Old video shared as recent tsunami in Indonesia’s Palu

The footage shows a 2018 tsunami on Sulawesi Island following a 7.5 magnitude earthquake.

Magnitude-5.4 offshore earthquake occurred off Maluku Province, Indonesia on 16 December 2024.There were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries from the quake. Following this, a video of large waves crashing against a shore has gone viral on social media with the claim that it depicts a recent tsunami in Palu, the capital and largest city of Central Sulawesi province in Indonesia. The caption states, “This footage shows the catastrophic moment when #tsunami hit the city of Palu after 7.7 magnitude #earthquake shook the city this evening”.

Pray for these people! We have no chance against the nature , never forget that!

This footage shows the catastrophic moment when #tsunami hit the city of Palu after 7.7 magnitude #earthquake shook the city this evening. #prayforpalu #prayforindonesia pic.twitter.com/FZ33SbHat3

— Miau (@Just_talkwme) December 17, 2024

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Fact Check-

We conducted a reverse image search on Google with the key frames of the viral video and the results led us to a similar video uploaded on Twitter by CNN under the caption, “At least one person died and 10 were injured, according to Indonesia’s Disaster Management Agency, after a series of earthquakes struck the island of Sulawesi on Friday afternoon”. It was uploaded on 29 September 2018.

At least one person died and 10 were injured, according to Indonesia's Disaster Management Agency, after a series of earthquakes struck the island of Sulawesi on Friday afternoon. https://t.co/spWIXkumlt pic.twitter.com/pbJ6yV04tZ

— CNN International (@cnni) September 29, 2018

Moving forward, we came across a BBC article published on 29 September, 2018 carrying the same video. The caption states “Indonesia earthquake: Hundreds dead in Palu quake and tsunami,” identified the video as depicting the aftermath of a 7.5 magnitude earthquake that triggered a tsunami in Palu, Indonesia.

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All these evidences confirms that the video is over six years old. There are no credible media reports indicating that Palu, Indonesia, experienced a tsunami following an earthquake on 17 December 2024

As per reports, on 28 September 2018, a 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, resulting in 1.5 metre tsunami waves that caused widespread damage and destruction to the areas of Palu and Donggala. As many as 3,879 people were killed in the earthquake, tsunami and liquefication that struck Palu in 2018. From the total number of casualties, it was suspected that 1,252 victims were killed in the tsunami.

Conclusion–

Fact Crescendo found the claim made along with the viral video to be False. The footage shows a 2018 tsunami on Sulawesi Island following a 7.5 magnitude earthquake. There were no reports of tsunami in December 2024 in Palu, Indonesia.