List of natural disasters by death toll
A natural disaster is a sudden event that always causes widespread destruction, major collateral damage or loss of life, brought about by forces other than the acts of human beings. A natural disaster might be caused by earthquakes, flooding, volcanic eruption, landslide, hurricanes etc. To be classified as a disaster, it will have profound environmental effect and/or human loss and frequently causes financial loss.
Ten deadliest natural disasters by highest estimated death toll excluding epidemics and famines
This list takes into account only the highest estimated death toll for each disaster, and lists them accordingly. It does not include epidemics and famines. It does not include several volcanic eruptions with uncertain death tolls resulting from collateral effects such as crop failures; see List of volcanic eruptions by death toll. The list also does not include the 1938 Yellow River flood, which was caused by the deliberate destruction of dikes.
Death toll (Highest estimate) | Event | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|
4,000,000[1][nb 1] | 1931 China floods | China | July 1931 |
2,000,000[2][3][4] | 1887 Yellow River flood | September 1887 | |
830,000[5] | 1556 Shaanxi earthquake | January 23, 1556 | |
655,000 | 1976 Tangshan earthquake | July 28, 1976 | |
500,000+[1] | 1970 Bhola cyclone | East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) | November 13, 1970 |
316,000[6] | 2010 Haiti earthquake | Haiti | January 12, 2010 |
300,000+[7] | 526 Antioch earthquake | Byzantine Empire (now Turkey) | May 526 |
≈300,000[8] | 1839 Coringa cyclone | Andhra Pradesh, India | November 25, 1839 |
273,400[9] | 1920 Haiyuan earthquake | China | December 16, 1920 |
229,000 | Typhoon Nina | August 7, 1975 | |
Ten deadliest natural disasters since 1900 excluding epidemics and famines
Note: This list does not include industrial or technological accidents, epidemics, famines or the 1938 Yellow River flood.
Death toll (estimate) | Event* | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|
422,499–4,000,000[10] | 1931 China floods | China | July 1931 |
242,000–655,000 | 1976 Tangshan earthquake | July 28, 1976 | |
500,000+[1] | 1970 Bhola cyclone | East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) | November 1970 |
273,400 | 1920 Haiyuan earthquake | China | December 16, 1920 |
229,000 | 1975 Typhoon Nina—contributed to Banqiao Dam failure | August 7, 1975 | |
227,898 | 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami | Indian Ocean | December 26, 2004 |
100,000–316,000[11] | 2010 Haiti earthquake | Haiti | January 12, 2010 |
145,000 | 1935 Yangtze flood | China | July 1935 |
143,000 | 1923 Great Kantō earthquake | Japan | September 1, 1923 |
138,866 | 1991 Bangladesh cyclone | Bangladesh | April 29, 1991 |
Deadliest natural disasters by year excluding epidemics and famines
Year | Death toll | Event | Location | Type | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1920 | 200,000–273,400 | 1920 Haiyuan earthquake | China, Mongolia | Earthquake | December 16 |
1921 | 215 | September 1921 San Antonio floods | United States | Flood | September 7 –11 |
1922 | 50,000–100,000+ | 1922 Swatow typhoon | Philippines, China | Tropical cyclone | July 27 –August 3 |
1923 | 142,800 | 1923 Great Kantō earthquake | Japan | Earthquake | September 1 |
1924 | 1,000 | 1924 India floods | India | Flood | July |
1925 | 5,000 | 1925 Dali earthquake | China | Earthquake | March 16 |
1926 | 709 | 1926 Havana–Bermuda hurricane | Cuba, United States, Bahamas, Bermuda | Tropical cyclone | October 14 –28 |
