[mazsa]

My favorite word of mouth story is about a tsunami as well: https://web.archive.org/web/20120322110734/http://mdn.mainic...

edit: No. This is the real word of mouth story:

"Some 50 generations later, on March 11, 2011, the Murohama tsunami warning tower — which was supposed to sound an alarm — was silent, toppled by the temblor. Still, without the benefit of an official warning system supported by modern science, the locals relied on the lesson that had been transmitted generation to generation for 1,000 years. “We all know the story about the two tsunami waves that collided at the shrine,” I was told.

Instead of taking refuge on the closest hill, the one with the shrine, they took the time to get to high ground farther away. From the safety of their vantage point they saw two tsunami waves colliding at the hill with the shrine, as they did long ago. Tragically, not everyone made the right choice; I was told of at least one person who died." https://www.latimes.com/opinion/la-xpm-2012-mar-11-la-oe-hol...

[awb]

Japan also has tsunami stones in some coastal communities:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/century-old-warnin...