Deadliest Incidents In History

Landes Forest 1949 wildfire — France

A major wildfire occurred from 19 August 1949 to 25 August 1949 in the Landes forest in France. 50,000 hectares (500 km2) of forest land were burnt - and 82 people killed. It was considered the most deadly forest fire in Europe until the 20

destruction of the Kakhovka Dam — Ukraine

The Kakhovka Dam was breached in the early hours of 6 June 2023, causing extensive flooding along the lower Dnieper river, also called the Dnipro, in Kherson Oblast. The dam was under the control of the Russian military, which had seized it

2006 Mecca hostel collapse — Saudi Arabia

The 2006 Mecca hostel collapse occurred in Mecca, Saudi Arabia on 5 January 2006. A hostel housing Muslim pilgrims performing Hajj collapsed, killing 76 people and injuring 62.

Tay Bridge disaster — United Kingdom

The Tay Bridge disaster occurred during a violent European windstorm on Sunday 28 December 1879, when the first Tay Rail Bridge collapsed as a North British Railway (NBR) passenger train on the Edinburgh to Aberdeen Line travelling from Bur

Münchenstein rail disaster — Switzerland

The Münchenstein rail disaster on 14 June 1891 was historically the worst railway accident ever to affect Switzerland. A crowded passenger train fell through a girder bridge, killing more than seventy people and injuring many others. The ac

collision of Isias Otel — Turkey

The Grand Isias Hotel was a four-star hotel in Adıyaman, Turkey. It came to prominence when it was destroyed during an earthquake in February 2023. 72 people died in the aftermath of its collapse, including thirty-five members of two volley

2018 Laos dam collapse — Laos

The 2018 Laos dam collapse was the collapse of Saddle Dam D, part of a larger hydroelectric dam system under construction in southeast Laos's Champasak Province, on 23 July 2018. The dam collapse lead to widespread destruction and homelessn

Torrejón Disaster — Spain

1938 Tōkamachi cinema collapse — Japan

Basmanny market roof collapse — Russia

Basmanny market (known as Baumansky market until 1994) was a market in the Basmanny area of Moscow, located on Baumanskaya Street. The market operated from 1975 until 2006 when the roof of the market collapsed. This collapse and resulting f

Sakurajima 1914 eruptions — Japan

2014 eruption of Mount Ontake — Japan

A volcanic eruption of Mount Ontake (御嶽山, Ontake-san) took place on September 27, 2014, killing 63 people. Mount Ontake is a volcano located on the Japanese island of Honshu around 100 kilometres (62 mi) northeast of Nagoya and around 200 k

1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens — United States

On May 18, 1980, at 8:32 a.m., Mount St. Helens in Skamania County, Washington experienced a catastrophic explosive eruption which had a volcanic explosivity index of 5. It was the first to occur in the contiguous United States since the mu

1624 Argenta earthquake — Italy

Mount Carmel forest fire — Israel

The Mount Carmel Forest Fire (Hebrew: אסון הכרמל Ason HaKarmel, "The Carmel Disaster") was a deadly forest fire that started on Mount Carmel in northern Israel, just south of Haifa. The fire began at about 11:00 local time on 2 December 201

1657 Concepción earthquake — Chile

The 1657 Concepción earthquake occurred on March 15 at 20:00 local time off the coast of Concepción, Biobío Region in the Spanish Empire (present-day central Chile). The earthquake caused severe damage along the coast, and generated a large

2019 Amazon rainforest wildfires — Bolivia

The 2019 Amazon rainforest wildfires season saw a year-to-year surge in fires occurring in the Amazon rainforest and Amazon biome within Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Peru during that year's Amazonian tropical dry season. Fires normally oc

2021 Semeru eruption — Indonesia

An eruption of Mount Semeru, a volcano in East Java province of the Indonesian island of Java, began on 4 December 2021. The eruption began after heavy precipitation caused the collapse of the lava dome at the summit. Pyroclastic flows and

2015 Russian wildfires — Russia

From 12 to 16 April 2015, a series of wildfires spread across southern Siberia, Russia. In the Republic of Khakassia, 29 people were killed and 6,000 left homeless. Further east in Zabaykalsky Krai, four people died in wildfires near Chita

2021 Mont Nyiragongo eruption — DR Congo

On 22 May 2021, Mount Nyiragongo in the Democratic Republic of the Congo began erupting. As of 25 May, 32 people died as a result of the eruption and 1,000 homes were destroyed.