1927 | 40,900 | 1927 Gulang earthquake | China, Tibet | Earthquake | May 22 |
1928 | 4,112+ | 1928 Okeechobee hurricane | United States, Puerto Rico, Guadeloupe, Bahamas, Dominica, | Tropical cyclone | September 12 –21 |
1929 | 3,257–3,800 | 1929 Kopet Dag earthquake | Iran, Turkmenistan | Earthquake | May 1 |
1930 | 2,000–8,000 | 1930 San Zenón hurricane | Dominican Republic | Tropical cyclone | September 3 |
1931 | 422,499–4,000,000 | 1931 China floods | China | Flood | July – November |
1932 | 3,103+ | 1932 Cuba hurricane | Cayman Islands, Cuba | Tropical cyclone | November 9 |
1933 | 6,865–9,300 | 1933 Diexi earthquake | China | Earthquake | August 25 |
1934 | 10,700–12,000 | 1934 Nepal–India earthquake | Nepal, India | January 15 | |
1935 | 30,000–60,000 | 1935 Quetta earthquake | Pakistan | May 31 | |
1936 | 5,000+ | 1936 North American heat wave | United States, Canada | Heat wave | June – September |
1937 | 11,021 | 1937 Great Hong Kong typhoon | China | Tropical cyclone | September 2 |
1938 | 715 | 1938 Hanshin flood | Japan | Flood | July |
1939 | 32,700–32,968 | 1939 Erzincan earthquake | Turkey | Earthquake | December 27 |
1940 | 1,000 | 1940 Vrancea earthquake | Romania | November 10 | |
1941 | 1,200 | 1941 Jizan earthquake | Saudi Arabia | January 11 | |
1942 | 61,000 | 1942 West Bengal cyclone | India | Tropical cyclone | October 14 – 18 |
1943 | 4,020 | 1943 Tosya–Ladik earthquake | Turkey | Earthquake | November 27 |
1944 | 10,000 | 1944 San Juan earthquake | Argentina | January 15 | |
1945 | 4,000 | 1945 Balochistan earthquake | India, Pakistan | November 28 | |
1946 | 2,550 | 1946 Dominican Republic earthquake | Dominican Republic | August 4 | |
1947 | 1,077 | Typhoon Kathleen | Japan | Tropical cyclone | September 15 |
1948 | 10,000–110,000 | 1948 Ashgabat earthquake | Russia, Iran | Earthquake | October 6 |
1949 | 40,000 | 1949 Eastern Guatemalan floods | Guatemala | Flood | September 28 – October 14 |
1950 | 2,910 | 1950 Pakistan flood | Pakistan | ||
1951 | 4,800 | 1951 Manchuria flood | China | September 18 | |
1952 | 2,336 | 1952 Severo-Kurilsk earthquake | Russia | Earthquake | November 4 |
1953 | 2,566 | 1953 Northern Kyushu flood | Japan | Flood | July |
1954 | 33,000 | 1954 Yangtze floods | China | June – September | |
1955 | 1,023+ | Hurricane Janet | Lesser Antilles, Mexico | Tropical cyclone | September 22 – 30 |
1956 | 4,935 | Typhoon Wanda (1956) | China | August 1 | |
1957 | 1,200 | 1957 Hamadan Province earthquake | Iran | Earthquake | December 13 |
1958 | 1,269 | Typhoon Ida (1958) | Japan | Tropical cyclone | September 26 |
1959 | 5,000+ | Typhoon Vera | |||
1960 | 14,174 | Severe Cyclonic Storm Ten | East Pakistan ( now Bangladesh ) | October 31 | |
1961 | 11,468 | Cyclone Winnie | May 6 – 9 | ||
1962 | 12,225 | 1962 Buin Zahra earthquake | Iran | Earthquake | September 1 |
1963 | 22,000 | May 1963 East Pakistan II cyclone | East Pakistan ( now Bangladesh ) | Tropical cyclone | May 28 |
1964 | 7,000 | Tropical Storm Joan (1964) | Vietnam | November 4 – 11 | |
1965 | 47,000 | 1965 Bengal cyclones | East Pakistan ( now Bangladesh) | May 11 – 12 and June 1 – 2 | |
1966 | 2,394–3,000 | 1966 Varto earthquake | Turkey | Earthquake | August 19 |
1967 | 10,000 | 1967 Paradip cyclone | India | Tropical cyclone | October 26 – 30 |
1968 | 15,000 | 1968 Dasht-e Bayaz and Ferdows earthquakes | Iran | Earthquake | August 31 |
1969 | 3,000 | 1969 Yangjiang earthquake | China | July 26 | |
