January 15, 2009 Tsunami: Kamchatka, Russia
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7.4 earthquake began at Kamchatka, Russia on January 15, 2009 at 17:49:39 UTC. The water rose as high as 0.11 meters. Its effects were recorded at 11 places in at least 4 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
The tsunami
- Date
- January 15, 2009, 17:49:39 UTC
- Source
- Kamchatka, Russia
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 7.4, 36 km deep
- Maximum water height
- 0.11 m (0.4 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 11
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Definite tsunami
- Source location
- 46.857° N, 155.154° E
The toll
The record gives no deaths, injuries or damage for this tsunami.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Severo-Kurilsk, Paramushir Island | Russia | 432 | 0.11 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 15, 19:17 | ||
| Cape Van Der Linde, Urup, Kurils | Russia | 473 | 0.05 | Deep ocean gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 15, 18:19 | ||
| D21416, Kamchatka | Russia | 543 | 0.02 | Deep ocean gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 15, 18:34 | ||
| Malokuril'Skaya Bay, Shikotan | Russia | 732 | 0.05 | Deep ocean gauge (half the maximum wave height) | |||
| D21418 Bpr, NE Tokyo, Japan | Japan | 1,048 | Deep ocean gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 15, 19:04 | |||
| D21413, SE Tokyo, Japan | Japan | 1,829 | 0.01 | Deep ocean gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 15, 19:55 | ||
| D46413 Bpr, East of Adak, AK, AK | United States | 2,186 | 0.01 | Deep ocean gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 15, 20:32 | ||
| Wake Island, UM | US Territories | 3,232 | 0.03 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 15, 21:52 | ||
| Ishigakiko | Japan | 3,715 | 0.03 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 15, 23:01 | ||
| Port Orford, OR, OR | United States | 6,087 | 0.03 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | |||
| Arena Cove, CA, CA | United States | 6,387 | 0.04 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 16, 02:21 |
More
Every tsunami in 2009The 2000sTsunamis of RussiaThe 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 3691.