List of disasters in the United States by death toll
List of United States disasters by death toll (Not counting battles of the Civil War) is a list of notable disasters which occurred in the United States or involved U.S. citizens, in a definable incident.
Due to inflation, the monetary damage estimates are not comparable. Unless otherwise noted, the year given is the year in which the currency's valuation was calculated.
This list is not comprehensive in general, and epidemics are not included.
More than 400 fatalities
151 to 400 fatalities
70 to 150 fatalities
30 to 69 fatalities
Fewer than 30 fatalities
Year | Type | Fatalities | Damage (US$) | Article | Location | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1871 | Accident - Railroad | 29 | Great Revere Train Wreck of 1871 | Revere, Massachusetts | ||
1971 | Accident - Explosion | 29 | Thiokol-Woodbine Explosion | Woodbine, Georgia | ||
1975 | Shipwreck | 29 | Wreck of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald | Lake Superior | ||
1976 | Accident - school bus | 29 | Yuba City bus disaster | Martinez, California | Deadliest road accident in U.S. history | |
1977 | Accident - Aircraft | 29 | University of Evansville basketball team charter crash | Evansville, Indiana | The University of Evansville basketball team was traveling to Middle Tennessee State University when the plane crashed 90 seconds after takeoff from Dress Regional Airport.[4] | |
1990 | Tornado | 29 | $160,000,000 | 1990 Plainfield tornado | Plainfield, Illinois | |
2010 | Accident - Coal mine | 29[5] | Upper Big Branch Mine disaster | Montcoal, West Virginia | ||
1951 | Flood | 28 | $7,000,000,000 (2005) |
Great Flood of 1951 | Kansas | |
2012 | Mass murder - School shooting | 28 | Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting | Sandy Hook, Connecticut | Adam Lanza shot and killed his mother, then drove to Sandy Hook Elementary School, where he fatally shot 20 students and 6 educators before committing suicide.[6] | |
1958 | Accident - school bus | 27 | Prestonsburg, Kentucky bus disaster | Prestonsburg, Kentucky | ||
1988 | Accident - school bus | 27 | Carrollton bus disaster | Carrollton, Kentucky | ||
1970 | Tornado | 26 | $1,411,900,000 (2008) |
Lubbock Tornado | Lubbock, Texas | F5 tornado killed 26 and wounded approximately 500 |
2008 | Accident - Railroad | 26 | 2008 Chatsworth train collision | Chatsworth, California | ||
1991 | Fire (building) | 25 | Hamlet chicken processing plant fire | Hamlet, North Carolina | Workers trapped behind locked doors | |
1982 | Fire (building) | 25 | Dorothy Mae Apartments | Los Angeles, California | Arson fire killed 19 residents on scene, 6 others died later from injuries. | |
1991 | Fire (rural) | 25 | $1,500,000,000 | 1991 Oakland firestorm | Oakland, California and vicinity | |
2005 | Tornado | 25 | $92,000,000 | Evansville Tornado of November 2005 | Missouri, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio | 7 tornadoes |
1692 | Mass hysteria | 24 | Salem witch trials | Salem, Massachusetts | 21 Executed for "Witchcraft," 3 died in jail due to neglect. | |
1887 | Bridge Railroad | 24 | Forest Hills disaster | Boston, Massachusetts | ||
1991 | Mass murder | 24 | Luby's shooting | Killeen, Texas | 23 murdered, Gunman committed suicide | |
2005 | Accident - bus | 24 | Wilmer, Texas | carrying elderly, fleeing hurricane | ||
2013 | Tornado | 24 | 2013 Moore tornado | Moore, Oklahoma | 377 people were injured | |
1919 | Accident - Railroad | 23 | Onawa train wreck | Onawa, Maine | ||
1989 | Accident - Explosion | 23 | $1,415,000,000 (1990) |
Phillips Disaster | Pasadena, Texas | 314 people injured |
1959 | Explosion - Fire | 23 | Meldrim, Georgia trestle disaster | Meldrim, Georgia | ||
1992 | Tropical cyclone | 23 | $25,000,000,000 | Hurricane Andrew | Florida | |
1983 | Accident - Aircraft | 23 | Air Canada Flight 797 | Cincinnati, Ohio | ||
1977 | Blizzard | 23 | $56,250,000 (1977) |