1970 | 500,000+ | 1970 Bhola cyclone | India, East Pakistan ( now Bangladesh ) | Tropical cyclone | November 3 |
1971 | 100,000 | Hanoi and Red River Delta flood | North Vietnam | Flood | August 1 |
1972 | 5,374 | 1972 Qir earthquake | Iran | Earthquake | April 10 |
1973 | 1,653 | 1973 Flores cyclone | Indonesia | Tropical cyclone | April 26 – 30 |
1974 | 8,210+ | Hurricane Fifi–Orlene | Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala, Belize, Mexico | September 18 – 20 | |
1975 | 229,000 | Typhoon Nina (1975) | China | August 7 | |
1976 | 242,769–655,000 | 1976 Tangshan earthquake | Earthquake | July 28 | |
1977 | 10,000–50,000 | 1977 Andhra Pradesh cyclone | India | Tropical cyclone | November 19 |
1978 | 15,000–25,000 | 1978 Tabas earthquake | Iran | Earthquake | September 16 |
1979 | 2,069 | Hurricane David | Dominican Republic, Dominica | Tropical cyclone | August 15 – September 8 |
1980 | 5,000 | 1980 El Asnam earthquake | Algeria | Earthquake | October 10 |
1981 | 3,000 | 1981 Golbaf earthquake | Iran | June 11 | |
1982 | 2,800 | 1982 North Yemen earthquake | Yemen | December 13 | |
1983 | 1,342 | 1983 Erzurum earthquake | Turkey | October 30 | |
1984 | 1,474 | Typhoon Ike | Philippines | Tropical cyclone | August 26 – September 6 |
1985 | 23,000 | Armero tragedy | Colombia | Volcanic eruption | November 14 |
1986 | 1,746 | Lake Nyos disaster | Cameroon | Limnic eruption | August 21 |
1987 | 5,000 | 1987 Ecuador earthquakes | Ecuador | Earthquake | March 6 |
1988 | 25,000 | 1988 Armenian earthquake | Armenia | December 7 | |
1989 | 3,814 | 1989 Sichuan flood | China | Flood | July 27 |
1990 | 50,000 | 1990 Manjil–Rudbar earthquake | Iran | Earthquake | June 21 |
1991 | 138,866 | 1991 Bangladesh cyclone | Bangladesh | Tropical cyclone | April 24 – 30 |
1992 | 2,500 | 1992 Flores earthquake and tsunami | Indonesia | Earthquake, Tsunami | December 12 |
1993 | 9,748 | 1993 Latur earthquake | India | Earthquake | September 30 |
1994 | 1,100 | 1994 Páez River earthquake | Colombia | June 6 | |
1995 | 6,434 | Great Hanshin earthquake | Japan | January 17 | |
1996 | 1,077 | 1996 Andhra Pradesh cyclone | India | Tropical cyclone | November 4 – 7 |
1997 | 3,123 | Tropical Storm Linda (1997) | Vietnam, Thailand | Tropical cyclone, Flood | November 1 – 9 |
1998 | 11,374 | Hurricane Mitch | Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala, Belize, Mexico | Tropical cyclone | October 22 – November 9 |
1999 | 17,127 | 1999 İzmit earthquake | Turkey | Earthquake | August 17 |
2000 | 800 | 2000 Mozambique flood | Mozambique | Flood | February – March |
Year | Death toll | Event | Location | Type | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2001 | 20,085 | 2001 Gujarat earthquake | India | Earthquake | January 26 |
2002 | 1,030 | 2002 Indian heat wave | Heat wave | May | |
2003 | 70,000 | 2003 European heat wave | France, Portugal, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Sweden, Italy, Luxemburg, Ireland | July – August | |
2004 | 227,898 | 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami | Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, Somalia | Earthquake, Tsunami | December 26 |
2005 | 87,351 | 2005 Kashmir earthquake | India, Pakistan | Earthquake | October 8 |
2006 | 5,782 | 2006 Yogyakarta earthquake | Indonesia | May 26 | |
2007 | 15,000 | Cyclone Sidr | Bangladesh, India | Tropical cyclone | November 11 – 16 |
2008 | 138,373 | Cyclone Nargis | Myanmar | April 27 – May 3 | |
2009 | 1,115 | 2009 Sumatra earthquakes | Indonesia | Earthquake | September 30 |
