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A death toll is the number of dead as a result of war, violence, accident, natural disaster, extreme weather, or disease.
Below is a list of death tolls for various infamous incidents.
Most numbers are estimates and are often in dispute.
The incidents are ranged by the highest estimate given.
Some events overlap categories.
Deaths caused by humans
War and military action
- 50,000,000-60,000,000 - World War II (1937-1945), (see World War II casualties) note that this figure includes well over 10 million genocide victims
- 30,000,000-60,000,000 - Mongol Conquests (13th century)
- 33,000,000-36,000,000 - An Lushan Rebellion (756-763)
- 25,000,000 - Manchu Conquest of Ming China (1616-1644)
- 20,000,000 - Taiping Rebellion (1851 - 1864)
- 15,000,000 - 20,000,000 - World War I (1914-1918) (see World War I casualties)
- 17,000,000 - Timur Lenk's conquests (1370?1405)
- 10,000,000+ - Sino-Japanese War (1931 - 1942)
- 7,500,000 - Thirty Years War (1618 - 1648)
- 6,194,000 - Chinese Civil War (1928 - 1949) note that this figure excludes World War II casualties
- 300,000-3,100,000 before 1937
- 1,000,000-3,000,000 after World War II
- 5,000,000 - Russian Civil War (1917 - 1921)
- 4,000,000 - Napoleonic Wars (1804 - 1815)
- 3,800,000 - Second Congo War (1998-2004)
- 3,000,000 - Spanish Civil War (1936-1939)
- 2,500,000-3,500,000 - Korean War (1950-1953)
- 1,750,000-3,100,000 - Vietnam War (entire war 1945-1975)
- 300,000-1,300,000 - First Indochina War (1945-1954)
- 100,000-300,000 - Vietnamese Civil War (1954-1960)
- 1,200,000-2,100,000 - American phase (1960-1973)
- 170,000 - Final phase (1973-1975)
- 175,000-1,150,000 - Secret War (1962-1975)
- 300,000-3,000,000 - Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
- 1,500,000-2,000,000 - Afghanistan (1979-2001)
- 300,000-2,000,000 - Mexican Revolution (1910 - 1920)
- 230,000-1,400,000 - Ethiopian Civil War (1974 - 1991)
- 1,000,000 - Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988)
- 1,000,000 - Sudanese Civil War (1983 - 2002)
- 1,000,000 - Biafran War (1967-1970)
- 1,000,000 - Aztec conquests (1427-1519)
- 100,000-1,000,000 - Algerian War of Independence (1954-1962)
- 900,000-1,000,000 - Mozambique Civil War (1976 - 1993)
- 400,000-1,000,000 - War of the Triple Alliance in Paraguay (1864 - 1870)
- 800,000 - Congo Civil War (1991 - 1997)
- 200,000-800,000 - Warlord era in China (1917-1928)
- 558,052 - American Civil War (1861-1865)
- 550,000 - Somalian Civil War (1988 - )
- 500,000 - Angolan Civil War (1975 - 2002)
- 500,000 - Ugandan Civil War (1979 - 1986)
- 270,000-300,000 - Crimean War (1854 - 1856)
- 300,000 - First Burundi Civil War (1972)
- 220,000 - Liberian Civil War (1989 - )
- 200,000 - Sierra Leone Civil War (1991 - 2000)
- 200,000 - Guatemaltec Civil War (1960-1996)
- 190,000 - Franco-Prussian War (1870 - 1871)
- 150,000 - North Yemen Civil War (1962 - 1970)
- 150,000 - Russo-Japanese War (1904 - 1905)
- 30,000-100,000 - American led invasion and occupation of Iraq (2003 - )
- 100,000 - Gulf War (1991)
- 75,000 - Ethiopia - Eritrea War (1998 - 2000)
- 35,000 - Finnish Civil War (1918)
- 30,000 - Sino-Vietnamese War (1979)
- 13,000 - South Yemen Civil War (1986)
- 7,000 - Kosovo War (1996 - 1999) (disputed)
- 5,000 - Turkish invasion of Cyprus (1974)
- 3,000 - Northern Ireland conflict. 1969 - 1998
- 3,000 - Civil war in Côte d'Ivoire (2002 - )
- 2,000 - Football War (1969)
- 1,500 - Romanian Revolution (December 1989)
- 1,000 - Zapatista uprising in Chiapas (1994)
- 1,000 - Falklands War (1982)
- 537-3,000 - Operation Just Cause (Panama, 1989)
- 800,000-1,600,000 - Battle of Stalingrad (1942-1943)
- 670,000-1,500,000 - Siege of Leningrad (1941-1944)