Great Lakes Blizzard of 1977 | New York | The brunt of the blizzard was centered around Buffalo. |
1999 | Accident - tour bus | 22 | New Orleans, Louisiana | plunged over embankment, carrying senior citizens from casino | ||
1980 | Accident - tour bus | 22 | Jasper, Arkansas | |||
1960 | Accident - Aircraft | 22 | Cal Poly football team plane crash | Toledo, Ohio | ||
1942 | Accident - Aircraft | 22 | TWA Flight 3 | Potosi Mountain, southwest of Las Vegas, Nevada | Among those killed were actress Carole Lombard and her mother, who were returning to Los Angeles after a war bond drive in their home state of Indiana. | |
1984 | Mass Murder | 22 | San Ysidro McDonald's massacre | San Diego, California | 19 injured | |
1910 | Fire, Structural failure | 21 | Chicago Union Stock Yards fire | Chicago, Illinois | ||
1986 | Accident - tour bus | 21 | Walker, California | |||
1915 | Fire (building) | 21 | St. Johns School Fire | Peabody, Massachusetts | Schoolgirls trapped behind exit door; resulted in first city law requiring that exit doors open outward | |
1919 | Accident - Explosion | 21 | $6,600,000,000 (2005) |
Boston molasses disaster | Boston, Massachusetts | Damages are out-of-court settlements only; repairs took 133 man-months |
2010 | Flood | 20 | June 2010 Arkansas floods | Albert Pike Recreational Area (near Langley, Arkansas) | ||
2005 | Accident - Shipwreck | 20 | Ethan Allen boating accident | Lake George, New York | Overloaded tour boat capsized from another boat's wake. | |
1907 | Accident - Railroad | 20 | Woodlawn Derailment | Woodlawn, The Bronx, New York City | The day after the New York Central Railroad inaugurated electrical train service in New York City and suburban Westchester County, an electric engine (which had a higher center of mass than the old steam engines) jumped the tracks on a curve leading into Woodlawn Station. Wreckage was strewn over a mile (1.6 km) with 20 dead and 150 injured. | |
1872 | Fire (urban conflagration) | 20 | $73,500,000 (1872) |
Great Boston Fire of 1872 | Boston, Massachusetts | |
1897 | Accident - Railroad | 19 | Garrison train crash | Garrison, New York | ||
1944 | Accident - Aircraft | 19 | Long Creek Air Disaster | South Portland, Maine | ||
2013 | Wildfire | 19 | Yarnell Hill Fire | Yarnell, Arizona | 19 firefighters were killed trapped when they became trapped in the fast-spreading fire | |
1861 | Accident - Railroad | 17 to 20 | Platte Bridge Railroad Tragedy | St. Joseph, Missouri | ||
1903 | Accident - Railroad | 17 | Purdue Wreck | Indianapolis, Indiana | ||
1991 | Accident - Automobile | 17 | Dust Storm Accident | Coalinga, California | ||
1987 | Accident - Railroad | 17 | 1987 Maryland train collision | Chase, Maryland | ||
2002 | Mass Murder (Serial Killings) |
17 | Beltway sniper attacks | Washington metropolitan area | 3 injured in the Beltway sniper attacks and 7 in preliminary shootings | |
1926 | Tornado | 16 | La Plata Tornado of 1926 | La Plata, Maryland | 13 killed in La Plata Elementary School | |
1978 | Accident - Railroad | 16 | Waverly, Tennessee, tank car explosion | Waverly, Tennessee | an additional 43 injured | |
2015 | Terrorism | 16 | 2015 San Bernardino attack | San Bernardino, California | an additional 24 injured | |
1954 | Fire (building) | 15 | Cleveland Hill Middle School Fire | Cheektowaga, New York | ||
1966 | Mass murder | 15 | University of Texas Massacre | Austin, Texas | ||
1999 | Mass murder | 15 | Columbine High School massacre | Jefferson County, Colorado | ||
2011 | Accident - tour bus | 15 | World Wide Tours bus crash | Bronx, New York | en route to Connecticut casino, March 12 | |
2013 | Accident - Explosion | 15 | West Fertilizer Company explosion | West, Texas | More than 160 people were injured. | |
2002 | Automobile accident | 14 | I-40 bridge disaster | Webbers Falls, Oklahoma | ||
1982 | Bridge - Accident | 14 | Cline Avenue Bridge collapse | East Chicago, Indiana | ||