2010 | 100,000–316,000 | 2010 Haiti earthquake | Haiti | January 12 | |
2011 | 19,749 | 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami | Japan | Earthquake, Tsunami | March 11 |
2012 | 1,901 | Typhoon Bopha | Philippines | Tropical cyclone | December 4 – 5 |
2013 | 6,340 | Typhoon Haiyan | Philippines, Vietnam, China | November 8 – 10 | |
2014 | 2,700 | 2014 Badakhshan mudslides | Afghanistan | Landslide | May 2 |
2015 | 8,964 | April 2015 Nepal earthquake | Nepal, India | Earthquake | April 25 |
2016 | 1,111[12] | 2016 Indian heat wave | India | Heat wave | April – May |
2017 | 3,059 | Hurricane Maria | Puerto Rico, Dominica | Tropical cyclone | September 19 – 21 |
2018 | 4,340 | 2018 Sulawesi earthquake and tsunami | Indonesia | Earthquake, Tsunami | September 28 |
2019 | 1,600+ | 2019 Indian floods | India, Nepal | Flood | June – October |
2020 | 1,922[13] | 2020 Indian floods | India, Bangladesh | June – September | |
2021 | 2,248 | 2021 Haiti earthquake | Haiti | Earthquake | August 14 |
2022 | 450 | 2022 KwaZulu-Natal floods | South Africa | Flood | April 8-ongoing |
Lists of natural disasters by cause
Ten deadliest earthquakes
Rank | Death toll (estimate) | Event | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 830,000 | 1556 Shaanxi earthquake | Ming dynasty (now China) | January 23, 1556 |
2. | 242,769–655,000[14] | 1976 Tangshan earthquake | China | July 28, 1976 |
3. | 100,000−316,000 | 2010 Haiti earthquake | Haiti | January 12, 2010 |
4. | 273,400[9] | 1920 Haiyuan earthquake | Ningxia, Republic of China (now China) | December 16, 1920 |
5. | 250,000–300,000[7] | 526 Antioch earthquake | Byzantine Empire (now Turkey) | May 526 |
6. | 260,000[15] | 115 Antioch earthquake | Roman Empire (now Turkey) | December 13, 115 |
7. | 230,000 | 1138 Aleppo earthquake | Zengid dynasty (now Syria) | October 11, 1138 |
1139 Ganja earthquake | Azerbaijan and Georgia | 20 September 1139 | ||
8. | 227,898 | 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake | Indonesia | December 26, 2004 |
9. | 200,000 | 1303 Hongdong earthquake[16] | Mongol Empire (now China) | September 17, 1303 |
856 Damghan earthquake | Abbasid Caliphate (now Iran) | December 22, 856 | ||
1780 Tabriz earthquake | Iran | January 8, 1780 | ||
Ten deadliest famines
Note: Some of these famines may have been caused or partially caused by humans.
Note: This list is ranked by number of deaths not deaths per capita, as in the percentage of the population.
Rank | Death toll | Event | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 15,000,000–55,000,000 | Great Chinese Famine | China | 1959–1961 |
2. | 25,000,000[17] | Chinese famine of 1906–1907 | 1906–1907 | |
3. | 9,000,000–13,000,000[18] | Northern Chinese Famine of 1876–1879 | 1876–1879 | |
4. | 11,000,000 | Chalisa famine | India | 1783–1784 |
Doji bara famine or Skull famine | 1789–1793 | |||
6. | 10,000,000 | Great Bengal famine of 1770, incl. Bihar & Orissa | British India | 1769–1773 |
7. | 7,500,000 | Great European Famine | Europe | 1315–1317 |
8. | 7,400,000 | Deccan famine of 1630–1632 | Mughal Empire, now India | 1630–1632 |
9. | 5,000,000–8,000,000 | Soviet famine of 1932–1933 | Soviet Union | 1932–1933 |
10. | 5,500,000 | Indian Great Famine of 1876–1878 | British India | 1876–1878 |
Deadliest impact events
Note: Although there have been no scientifically verified cases of astronomical objects resulting in human fatalities, there have been several reported occurrences throughout human history. Consequently, the casualty figures for all events listed are considered unofficial.
