March 16, 2014 Tsunami: Northern Chile
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 6.7 earthquake began at Northern Chile on March 16, 2014 at 21:16:29 UTC. The water rose as high as 0.26 meters. Its effects were recorded at 7 places in at least 2 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
- March 16, 2014, 21:16:29 UTC
- Source
- Northern Chile
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 6.7, 20 km deep
- Maximum water height
- 0.26 m (0.9 ft)
- Runups recorded
- 7
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Definite tsunami
- Source location
- 19.981° S, 70.702° W
The toll
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 million) 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.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Iquique | Chile | 63 | 0.17 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 16, 21:34 | ||
| Pisagua | Chile | 67 | 0.16 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 16, 21:32 | ||
| Patache | Chile | 105 | 0.26 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 16, 21:43 | ||
| Arica | Chile | 171 | 0.12 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | day 16, 22:04 | ||
| Tocopilla | Chile | 239 | 0.07 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | |||
| Matarani | Peru | 362 | 0.07 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) | |||
| San Felix | Chile | 1,190 | 0.08 | Tide gauge (half the maximum wave height) |
More
Every tsunami in 2014The 2000sTsunamis of ChileThe 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 5555.