1942 | Accident - Railroad | 14 | Ambassador - Cleveland Express rail collision | Dickerson, Maryland | Worst accident in B&O railroad's history | |
1935 | Bus accident | 14 | Appomattox River Drawbridge accident | Hopewell, Virginia | Bus drove across drawbridge when it was open. | |
1973 | Accident | 14 | Skyline Towers collapse | Bailey's Crossroads, Virginia | 74 others injured | |
2002 | Accident - van | 14 | Saint John River, Maine | |||
2007 | Wildfire | 14 | California wildfires of October 2007 | California | Large fires burnt out of control across southern California, fueled by unusually strong Santa Ana Winds; worst around San Diego; caused evacuation of over one million people. Most fires accidental; some arson. | |
1905 | Accident - Railroad | 13 | Ninth Avenue derailment | New York City, New York | ||
1963 | Accident - bus | 13 | Hole in the Rock Trail, Utah | Bus carrying Boy Scouts overturned climbing steep hill. | ||
2001 | Accident - Mine disaster | 13 | Jim Walter Resources Mine Disaster | Brookwood, Alabama | ||
2006 | Accident - Coal mine | 13 | Sago Mine disaster | Sago, West Virginia | ||
2007 | Accident - Bridge Collapse | 13 | $5,000,000 | I-35W Mississippi River bridge Collapse | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Collapsed on August 1 at 6:05 PM during rush hour while resurfacing in progress. An additional 111+ injured. |
2009 | Mass murder | 13 | Fort Hood shooting | Fort Hood, Texas | ||
1940 | Automobile accident | 12 | Two-car collision | Slayton, Minnesota | The deadliest two-car auto crash in U.S. history at the time. | |
1959 | Accident - Coal mine | 12 | Knox Mine Disaster | Pittston, Pennsylvania | ||
2012 | Mass Murder | 12 | 2012 Aurora shooting | Aurora, Colorado | 56 others were injured. | |
1999 | Accident - Railroad | 11 | 1999 Bourbonnais, Illinois train accident | Bourbonnais, Illinois | ||
2010 | Accident - Explosion | 11 | Deepwater Horizon explosion | Southeast of Louisiana coast | Caused by a blowout on April 20. 17 injuries. Subsequent oil spill regarded as worst environmental disaster in US history. | |
2003 | Accident - Shipwreck | 11 | 2003 Staten Island Ferry crash | New York City, New York | ||
1976 | Accident - Dam failure | 11 | $400,000,000 | Teton Dam | Idaho | |
2011 | Accident - Airshow | 11 | 2011 Reno Air Races crash | Reno, Nevada | At least 70 people injured in the disaster. Third-deadliest airshow disaster in U.S. history. | |
2005 | Mass murder - Railroad | 11 | 2005 Glendale train crash | Los Angeles, California | ||
1999 | Accident - Aircraft | 11 | American Airlines Flight 1420 | Little Rock, Arkansas | ||
1996 | Accident - Railroad | 11 | 1996 Maryland train collision | Silver Spring, Maryland | ||
1979 | Stampede | 11 | The Who concert disaster | Cincinnati, Ohio | The Who rock concert | |
1977 | Accident - Railroad | 11 | Chicago Loop derailment | Chicago, Illinois | ||
2014 | Accident - tour bus | 10 | Glenn County, California[7] | |||
1872 | Details unknown - Maritime incident | 10 | Mystery of the Mary Celeste | Northern Atlantic Ocean | The American merchant brig Mary Celeste was found abandoned (with the lifeboat missing) and adrift off the Azores 29 days after departing New York Harbor. Aboard had been five Americans (including the captain and his wife and daughter), one Dane, and four Germans. The ship's log contained no explanation as to why the ship had been abandoned. No trace of the ten people aboard has ever been found. | |
2004 | Tropical cyclone | 10 | $15,000,000,000 | Hurricane Charley | Florida | |
1957 | Tornado | 10 | $25,883,000 | 1957 Fargo tornado | Fargo, North Dakota | |
1972 | Bridge - Accident | 10 | Sidney Lanier Bridge collapse | Brunswick, Georgia | ||
1972 | Accident - Aircraft | 10 | 1972 Chicago-O'Hare runway collision | Chicago, Illinois | ||
1987 | Bridge - Accident | 10 | Schoharie Creek Bridge Collapse | Fort Hunter, New York | ||
