAA’s own travel time maps are: the wave travels at the square root of gravity times the depth, over NOAA’s ETOPO1 depths averaged to a 10 arc-minute grid. Checked against NOAA NCEI’s maps for 21 tsunamis over the first 24 hours, these lines fall within 10 minutes of NCEI’s at half the points compared and within 52 minutes at 9 in 10. They give when the first wave could arrive, not how high it is; bays, harbors and island chains finer than the grid can see it later. Not for use in a warning: see tsunami.gov.

The tsunami

Date: June 17, 1973, 03:55:02 UTC
Source: Hokkaido Island, Japan
Cause: Earthquake
Earthquake: Magnitude 7.7, 48 km deep
Maximum water height: 5.96 m (19.6 ft)
Runups recorded: 72
Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura): 1
Tsunami magnitude (Iida): 2.2
Waters: Ocean
How certain: Definite tsunami
Source location: 43.200° N, 145.800° E

The toll

Injuries: Few (about 1 to 50); 27 with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
Damage: $5 million
Houses destroyed: 2

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.

The tsunami caused damage to structures on the coast of Nemuro Island. The tsunami was recorded by tide gauges on Kuril Island and the Pacific Coast of Japan.

Two houses destroyed, 3 ships sunk and 1 ship swept away in Kushiro-Nemuro area. (reference #150)

Earthquake and tsunami caused more than $5 million damage and injured 23 persons. (reference #2584)

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	Measured by	First wave, UTC
Habomai	Japan	15	1.7	Eyewitness observation of water height
Okineppu	Japan	17	1.3	Eyewitness observation of water height
Goyomai-Ikku	Japan	19	1.6	Eyewitness observation of water height
Goyomaiko	Japan	19	1.63	Eyewitness observation of water height
Katsuragiko	Japan	19	1.3	Eyewitness observation of water height
Konbumori (Nemuro)	Japan	20	2	Eyewitness observation of water height
Onnemotoko	Japan	20	1.5	Eyewitness observation of water height
Hanasaki	Japan	21	2.8	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Ochiishiko	Japan	23	2.94	Eyewitness observation of water height
Nemuroko	Japan	24	1.52	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Fureshima	Japan	31	5.96	Eyewitness observation of water height
Ponporoto	Japan	52	4.5	Eyewitness observation of water height
Tofutsu	Japan	54	4	Eyewitness observation of water height
Hamanaka	Japan	56	2.25	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Kiritappu	Japan	56	2.2	Eyewitness observation of water height
Kiritappumizutoriba	Japan	56	2.5	Eyewitness observation of water height
Hichirippu	Japan	65	4	Eyewitness observation of water height
Mochirippu	Japan	66	4.5	Eyewitness observation of water height
Tokotan	Japan	79	2.5	Eyewitness observation of water height
Senposhi	Japan	90	2	Eyewitness observation of water height
Yuzhno-Kuril'Sk, Kunashir Island	Russia	92	0.2
Shikotan Island, Kurilskiye	Russia	100	1.5
Konbumori	Japan	107	1.2	Eyewitness observation of water height
Kushiro	Japan	119	0.48	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Abashiri	Japan	152	0.09	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Tokachi	Japan	225	0.55	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Tokachiko	Japan	225	1.07	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Tokachiko	Japan	225	0.54	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Hiroo	Japan	227	1
Mombetsu	Japan	234	0.1	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Shoya	Japan	243	1	Eyewitness observation of water height
Urakawa	Japan	274	0.49	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Tomakomainishiko	Japan	347	0.23	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Muroran	Japan	408	0.14	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Wakkanai	Japan	410	0.08	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Yamasedomarigyoko	Japan	416	0.17	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Moriko	Japan	443	0.04	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Hakodate	Japan	449	0.33	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Hachinohe	Japan	462	0.52	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Hachinohe (Kensetsukyoku)	Japan	464	0.19	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Kujiko	Japan	470	0.44	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Shimanokoshigyoko	Japan	488	0.4	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Taro	Japan	500	0.45	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Miyako	Japan	507	0.39	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Kamaishi	Japan	546	0.4	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Ofunato	Japan	576	0.16	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Kesennumagyoko	Japan	594	0.3	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Enoshima	Japan	640	0.08	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Ayukawa	Japan	654	0.23	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Sendaishinko	Japan	680	0.25	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Somako	Japan	725	0.24	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Onahama	Japan	811	0.18	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Hitachiko	Japan	865	0.2	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Oaraiko	Japan	883	0.13	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Choshi	Japan	929	0.17	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Katsuura	Japan	1,015	0.06	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Mera	Japan	1,054	0.1	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Minami-Izu	Japan	1,125	0.06	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Omaezaki	Japan	1,157	0.13	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Nagashima	Japan	1,195	0.11	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Owase	Japan	1,311	0.12	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Kushimoto	Japan	1,389	0.24	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Murotomisaki	Japan	1,498	0.17	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Attu, Massacre Bay, AK, AK	United States	2,288	0.05	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Nawiliwili, Kauai, HI, HI	United States	5,546	0.1	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Honolulu, Oahu, HI, HI	United States	5,711	0.1	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Kahului, Maui, HI, HI	United States	5,852	0.15	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Hilo, Hawaii, HI, HI	United States	6,049	0.1	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Tofino (Clayoquot),british Columbia, BC	Canada	6,451	0.03	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)	day 17, 13:45
Pago Pago, American Samoa, AS	US Territories	7,755	0.05	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Katsaka Bay, Iturup, Kurilskiye	Russia		0.6	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)
Whale Bay, Iturup Is, Kurilskiye	Russia		0.36	Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height)

Every tsunami in 1973 The 1900s Tsunamis of Japan The earthquake This day in weather history Alerts 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 2060.