May 15, 1979 Tsunami: Crete, Greece
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 5.6 earthquake began at Crete, Greece on May 15, 1979 at 06:59:21 UTC. 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
- May 15, 1979, 06:59:21 UTC
- Source
- Crete, Greece
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 5.6, 33 km deep
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- 1
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- An event that only caused a seiche
- Source location
- 34.530° N, 24.437° 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.
Most probably a strong seiche (reference #29)
Earthquake in the sea about 80 km far from the southern coast of Crete. Antonopoulos (reference #29), who quotes the Bulletin of the Seismological Institute of Athens, reports that small crafts were at risk due to tsunami waves. However he postulates that the cause of the disturbance is possibly a strong seiche.
very improbable tsunami (reference #4139)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Coasts of Crete doubtful | Greece | 63 | Other |
More
Every tsunami in 1979The 1900sTsunamis of GreeceThe 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 2915.