1978 | Accident - Aircraft | 10 | United Airlines Flight 173 | Portland, Oregon | While on approach to Portland International Airport, landing gear problems with this fully loaded DC-8 caused the pilot to dump excess fuel and attempt an emergency landing. But the pilot dumped too much fuel, causing the plane to lose power and belly flop short of the runway. With 189 souls aboard and only 10 deaths and 24 non-fatal injuries, this crash had one of the highest survivor-to-casualty ratios in aviation history. | |
1991 | Accident - Aircraft | 10 | Deaths of Reba McEntire's band and business manager | Otay Mountain, southeast of San Diego, California | Killed in the crash were seven members of Reba McEntire's band, her business manager and two pilots, who were headed to her next gig in Fort Wayne, Indiana. McEntire and her husband were scheduled to take a later flight. | |
2005 | Mass murder | 10 | Red Lake shootings | Red Lake, Minnesota | 5 injured | |
1858 | Structural failure - Bridge | 9 | Sauquoit Bridge Collapse | Sauquoit, New York | ||
1888 | Accident - Railroad | 9 | Wreck at the Fat Nancy | Orange County, Virginia | ||
1920 | Accident - Railroad (Trolley) | 9 | Bertha Trolley Collision | Bertha, Oregon (A former village now incorporated into the Hillsdale district of Portland) | An engineer of the Southern Pacific Red Electric line ignored signals and plowed his train head-on into another. Eight died at the scene, one died later from injuries. 101 injured. | |
2005 | Accident - Railroad | 9 | Graniteville, South Carolina train crash | Graniteville, South Carolina | ||
1903 | Accident - Railroad | 9 | Wreck of the Old 97 | Danville, Virginia | ||
2007 | Fire (Building) | 9 | Charleston Sofa Super Store Fire | Charleston, South Carolina | A flashover and structural collapse contributed to the deaths of nine Charleston firefighters. | |
2007 | Accident - Coal mine | 9 | Crandall Canyon Mine Collapse | Huntington, Utah | Original collapse on August 6 at 2:48 AM MDT, 6 miners missing. On August 16 at 6:30 PM MDT, 9 rescue workers caught in second collapse while trying to get to trapped miners. Three rescue workers pronounced dead; other 6 injured. | |
2009 | Accident - Railroad | 9 | Washington Metro subway train collision | Washington, District of Columbia | Approximately 80 injuries; deadliest subway train accident US history. | |
2012 | Fire - Building | 9 | 2012 Charleston house fire | Charleston, West Virginia | 1 injured | |
2015 | Mass Murder | 9 | Charleston Church Shooting | Charleston, South Carolina | White supremacist, Dylann Storm Roof opened fire in an all black church, killing nine | |
2013 | Tornado | 8 | 2013 El Reno tornado | Canadian County, Oklahoma | Four storm chasers killed, including Tim Samaras; first tornado on record to kill storm chasers; 151 injured; Widest tornado on record with a path width of 2.6 miles (4.2 km). | |
2009 | Accident - Automobile, Driving under the influence | 8 | 2009 Taconic State Parkway crash | Mount Pleasant, New York | 3 Additional Injuries | |
1984 | Fire - Building | 8 | Haunted Castle fire at Six Flags Great Adventure | Jackson Township, New Jersey | ||
1982 | Mass murder | 8 | Post Family Murders | Farwell, Michigan | ||
1996 | Flood | 8 | $500,000,000 | Willamette Valley Flood of 1996 | Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California | |
1989 | Bridge collapse | 8 | Hatchie River Bridge Collapse | Memphis, Tennessee | ||
2001 | Structural failure | 8 | Queen Isabella Causeway collapse | Cameron County, Texas | ||
2014 | Accident - Explosion | 8 | 2014 East Harlem apartment buildings explosion | New York City, New York | ||
1987 | Earthquake | 8 | $358,000,000 | Whittier Narrows earthquake | California, San Gabriel Valley | This earthquake occurred on a previously unknown, concealed thrust fault approximately 20 km east of downtown Los Angeles, California. |
2011 | Mass Murder | 8 | 2011 Seal Beach shooting | Seal Beach, California | 1 injured | |
