May 17, 1992 Tsunami: Philippines
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7.3 earthquake began at Philippines on May 17, 1992 at 10:15:31 UTC. The water rose as high as 6 meters. Its effects were recorded at 3 places.
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 17, 1992, 10:15:31 UTC
- Source
- Philippines
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 7.3, 33 km deep
- Maximum water height
- 6 m (19.7 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 3
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Definite tsunami
- Source location
- 7.191° N, 126.762° E
The toll
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 million)
- Houses destroyed
- 12
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.
1992, May 17. A magnitude 7.5 Ms (USGS) earthquake at 10:15 UT near Mindanao, Philippines, caused minor damage at Tandag, and Bislig. A small tsunami was generated. Validity 4. (reference #1315)
In barangay Santa Fe, Caraga, the residents saw the sea retreat by about 50 meters offshore. This was followed by the onrush of waves which carried them for about two minutes. The impact of the onrushing wave was so strong that it uprooted a shallow, 4-m tall coconut palm tree standing along the shore. Six fishermen each aboard their fishing boats were washed ashore. Meanwhile, several boats located along the coast were destroyed by the oncoming giant waves. In sitio Bunga of the town of Manay, 12 stilt houses were destroyed by a 5-meter high tsunami near the shoreline. The residents recounted that they observed a series of at least three tsunami waves (the third being the tallest) coming in quick succession in less than a minute of time interval. Based on the extent of dead vegetation and sand distribution in the sloping parts of the area, the estimated height could have been 3-5 m. (reference #10958)
1992, May 17. Recent field investigations showed that
tsunami intensity generally decreases southwards and northwards relative to Bunga and Zaragoza areas. There was an unusually high tsunami wave height (~6m) at Bunga that
was most probably due to local site effect. Tsunami waves were generally preceded by the lowering of sea water level while the tsunami arrival times have some variation particularly in Bobon and Panompon. The period of the tsunami wave was quite difficult to determine because of sketchy details and so much variation in terms of the number of waves that attacked the areas investigated.
In terms of regional and local geomorphological effects, the 1992 event caused very minor changes. Tsunami sediments were dumped in very few places. It was noted that the coral reefs located between 100-250m from the shore of eastern Mindanao were the coastal features that most probably attenuate the effects tsunami. Local subsidence was likewise observed west of the affected areas.
(reference #2946)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bunga | Philippines | 22 | 6 | Runup height, post-tsunami survey | |||
| Zaragoza | Philippines | 26 | 1 | Runup height, post-tsunami survey | day 17, 10:16 | ||
| Santa Fe, Caraga | Philippines | 27 | 3 | Runup height, post-tsunami survey |
More
Every tsunami in 1992The 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 2209.