February 8, 1987 Tsunami: Solomon Sea, Papua New Guinea
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7.4 earthquake began at Solomon Sea, Papua New Guinea on February 8, 1987 at 18:33:58 UTC. The water rose as high as 1.5 meters. Its effects were recorded at 1 place. It killed 3 people, counting the earthquake or eruption that caused it.
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
- February 8, 1987, 18:33:58 UTC
- Source
- Solomon Sea, Papua New Guinea
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 7.4, 55 km deep
- Maximum water height
- 1.5 m (4.9 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Tsunami magnitude (Iida)
- 1
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Definite tsunami
- Source location
- 6.088° S, 147.689° E
The toll
- Deaths
- 3 with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
- Damage
- $2.6 million with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
- Houses destroyed
- Many (101 to 1,000) with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
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 7.4 Ms earthquake at 18:33 UT at East Papua, New Guinea killed three people with a landslide and did other damage. A tsunami struck Umboi but the people had been evacuated. (reference #1315)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Umboi Island (Ruk, Rooke, Siassi) | Papua New Guinea | 64 | 1.5 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1987The 1900sTsunamis of Papua New GuineaThe 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 2168.