2019 Sichuan wildfire — China

Forest fires in Chile of 2023 — Chile

Starting on 30 January 2023, a series of wildfires began in the South American country of Chile. By early February, the fires had developed into a large outbreak of at least 406 individual fires, several dozen of which were classified as "r

Citadelle Laferrière crowd crush — Haiti

On 11 April 2026, a crowd surge during an annual event celebrating Haitian Independence Day near the entrance of the historical fortress and World Heritage Site Citadelle Laferrière killed at least 25 people and injured dozens more.

2018 Volcán de Fuego eruption — Guatemala

The 2018 Volcán de Fuego eruption was an eruption of Volcán de Fuego in Guatemala on Sunday 3 June 2018. The eruption produced a large ash plume fed by continuous explosions, pyroclastic flows, and lahars. Pyroclastic flows descended the La

2023 eruption of Mount Marapi — Indonesia

On 3 December 2023, Mount Marapi, a complex volcano on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, erupted, sending ash as high as 3,000 metres (10,000 ft) into the air, and depositing large amounts of volcanic ash in nearby districts. Twenty-four hi

Tubbs Fire — United States

The Tubbs Fire was a wildfire in Northern California during October 2017. At the time, the Tubbs Fire was the most destructive wildfire in California history, burning parts of Napa, Sonoma, and Lake counties, inflicting its greatest losses

Sokolniki disaster

Forest fire in Lloret de Mar 1979 — Spain

Yarnell Hill Fire — United States

A wildfire near Yarnell, Arizona–ignited by dry lightning on June 28, 2013–overran and killed 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, a group of firefighters within the Prescott Fire Department, on June 30. Just one of the hotshots on

1971 Kure forest fire — Japan

2022 Siberia wildfires — Russia

The 2022 Siberian wildfires were a series of wildfires in Russia that began in Siberia in early May 2022. Fires were concentrated in the Krasnoyarsk, Altai, Irkutsk, Kemerovo, Omsk, Kurgan regions, Khakassia and Sakha republics.

Wildfires in Perú 2024 — Peru

The 2024 Peru wildfires are a series of wildfires that began in July 2024 that have caused at least 16 deaths and the burning of about 3,000 hectares [ha] (7,400 acres) of forest, protected areas, and agricultural land in 22 of 24 Peruvian

Great Fire of Valparaíso — Chile

The Great Fire of Valparaíso (Spanish: Gran Incendio de Valparaíso) started on 12 April 2014 at 16:40 local time (19:40 UTC), in the hills of the city of Valparaíso, Chile. The wildfire destroyed at least 2,500 homes, leaving 11,000 people

2016 Southeastern United States wildfires — United States

The 2016 Southeastern United States wildfires were a series of wildfires in the Southeastern United States in October and November 2016. The U.S. Forest Service reported tracking 33 wildfires that had burned about 90,000 acres (36,000 ha).

2021 Astroworld stampede — United States

On November 5, 2021, a fatal crowd crush occurred during the Astroworld Festival, a one time tour hosted by American rapper Travis Scott at NRG Park in Houston, Texas. Eight people were pronounced dead on the day of the incident, and two mo

2014 Iquique earthquake — Bolivia

The 2014 Iquique earthquake struck off the coast of Chile on 1 April, with a moment magnitude of 8.1–8.2, at 20:46 local time (23:46 UTC). The epicenter of the earthquake was approximately 95 kilometres (59 mi) northwest of Iquique. The mai

2022 Hunga Tonga–Hunga Haʻapai eruption and tsunami — Tonga

In December 2021, an eruption began on Hunga Tonga–Hunga Haʻapai, a submarine volcano in the Tongan archipelago in the southern Pacific Ocean. The eruption reached a very large and powerful climax nearly four weeks later, on 15 January 2022

May 2026 eruption of Dukono — Indonesia

Dukono is an active volcano located in the northern part of Halmahera island, the largest of the Maluku Islands in Indonesia. It has a broad profile and is capped by compound craters. During the major eruption in 1550, a lava flow filled in

2021 Cumbre Vieja volcanic eruption — Spain

An eruption at the Cumbre Vieja volcanic ridge, comprising the southern half of the Spanish island of La Palma in the Canary Islands, took place between 19 September and 13 December 2021. It was the first volcanic eruption on the island sin

Gelora Bandung Lautan Api stampede — Indonesia

On 17 June 2022, two people died from being asphyxiated during a stampede at the gate of Gelora Bandung Lautan Api Stadium, Bandung, West Java, Indonesia while watching the 2022 President's Cup group stage match between Persib Bandung as ho

2022 Port Harcourt stampede — Nigeria

On 28 May 2022, 31 people were killed and seven others injured in a stampede in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria, at a church event where free food was to be given out.

