tsunami news stories on Newser

Alaska Hit By 'Unprecedented' Tsunami Debris

Evann Gastaldo — Wed, 23 May 2012 10:00:19 CDT

Buoys by the hundreds are just part of the "unprecedented" waves of debris washing up on Alaska's shores. Montague Island, located some 120 miles southeast of Anchorage, has lately seen a steady stream of buoys, styrofoam, and other items that have made their way across the Pacific, likely in the...

Tsunami Motorcycle Washes Up

Rob Quinn — Wed, 02 May 2012 02:35:48 CDT

As more tsunami debris washes up in North America , more Japanese survivors may be reunited with lost items—but there'll probably be only one motorcycle. A Harley Davidson that had drifted thousands of miles across the Pacific in a container its owner had been using as a garage was found...

Tsunami Debris: What to Expect

Rob Quinn — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 04:00:00 CDT

As debris from the Japanese tsunami—including a ghost ship and a soccer ball —begins to reach the shores of the US and Canada, officials want the public to know what to expect. Huge amounts of debris are expected to wash up, but with the debris field having dispersed over...

Alaskans Find Prized Soccer Ball Lost in Tsunami

Rob Quinn — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 03:28:34 CDT

A 16-year-old Japanese boy is getting one of his most prized possessions back more than a year after the tsunami destroyed his home and much of his hometown. Misaki Murakami's soccer ball, inscribed with his name and messages of support from his classmates, washed up on an Alaskan island where...

Poseidon's Ancient Wrath? Probably a Tsunami

Kevin Spak — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 13:06:23 CDT

Herodotus tells it this way: As the Persians were charging toward a Greek town, the sea receded, and then mighty Poseidon sent a crushing wave down upon them, a "great flood-tide of the sea, higher than ever before." Now, modern scientists have found evidence that it actually happened, Live Science...

After Indonesia's 8.6 Quake, an 8.2 Aftershock

Mary Papenfuss — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 07:48:07 CDT

Indonesia has responded to a powerful 8.6-magnitude earthquake that struck beneath the ocean floor off the westernmost province of Aceh by issuing a tsunami warning for the entire Indian Ocean. And while it ultimately spawned a wave just 30 inches high that caused no serious damage, there's no rest...

US Sinks Tsunami Ghost Ship

Kevin Spak — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 06:34:49 CDT

A Japanese derelict that's been aimlessly roaming the ocean since last year's tsunami has been sent to Davy Jones' Locker at last. A US Coast Guard cutter opened fire on the Ryou-Un Maru off the coast of Alaska yesterday with high explosive ammunition, setting it on fire and sending smoke...

Tsunami Ghost Ship to Rest in Watery Grave

Kate Schwartz — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 06:27:44 CDT

The ghostly Japanese squid-fishing boat that has been drifting its way across the Pacific in the wake of the March 2011 tsunami has been given a fate: It will be sunk. The US Coast Guard plans to use a 25-millimeter cannon to stud the unmanned ship's hull with holes this...

Tsunami 'Ghost Ship' Spotted Off Coast

Neal Colgrass — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 14:47:40 CDT

Canadian air patrol has spotted an empty Japanese squid-fishing boat drifting across the Pacific and heading for land. Beat-up and likely worthless, the 150-foot ship is part of 20 million tons of tsunami debris floating toward US and Canadian shores—so Canadian authorities may just leave it alone, the Vancouver...