1982 | Mass murder - Poisoning | 7 | Chicago Tylenol murders | Chicago, Illinois | Investigation still underway, as of 2012 | |
2012 | Mass murder- | 7 | Oikos University shooting | Oakland, California | ||
1976 | Mass murder- | 7 | California State University, Fullerton massacre | Fullerton, California | ||
1922 | Accident - Railroad | 7 | 1922 Winslow Junction Train Derailment | Winslow, Arizona | ||
1995 | Bridge - Accident | 7 | Coalinga, California | |||
1983 | Fire - Explosion | 7 | Propane explosion 12/27/83 | Buffalo, New York | Blast killed 5 fireman and 2 civilians | |
1901 | Fire (urban conflagration) | 7 | Great Fire of 1901 | Jacksonville, Florida | ||
2011 | Accident - collapse | 7 | Indiana State Fair stage collapse | Indianapolis, Indiana | 58 injured | |
1986 | Explosion Space Shuttle | 7 | Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster | Kennedy Space Center, Florida | The first in-flight deaths in the U.S. Space Program. Faulty booster design and engineers overruled by administrators. | |
1993 | Mass Murder | 7 | Brown's Chicken massacre | Palatine, Illinois | ||
2003 | Accident Space Shuttle | 7 | Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster | Texas, Louisiana | Heat shield damage due to debris strike during liftoff. | |
2006 | Mass Murder | 7 | Capitol Hill massacre | Seattle, Washington | 2 injured | |
2012 | Mass Murder | 7 | 2012 Minneapolis workplace shooting | Minneapolis, Minnesota | 2 injured | |
1974 | Mass murder | 6 | "The Amityville murders" committed by Ronald DeFeo, Jr. | Amityville, New York | "Butch" DeFeo told investigators that "voices" told him to kill his parents Louise and Ronald, Sr., and his siblings Dawn, Allison, Marc, and John Matthew. All the children were 18 and younger. The murders were exploited and fictionalized and later turned into a novel by Jay Anson called "The Amityville Horror" which was later turned into a popular movie. | |
1987 | Mass murder | 6 | The Flint Crack Murders | Flint, Michigan | ||
1991 | Shipwreck | 6 | The "Perfect Storm" sinking of the Andrea Gail | North Atlantic Ocean off Gloucester, Massachusetts | Inspiration of the 1997 book and 2000 movie titled The Perfect Storm. | |
1991 | Mass murder - | 6 | University of Iowa shooting | Iowa City, Iowa | ||
1993 | Terrorism | 6 | 1993 World Trade Center bombing | New York City, New York | at least 1,042 injured | |
1995 | Flood | 6 | $1,360,000,000 | May 8th 1995 Louisiana Flood | New Orleans, Louisiana area | |
1999 | Fire (Building) | 6 | Worcester Cold Storage Warehouse fire | Worcester, Massachusetts | Six firefighters lost their lives while searching for two homeless victims, they are now commonly referred to as the Worcester 6 | |
2006 | Mass Murder | 6 | Trolley Square shooting | Salt Lake City, Utah | 4 injured | |
2008 | Mass murder | 6 | Northern Illinois University shooting | DeKalb, Illinois | Includes the gunman who killed himself; 21 people were injured | |
2011 | Mass murder | 6 | 2011 Tucson Shooting | Arizona | Attempted assassination of US representative Gabrielle Giffords. Among the fatalities is the Chief Judge for the US district court of Arizona John Roll and a ten-year-old girl. | |
2012 | Mass Murder | 6 | 2012 Seattle cafe shooting spree | Seattle, Washington | 1 injured | |
2013 | Collapse (building) | 6 | 22nd and Market Building Collapse | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | 14 other people were injured, 1 seriously. During the disaster, at least ten people were trapped under the rubble.[8][9] | |
1863 | Mass murder | 5 | Wiseman Massacre | Wynot, Nebraska | ||
1946 | Bridge failure Accident - Maritime |
5 | John P. Grace Memorial Bridge Disaster | Charleston, South Carolina | ||
