Precursors of a catastrophic collapse

On the morning of the 13th of March 1888, the inhabitants of the Finschhafen trading post on the east coast of New Guinea were awakened by a dull rumbling sound. An eyewitness later reported that the water in the port had receded at the same time. A short time later, several two- to three-metre high waves hit the coast. It was a tsunami on that fateful morning that devastated the surrounding coasts. Several thousand people probably died in New Guinea and the Bismarck Archipelago.

* This article was originally published here