2017 tsunami video from Durban shared as Turkey after Earthquake

The video shows a heavy tidal wave on a beach in Durban, South Africa, and dates to back to 2017. It has no connection to the recent earthquake in Turkey.

A magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit Turkey and neighbouring Syria early on 6 February, 2023, killing more than 6,000 people and injuring thousands of others. In the wake of this several unverified images, videos, and claims have surfaced on social media. 

Amidst this we have noticed a viral video showing huge waves flooding a beach with the caption“#Tsunami and #earthquake in #Turkey #earthquakeinturkey #TurkeyEarthquake #turkeyearthquake2023 #turkeyhelp.” 

Let’s check the truth.

Tweet Link | Archive Link

Fact Check- 

Our investigation began with a reverse image search of key frames from the viral video, which led us to a YouTube post that matched the viral video exactly. The video was uploaded to the Connect News SA channel 5 years ago. The caption states “Durban hit by mini tsunami” with a description Durban North Beach was hit by massive waves caused by a cyclone.

We searched more with the keywords and found multiple reports of the incident. According to a report in The Mirror from the time, the incident, which was referred to as a “mini-tsunami” was the result of a cyclone weather system off the coast of Madagascar. 

As per a report published in The Telegraph on 14 March 2017, Durban’s North Beach experienced an unexpected “mini-tsunami” when a massive wave crashed against the coastline, causing damage to beachside businesses and killing at least three people. The cyclone weather system off the Madagascar coast was responsible for the storm along the north beach in Durban, which caused the ‘mini Tsunami’, the report added.

Later we found a tweet of The Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) on 6 February, as there was no threat of a tsunami at the time to the eastern Mediterranean coastline following the earthquakes.

Conclusion- 

Fact Crescendo found the claim made along with the viral video to be False. The video shows a heavy tidal wave on a beach in Durban, South Africa, and dates to back to 2017. It has no connection to the recent earthquake in Turkey.