1978 | Shipwreck | 5 | Sinking of the maritime pilot vessel Can Do | Massachusetts Bay, just off the North Shore | During the Northeastern blizzard of 1978, a Coast Guard cutter from the USCG station in Gloucester, Massachusetts responded to a distress call from an oil tanker, only to find itself in distress. The maritime pilot vessel Can Do responded in an effort to save the cutter. While the cutter made it back to port safely, the Can Do sank with all hands lost. Inspiration for the 2005 book Ten Hours Until Dawn. | |
2001 | Bioterrorism | 5 | 2001 anthrax attacks | New York City, New York | 17 Others Infected | |
2011 | Mass Murder | 5 | 2011 IHOP shooting | Carson City, Nevada | 7 injured | |
2013 | Avalanche | 5 | 2013 Loveland Pass, Colorado avalanche | Loveland Pass, Colorado | ||
2010 | Accident - Explosion | 5[10] | 2010 Connecticut power plant explosion | Middletown, Connecticut | 12 or more injuries[11] | |
1959 | Accident - Aircraft | 4 | The Day the Music Died | Clear Lake, Iowa | Musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson were killed along with their pilot Roger Peterson. | |
1963 | Accident - Aircraft | 4 | Deaths of Patsy Cline, Cowboy Copas and Hawkshaw Hawkins | Near Camden, Tennessee | The airplane was piloted by Cline's business manager (and Copas' son-in-law), Randy Hughes | |
1970 | Mass murder– Military action | 4 | Kent State shootings | Kent, Ohio | An additional 9 injured. Students were fired upon when protesting the Vietnam War by the Ohio National Guard. | |
2014 | Mass Murder | 4 | 2014 Fort Hood shooting | Fort Hood, Texas | 14 injured | |
1967 | Fire - Spacecraft | 3 | Apollo 1 | Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, LC-34, Cape Canaveral, Florida | Fire swept through the pure-oxygen environment of the command module, killing astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White and Roger Chaffee. | |
2013 | Terrorism | 3 | Boston Marathon bombings | Boston, Massachusetts | 3 immediate fatalities; 2 more people (including one of the perpetrators) were killed a few days later. An additional 264 people were injured by two separate bombings, which were 13 seconds apart. 17 others were injured in a gunfight a few days later (16 police officers and the other perpetrator). | |
1845 | Fire (urban conflagration) | 2 | $267,000,000 (est., 2006) |
Great Fire of Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | Destroyed much of city. |
1891 | Accident - Railroad | 2 | Great East Thompson Train Wreck | Thompson, Connecticut | hundreds injured | |
2010 | Suicide Attack | 2 | 2010 Austin suicide attack | Austin, Texas | An additional 13 injured when a man tried to crash into the field office of the Internal Revenue Service in Texas. | |
2013 | Accident - Explosion | 2 | Williams Olefins Plant explosion | Geismar, Louisiana | 114 injured | |
2014 | Accident - Aircraft | 2 | 2014 KOMO-TV news helicopter crash | Seattle, Washington | ||
2014 | Fire (Building) | 2 | 2014 Boston Brownstone Fire | Boston, Massachusetts | ||
1995 | Accident - Railroad | 1 | 1995 Palo Verde, Arizona derailment | Palo Verde, Arizona | 78 injured | |
2000 | Accident - Explosion | 1 | Phillips explosion of 2000 | Pasadena, Texas | 71 injuries | |
1922 | Fire - Urban Conflagration | 1 or 2 | $15,000,000 (1922 dollars - preliminary estimate of losses) | Astoria Fire of 1922 | Astoria, Oregon | Approximately 30 waterfront and downtown blocks burned in a fire that started before 2 a.m. on December 8. About 2500 of the town's more than 14,000 residents were left homeless. The 1930 US census showed that the town's population dropped by 26.1 percent after growing by 46.1 percent between 1910 and 1920. One confirmed death (heart attack); one suicide of unknown motivation. |
2011 | Tsunami | 1 | >$50,000,000 | 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami | California, Oregon, Hawaii | 7 people swept out to sea, 1 fatality. Major damage to harbors, especially in Crescent City and Santa Cruz, California with tsunami waves reaching 8.1 feet. Extensive damage also reported in three Hawaiian islands, with tsunami waves up to 12 feet high. |