Rank | Death toll (unofficial) | Location | Date | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 10,000+ | Qingyang, Gansu, China | 1490 | 1490 Ch'ing-yang event |
2. | "Tens" | Changshou District, Chongqing, China | 1639 | 10 homes destroyed[19][20] |
3. | 10+ | China | 616 AD | a large meteorite fell onto the rebel Lu Ming-Yueh's camp, destroying a wall-attacking tower[20][21] |
4. | 2 | Malacca ship, Indian Ocean | 1648 | 2 sailors killed on board a ship[20] |
Podkamennaya Tunguska River, Siberia, Russian Empire | 1908 | Tunguska event[19] | ||
6. | 1 | Cremona, Lombardy, Italy | 1511 | a monk and several animals were killed by stones weighing up to 50 kg (110 lb)[20] |
Milan, Lombardy, Italy | 1633 or 1664 | a monk died after being struck on the thigh by a meteorite[20] | ||
Gascony, France | 1790 | a farmer was reportedly struck and killed by a meteorite[20] | ||
Oriang, Malwate, India | 1825 | [19][22] | ||
Chin-kuei Shan, China | 1874 | a cottage was crushed by a meteorite, killing a child[19][23] | ||
Newtown, Indiana, United States * | 1879 | a man was killed in bed by a meteorite[19] *later revealed to be a hoax[24] | ||
Dun-le-Poëlier, France | 1879 | a farmer was killed by a meteorite[19] | ||
Zvezvan, Yugoslavia | 1929 | a meteorite hit a bridal party[19] |
Deadliest limnic eruptions
Note: Only 2 cases in recorded history.
Rank | Death toll | Event | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 1,744 | Lake Nyos disaster | Cameroon | August 21, 1986 |
2. | 37 | Lake Monoun disaster | August 15, 1984 |
Ten deadliest wildfires/bushfires
Rank | Death toll | Event | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 1,200–2,500 | Peshtigo Fire | Wisconsin, United States | October 8, 1871 |
2. | 1,200 | Kursha-2 Fire | Soviet Union | August 3, 1936 |
3. | 453 | Cloquet Fire[25] | Minnesota, United States | October 12, 1918 |
4. | 418+ | Great Hinckley Fire | September 1, 1894 | |
5. | 282 | Thumb Fire | Michigan, United States | September 5, 1881 |
6. | 240 | 1997 Indonesian forest fires[26][27] | Sumatra and Kalimantan, Indonesia | September 1997 |
7. | 160–300 | Miramichi Fire | Canada | October 7, 1825 |
8. | 223 | Matheson Fire | Ontario, Canada | July 29, 1916 |
9. | 191 | Black Dragon Fire[26][27] | China and Soviet Union | May 1, 1987 |
10. | 173 | Black Saturday bushfires[26][27] | Australia | February 7, 2009 |
Ten deadliest avalanches/landslides
Rank | Death toll (estimate) | Event | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 100,000 | 1786 Dadu River landslide dam; triggered by the 1786 Kangding-Luding earthquake[28] | China | 1786 |
1920 Haiyuan landslides; triggered by the 1920 Haiyuan earthquake[28] | 1920 | |||
3. | 22,000 | 1970 Huascarán avalanche; triggered by the 1970 Ancash earthquake[29] | Peru | 1970 |
4. | 10,000–30,000 | Vargas tragedy[30] | Venezuela | 1999 |
10,000 | White Friday avalanches[31][32] | Italy | 1916 | |
6. | 5,000–28,000 | Khait landslide[33][34] | Tajikistan | 1949 |
7. | 4,000–6,000 | 1941 Huaraz avalanche[35] | Peru | 1941 |
4,000 | 1962 Huascarán avalanche[29] | 1962 | ||
9. | 3,466 | 1310 Western Hubei landslide[28] | China | 1310 |
10. | 3,429 | 1933 Diexi landslides[28] | 1933 |
Ten deadliest blizzards
Rank | Death toll (estimate) | Event | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 4,000 | 1972 Iran blizzard | Iran | 1972 |
2. | 3,000 | Carolean Death March | Norway | 1719 |
3. | 926 | 2008 Afghanistan blizzard | Afghanistan | 2008 |
4. | 400 | Great Blizzard of 1888 | United States | 1888 |
5. | 353 | Great Appalachian Storm of 1950 | 1950 | |
6. | 318 | 1993 Storm of the Century | 1993 | |
7. | 299–978 | 2021 North American winter storm | 2021 | |
8. | 286 | December 1960 nor'easter | 1960 | |
9. | 250 | Great Lakes Storm of 1913 | United States and Canada (Great Lakes region) | 1913 |
10. | 235 | Schoolhouse Blizzard | United States | 1888 |
Ten deadliest floods
Note: Some of these floods and landslides may be partially caused by humans – for example, by failure of dams, levees, seawalls or retaining walls.
This list does not include the man-made 1938 Yellow River flood caused entirely by a deliberate man-made act (an act of war, destroying dikes).
