A Facebook reel circulating among Filipino netizens claims to show footage of a tsunami supposedly hitting the coast of Japan due to the earthquake that hit off the coast of Russia yesterday. This is false.
The video is an old clip of large waves crashing onto a beach in South Africa in 2017.
Published on July 30, the 63-second clip showed a scene taken from a high vantage point, with people on the ground running away from the waves. It carried text that read:
“Tumama na ang Tsunami sa Japan.
July 30, 2025. 8.8 magnitude Russia Earthquake.”
The erroneous post also carried the caption:
“Pray for them. #Godbles. BREAKING NEWS: RUMARAGASANG TSUNAMI, TUMAMA NA SA ISANG ISLA SA PASIPIΚΟ ΚΑΝΙ-ΚΑNINA LAMANG. Japan, Russia, Hawaii, save them and pray for them.”
A reverse image search using the keyframes from the video reveals that the clip dates back to 2017, when massive waves struck Durban Beach in South Africa.
The original video, uploaded on March 13, 2017 by the YouTube channel Connect News SA, was titled “Durban hit by mini tsunami.” Its description also states that “Durban North Beach was hit by massive waves caused by a cyclone.” Another outlet, SUN Newspapers, uploaded the same footage on the same day.
A news report dated March 14, 2017, which featured a snippet of the clip, noted that Durban Beach had been closed due to large waves triggered by a spring tide and Tropical Cyclone Enawo.
The false reel surfaced shortly after an 8.8 magnitude earthquake hit Russia’s far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula on July 30. The quake triggered a tsunami in parts of Russia and prompted evacuations and tsunami alerts in Japan, the United States, and other Pacific nations.
Posted by a Filipino Facebook user, the reel has so far garnered 3,000 views, 22 comments, and 64 shares. An earlier copy that received much more engagement has since been taken down.