1894 | Fire - Urban conflagration | 0 | The Great Roxbury Fire of 1894, aka The Great South End Grounds Fire of 1894 | Boston, Massachusetts | According to conflicting reports, either a man dropped a lit cigar between the cracks of the South End Grounds floorboards, or kids were playing with matches under the wooden grandstand. A west wind exceeding 20 mph (32 km/h) quickly fanned the flames. Within an hour, the ballpark and 117 houses in the neighborhood beyond the right field fence had burned. Firefighting efforts were hindered by a lack of working hydrants in the area. About 1900 people were made homeless by the fire. Incredibly, nobody was killed. | |
1940 | Bridge collapse due to design defect | 0 | $5.2 million - 1940 value of bridge; $14 million - 1950 value of construction bonds to build the replacement |
Tacoma Narrows Bridge collapse | Puget Sound near Tacoma, Washington | A flaw in the design of the 5,939 foot (1810 meter) bridge made it extremely susceptible to aeroelastic flutter, earning the bridge the nickname "Galloping Gertie". Four months after opening, strong winds caused the bridge deck to twist back and forth like a torsion spring before it collapsed. The only casualty was a dog that cowered in the car it was riding in and bit people who tried to save it. |
2009 | Accident - Aircraft | 0 | US Airways Flight 1549, aka "The Miracle on the Hudson" | Hudson River between the New York City borough of Manhattan, and Weehawken, New Jersey | Less than three minutes after taking off from LaGuardia Airport, this Airbus A310-214 experienced multiple bird strikes that disabled both engines, forcing a controlled water landing south of the George Washington Bridge. Souls aboard, 155; no fatalities; 100 injuries, 5 serious. |
Unknown fatalities
Year | Type | Fatalities | Damage (US$) | Article | Location | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1816 | Famine (caused by volcano) | Unknown | Year Without a Summer | Volcanic dust from a massive eruption by Mount Tambora in the Dutch East Indies (present Indonesia) in 1815 led to an abnormally cold summer in 1816 in the northeastern United States and eastern Canada. Cold weather inhibited crops, and frosts and snowstorms killed what did grow, leading to a localized famine. | ||
1835 | Fire (urban conflagration) | Unknown | $20,000,000 (1835) |
Great Fire of New York | New York City, New York | |
1888 | Cold wave | Unknown | 1888 Northwest Cold Wave | Northwest | ||
1914 | Fire (urban conflagration) | Unknown | $325,000,000 (2008) |
Great Salem Fire of 1914 | Salem, Massachusetts | |
1931–1939 | Drought | Unknown | Unknown | Dust Bowl | Great Plains | Compounded by unsustainable agricultural techniques |
1929-37 | Economic | Unknown | Unknown | The Great Depression | Worldwide |
References
- 1 2 Indiana Plane Crashes
- ↑ Williams, Reed; Morrison, Shawna (April 26, 2007). "Police: No motive found". The Roanoke Times. Retrieved September 24, 2008.
- ↑ "Keansburg, NJ Boarding Home Fire, Jan 1981 | GenDisasters ... Genealogy in Tragedy, Disasters, Fires, Floods". .gendisasters.com. Retrieved 2013-05-13.
- ↑ "Memories of UE plane crash still linger". ECP.
- ↑ Lawrence Messina (April 5, 2010). "West Virginia Coal Mine Explosion: 25 Dead After Massey Blast". Huffingtonpost.com. Retrieved 2013-04-22.
- ↑ "Documents: New details on Newtown school massacre". CNN. March 28, 2013. Retrieved March 28, 2013.
- ↑ Joseph, Channing; Nirappil, Fenit. College visit turns tragic for students in Northern California bus crash, Associated Press, April 11, 2014.
- ↑ Boyette, Chris; Lear, Justin (June 5, 2013). "6 dead in Philadelphia building collapse, 13 injured". CNN. Retrieved 2013-06-06.
- ↑ Hurdle, Jon (June 5, 2013). "Workers Seek Survivors in Philadelphia Collapse". New York Times. Retrieved June 5, 2013.
- ↑
- ↑ "5 dead in Conn. power plant blast - US news - Life | NBC News". MSNBC. 2010-02-07. Retrieved 2013-04-22.
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