October 23, 2006 Tsunami: Southwest Australia
A tsunami of meteorological origin began at Southwest Australia on October 23, 2006. The water rose as high as 0.3 meters. Its effects were recorded at 2 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
- October 23, 2006
- Source
- Southwest Australia
- Cause
- Meteorological
- Maximum water height
- 0.3 m (1.0 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 2
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Definite tsunami
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.
Thunderstorms with widespread wind gusts of 90–100 km h^-1 were reported in WA’s central coastal region in the early morning of 23 October 2006. These thunderstorms produced a meteotsunami, whose oscillations were recorded on tide gauges at Carnarvon and Geraldton […] Meteotsunami-like events were not observed at tide stations farther north, where spring tidal ranges are between 3 and 10 m. (reference #11089)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carnarvon | Australia | 0.3 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | ||||
| Geraldton | Australia | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) |
More
Every tsunami in 2006The 2000sTsunamis of AustraliaThis 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 6072.