The 9 March 1957 Aleutian Earthquake and Tsunami

On March 9, 1957, an 8.3 magnitude earthquake south of the Andrean of Islands, in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska (in the same general area as that of April 1, 1946) generated a Pacific-wide tsunami. Although no lives were lost, there was extensive destruction of property in the Hawaiian Islands, with damage estimated at approximately US$5 million (1957 dollars). The waves were particularly high on the north shore of the island of Kauai where they reached a maximum height of 16 metres, flooding the highway and destroying houses and bridges. This was twice the height of the 1946 tsunami. At Hilo, Hawaii, the tsunami runup reached 3.9 m and there was damage to numerous buildings along the waterfront. Within Hilo Bay, Coconut Island was covered by 1 m of water and the bridge connecting it to the shore, as in 1952, was again destroyed.

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