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The area in the foreground has been cleared. Heavy machinery, mill rollers, and metal stocks were strewn about by the waves. Hilo was the hardest hit city in the Hawaiian Islands. The tsunami arrived at Hilo about 15 hours after it originated off the coast of south central Chile, 6,600 miles distant. The runup at Hilo was measured at 10.7 m. The tsunami changed into a bore as it passed the harbor entrance and advanced on to the bay front. The business district along Kamehameha Avenue and the adjoining low-lying residential areas of Waiakea and Shimachi were destroyed. Damage to property included 229 dwellings and 308 business and public buildings. Between the Wailoa and Wailuku Rivers, the water washed inland as far as the 6 m(20 ft) contour above sea level. Image Credit: U.S. Geological Survey May 22, 1960 Puerto Montt, Valdivia Chile earthquake and tsunami On May 22, 1960, a Mw 9.5 earthquake, the largest earthquake ever instrumentally recorded, occurred in southern Chile. The series of earthquakes that followed ravaged southern Chile and ruptured over a period of days a 1,000 km section of the fault, one of the longest ruptures ever reported. The number of fatalities associated with both the earthquake and tsunami has been estimated to be between 490 and 5,700. Reportedly there were 3,000 injured, and initially there were 717 missing in Chile. The Chilean government estimated 2,000,000 people were left homeless and 58,622 houses were completely destroyed. Damage (including tsunami damage) was more than $500 million U.S. dollars. Event Data:
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