Rank | Death toll | Event | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 422,499–4,000,000[10] | 1931 China floods | China | 1931 |
2. | 900,000–2,000,000 | 1887 Yellow River (Huang He) flood | 1887 | |
3. | 230,000[36] | 1975 Banqiao Dam failure | 1975 | |
4. | 145,000 | 1935 Yangtze flood | 1935 | |
5. | 100,000+ | St. Felix's flood, storm surge | Holy Roman Empire | 1530 |
7. | 100,000 | 1911 Yangtze River flood | China | 1911 |
8. | 100,000[37][38][39][40] | The flood of 1099 | Netherlands & England | 1099 |
9. | 50,000–80,000[38] | St. Lucia's flood, storm surge | Holy Roman Empire | 1287 |
10. | 60,000 | North Sea flood, storm surge | 1212 |
Ten deadliest heat waves
Note: Measuring the number of deaths caused by a heat wave requires complicated statistical analysis, since heat waves tend to cause large numbers of deaths among people weakened by other conditions. As a result, the number of deaths is only known with any accuracy for heat waves in the modern era in countries with developed healthcare systems.
Rank | Death toll | Event | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 70,000 | 2003 European heat wave | Europe | 2003 |
2. | 56,000 | 2010 Russian heat wave | Russia | 2010 |
3. | 9,500 | 1901 eastern United States heat wave | United States | 1901 |
4. | 5,000–10,000 | 1988–90 North American drought | 1988 | |
5. | 3,418 | 2006 European heat wave | Europe | 2006[41] |
6. | 2,541 | 1998 India heat wave | India | 1998[41] |
7. | 2,500 | 2015 Indian heat wave | 2015 | |
8. | 2,000 | 2015 Pakistan heat wave | Pakistan | 2015 |
9. | 1,700–5,000 | 1980 United States heat wave | United States | 1980 |
10. | 1,718[42] | 2010 Japanese heat wave | Japan | 2010 |
Ten deadliest pandemics / epidemics
Death counts are historical totals unless indicated otherwise. Events in boldface are ongoing.
Notes
Ten deadliest tornadoes
Rank | Death toll | Event | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 1,300 | The Daulatpur–Saturia tornado | Manikganj, Bangladesh | 1989 |
2. | 695 | The Tri-State tornado outbreak | United States (Missouri–Illinois–Indiana) | 1925 |
3. | 681 | 1973 Dhaka tornado | Bangladesh | 1973 |
4. | 660 | 1969 East Pakistan tornado | East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) | 1969 |
5. | 600 | The Valletta, Malta tornado | Malta | 1551 or 1556 |
6. | 500 | The Sicily Tornadoes | Sicily, Two Sicilies (now Italy) | 1851 |
Narail-Magura tornado | Jessore, East Pakistan, Pakistan (now Bangladesh) | 1964 | ||
Madaripur-Shibchar tornado | Bangladesh | 1977 | ||
9. | 400 | The 1984 Soviet Union tornado outbreak | Soviet Union (now Russia) | 1984 |
10. | 317 | The Great Natchez Tornado | United States (Mississippi–Louisiana) | 1840 |
Ten deadliest tropical cyclones
Note: Earlier versions of this list have included the so-called 'Bombay Cyclone of 1882' in tenth position, but this supposed event has been proven to be a hoax.
