Historedia
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Saint Petersburg flood of 1824

When
1824
Where
Saint Petersburg
Episodes
1

The catastrophic flood of 1824 in Saint Petersburg saw water reach 4.21 metres above sea level, destroying over 300 buildings. Sources record several hundred deaths, indicating the legacy figure of 200 fatalities is likely a severe undercount. The event remains the largest flood recorded in the city's history.

Episodes

  1. 1824 · Saint Petersburg1824 Flood Occurrence

    Water reached 4.21 metres above sea level, destroying over 300 buildings in Saint Petersburg.

Background and detail

Background. Saint Petersburg is prone to flooding caused by long waves in the Baltic Sea, winds, and the shallow Neva Bay. Floods are registered when water rises above 160 cm at the Mining Institute gauge. The 1824 event was the largest recorded, classified as catastrophic due to its height exceeding 300 cm.

Impact. The flood resulted in the destruction of more than 300 buildings. The human toll is contested; while legacy data suggests 200 deaths, historical sources state that several hundred people were killed, indicating the legacy figure is likely a severe undercount of the actual casualties.

Sources

  1. Floods in Saint Petersburg Wikipedia, revision of 2026-06-04
  2. Saint Petersburg Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-28

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.