2023 Fagradalsfjall eruption — Iceland

1986 Piton de la Fournaise eruption — France

2015 Kuchinoerabu eruption — Japan

2021 Fagradalsfjall eruption — Iceland

2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull — Iceland

Between March and June 2010 a series of volcanic events at Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland caused enormous disruption to air travel across Western Europe. The disruptions started over an initial period of six days in April 2010. Additional loca

2011-2012 El Hierro eruption — Spain

The 2011–2012 El Hierro eruption occurred just off the island of El Hierro, the second smallest and farthest south and west of the Canary Islands (an autonomous community of Spain), in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. The island

Chinese famine of 1928–1930 — China

The Chinese famine of 1928–1930 occurred as widespread drought hit Northwestern and Northern China, most notably in the provinces of Henan, Shaanxi and Gansu. Mortality is estimated to be within 6 million, including deaths from famine-relat

Great Irish Famine — Ireland

The Great Famine, also known as the Great Hunger (Irish: an Gorta Mór [ənˠ ˈɡɔɾˠt̪ˠə ˈmˠoːɾˠ]), the Famine and the Irish Potato Famine, was a period of mass starvation and disease in Ireland from 1845 to 1852. It constituted a major histori

Russian famine of 1601–1603 — Russia

The Russian famine of 1601–1603, Russia's worst famine in terms of proportional effect on the population, killed perhaps two million people: about 30% of the Russian people. The famine compounded the Time of Troubles (1598–1613), when the T

1879 Irish Famine — Ireland

The Irish famine of 1879 was the last main famine in Ireland. Unlike the earlier Great Famines of 1740–1741 and 1845–1852, the 1879 famine (sometimes called the "mini-famine" or an Gorta Beag) caused hunger rather than mass deaths and was l

2006 Horn of Africa food crisis

In 2006, an acute shortage of food affected the countries in the Horn of Africa (Somalia, Djibouti and Ethiopia), as well as northeastern Kenya. The United Nations's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimated on January 6, 2006, that

Turnip Winter

The Turnip Winter (German: Steckrübenwinter, pronounced [ˈʃtɛkʁyːbn̩ˌvɪntɐ]) of 1916 to 1917 was a period of profound civilian hardship in Germany during World War I, named for the resulting use of turnips as a famine food. The Turnip Winte

Central Kenya famine of 1899 — Kenya

The famine in central Kenya in 1899 is regarded as a devastating catastrophe in Kenyan history. It spread rapidly from 1898 in the central region of the country around Mount Kenya after several consecutive years of low rainfall. The prevale

1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia — Ethiopia

A widespread famine affected Ethiopia from 1983 to 1985. The worst famine to hit the country in a century, it affected 7.75 million people (out of Ethiopia's 38–40 million) and left approximately 300,000 to 1.2 million dead. 2.5 million peo

1911–16 Australian drought — Australia

The 1911–16 Australian drought consisted of a series of droughts that affected various regions of Australia between the years of 1911 and 1916. Most of the dry spells during this period can be related to three El Niño events in 1911, 1913 a

1979–1983 Eastern Australian drought — Australia

Between 1979 and 1983 almost all of eastern Australia was affected by a major drought. Although in some places such as the South Coast the drought was almost continuous, in most of the affected region the major years of drought were 1980 an

1988-1989 North American drought — United States

The 1988–1990 North American drought ranks among the worst episodes of drought in the United States. This multi-year drought began in most areas in 1988 and continued into 1989 and 1990 (in certain areas). The drought caused $60 billion in

2000s Australian drought — Australia

The 2000s drought in Australia, also known as the millennium drought, is said by some to be the worst drought recorded since European settlement. The drought affected most of southern Australia, including its largest cities and largest agri

2012 Sahel drought — Sudan

2012 had a very severe drought in the Sahel, the semiarid region of Africa that lies between the Sahara and the savannas. Countries included in this region are Senegal, Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Chad, Sudan, and Eritre