Rank | Death toll | Event | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 500,000+ | 1970 Bhola cyclone | East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) | November 13, 1970 |
2. | 300,000 | |||
1839 Coringa cyclone[8] | British India (now India) | November 25, 1839 | ||
3. | 300,000+ | 1737 Calcutta cyclone | British India (now India) | October 27, 1737 |
4. | 229,000 | Super Typhoon Nina—contributed to Banqiao Dam failure | China | August 7, 1975 |
5. | 200,000[60] | Great Backerganj Cyclone of 1876 | British Raj (now Bangladesh) | October 30, 1876 |
6. | 138,866 | 1991 Bangladesh cyclone | Bangladesh | April 29, 1991 |
7. | 138,373 | Cyclone Nargis | Myanmar | May 2, 2008 |
8. | 100,000 | July 1780 typhoon[61] | Philippines | 1780 |
9. | 10,000–50,000 | 1977 Andhra Pradesh cyclone | India | November 14, 1977 |
10. | 15,000 | 1999 Odisha cyclone | India | October 29, 1999 |
Ten deadliest tsunamis
Note: A possible tsunami in 1782 that caused about 40,000 deaths in the Taiwan Strait area may have been of "meteorological" origin (a cyclone).[62]
Rank | Death toll | Event | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 227,898 | 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami | Indian Ocean | December 26, 2004 |
2. | 123,000[1] | 1908 Messina earthquake | Italy | December 28, 1908 |
3. | 36,417 | 1883 eruption of Krakatoa | Indonesia | August 27, 1883 |
4. | 40,000–50,000[63] | 1755 Lisbon earthquake | Portugal | November 1, 1755 |
5. | 30,000–100,000 | Minoan eruption | Greece | 2nd Millennium BC |
6. | 31,000 | 1498 Meiō earthquake | Japan | September 20, 1498 |
7. | 30,000 | 1707 Hōei earthquake | October 28, 1707 | |
8. | 27,122[64] | 1896 Sanriku earthquake | June 15, 1896 | |
9. | 25,674 | 1868 Arica earthquake | Chile | August 13, 1868 |
10. | 5,700[65]–50,000[66] | 365 Crete earthquake | Greece | July 21, 365 |
Ten deadliest volcanic eruptions
Rank | Death toll | Event | Location | Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | 71,000+[67] | 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora (see also Year Without a Summer) | Indonesia | April 10, 1815 |
2. | 36,000+[68] | 1883 eruption of Krakatoa | August 27, 1883 | |
3. | 30,000[69] | 1902 eruption of Mount Pelée | Martinique | May 7, 1902 |
4. | 23,000[70] | Armero tragedy | Colombia | November 13, 1985 |
5. | 15,000[71] | 1792 Unzen earthquake and tsunami | Japan | May 21, 1792 |
6. | 13,000[72] | Eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD | Italy | 79 |
7. | 10,000+ | 1586 Kelud eruption | Indonesia | 1586 |
8. | 6,000[73] | 1902 Santa Maria eruption | Guatemala | October 24, 1902 |
9. | 5,000[74] | 1919 Kelud mudflow | Indonesia | May 19, 1919 |
10. | 4,011[75] | 1822 Galunggung eruption | 1822 |
See also
- List of countries by natural disaster risk
- List of all known deadly earthquakes since 1900
- List of disasters in Canada
- List of disasters in Indonesia
- List of disasters in the Philippines
- List of disasters in Thailand
- List of natural disasters in the British Isles
- List of natural disasters in Haiti
- List of natural disasters in New Zealand
- List of natural disasters in Pakistan
- List of natural disasters in the United States
- Natural disasters in India
- Lists of nuclear disasters and radioactive incidents
- Global catastrophic risk
- Other lists organized by death toll
- List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll
- List of accidents and disasters by death toll
- List of battles and other violent events by death toll
- List of disasters in Antarctica by death toll
- List of disasters in Australia by death toll
- List of disasters in Canada by death toll
- List of disasters in Croatia by death toll
- List of disasters in Great Britain and Ireland by death toll
- List of disasters in New Zealand by death toll
- List of disasters in Poland by death toll
- List of disasters in Romania by death toll
- List of disasters in the United States by death toll
- Tsunamis affecting the British Isles
Notes
- Estimate by Nova's sources are close to 4 million and yet Encarta's sources report as few as 1 million. Expert estimates report wide variance.
References
- The world's worst natural disasters Calamities of the 20th and 21st centuries CBC News'.' Retrieved October 29, 2010.
- "Top 10 Deadliest Natural Disasters". Listverse. September 7, 2007.
- "NOVA Online | Flood! | Dealing with the Deluge". PBS. Retrieved August 11, 2010.
- April 2018, Stephanie Pappas-Live Science Contributor 02 (December 17, 2020). "Top 11 Deadliest Natural Disasters in History". livescience.com.
{{cite web}}
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- Research, CNN Editorial (December 12, 2013). "Haiti Earthquake Fast Facts". CNN.
- Paula Dunbar. "Significant Earthquake". Ngdc.noaa.gov. Retrieved February 13, 2014.
- "The Worst Natural Disasters by Death Toll" (PDF). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. April 6, 2008. Retrieved March 11, 2011.
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External links
- Natural Hazards Data from NOAA National Geophysical Data Center
- "When Nature Attacks" from Newsweek
- World's worst natural disasters since 1900
- Earthquake Hazards Program – USGS
- EM-DAT: The International Disaster Database managed by the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters
- Disasters Database Report from Emergency Management Australia