- 500,000-900,000 - 1938 Huang He flood, caused by sabotage in the Second Sino-Japanese War (1938)
- 250,000-750,000 - Battle of Verdun (1916)
- 300,000 - Battle of the Somme (1916)
- 165,000-300,000 Battle of Chalons (451)
- 50,000-350,000 - Rape of Nanking (1937)
- 250,000 - Battle of Okinawa (1945) includes civilian suicides
- 66,000-237,062 - Hiroshima Bombing (Japan, 1945)
- 233,847 - Battle of Kursk (1943)
- 230,000 - Battle of Berlin (1945)
- 220,000 - Massacre of the Helvetii (58 BC)
- 200,000 - Siege of Tenochtitlan (1520-1521)
- 175,000 - Operation Bagration (1944)
- 150,000 - Battle of Passchendaele (1917)
- 132,000 - Battle of Normandy (1944)
- 130,000 - Battle of Gallipoli (1916)
- 39,000-108,000 - Nagasaki Bombing (Japan, 1945)
- 75,000 - Battle of Arras (1917)
- 72,000 - Siege of Petersburg, Virginia (1864 -1865)
- 70,000 - Second Battle of Anchialus (917)
- 56,000-66,000 - Battle of Cannae (216 BC)
- 60,000 - Battle of Monte Cassino (1944)
- 57,000 - Battle of Waterloo (1815)
- 40,000-56,000 - Tet Offensive (1968)
- 30,000-50,000 - Battle of Naissus (268)
- 36,500 - Battle of the Ebro (1938)
- 35,000 - Battle of Mukden (1905)
- 31,000 - Battle of Thapsus (46 BC)
- 30,000 - Battle of the Teutoburg Forest (9)
- 20,000-30,000 - Battle of Munda (45 BC)
- 25,000 - Battle of Pydna (168 BC)
- 26,000 - Katyn Massacre (1940)
- 20,000 - Battle of the Trebia (218 BC)
- 16,500 - Battle of Halhin Gol (1939)
- 15,000 - Battle of Lake Trasimene (217 BC)
- 11,000 - Battle of Heraclea (180 BC)
- 7,000-11,000 - Battle of Pharsalus (48 BC)
- 10,500 - Battle of Asculum (279 BC)
- 10,360 - Battle of Mons Graupius (83 or 84)
- 10,000 - Battle of the Metaurus (207 BC)
- 10,000 - Battle of Celaya (1913)
- 8,700 - Battle of Cynoscephalae (197 BC)
- 7,058 - Battle of Gettysburg (July 1–3, 1863)
- 6,592 - Battle of Marathon (490 BC)
- 5,350+ - Battle of Suomussalmi (1939-1940)
- 5,000+ - Battle of Dara (530)
- 5,000+ - Battle of Dyrrhachium (1081)
- 4,808 - Battle of Antietam (September 16–18, 1862)
- 4,329 - Battle of Isandlwana (1879)
- 4,175 - Battle of Leuthen (1757)
- 3,477 - Battle of Shiloh (April 6-7, 1862)
- 3,205 - Second Battle of Bull Run (1862)
- 2,800 - Battle of Midway (1942)
- 2,400 - La Noche Triste (1520)
- 2,000+ - Battle of Manzikert (1071)
- 1,700 - Battle of Vicksburg (May 18 - July 4, 1863)
- 1,645 - Guernica (1937)
- 1,000+ - Battle of Dyrrhachium (48 BC)
- 868 - First Battle of Bull Run (July 21, 1861)
- 622 - Jamestown Massacre (1622)
- 567 - Battle of Rorke's Drift (1879)
- 495 - Battle of Monongahela (1755)
- 383 - Battle of the Alamo (1836)
- 366 - Battle of Bunker Hill (1775)
- 300 - Wounded Knee Massacre (1890)
- 264 - Battle of Little Bighorn (1876) US dead only
- 8,400,000-112,500,000 - Destruction of Native Americans (after 1492) An unknown but large part is not genodice or democide, but disease and warfare
- 6,000,000-60,000,000 - African and Atlantic slave trade (16th - 19th century)
- 20,000,000 - Great Purge (Soviet Union, 1930s) (Estimates range from 3.5 to 60 million)
- 250,000-20,000,000 - Cultural Revolution (China, 1966 - 1976 most estimates are around 1 to 2 million)
- 11,000,000-19,000,000 - Slave trade in Islamic World over 1200 years (7th - 19th century)
- 6,000,000-12,000,000 - Nazi internments and Holocaust in Europe
- 6,000,000 - Jews
- 2,600,000-4,000,000 Soviet POWs
- 1,000,000+ - Political prisoners
- 250,000-1,000,000 Roma
- 70,000-275,000 Handicapped
- 10,000-220,000 Homosexuals
- 5,000,000-10,000,000 - Congo Free State, (1877 - 1908)
- 1,000,000-3,000,000 Armenian Massacres (1895-1923) Heavily Disputed. Most cited number is 1.5 million. The Turkish government denies the genocide and accuses the Armenians of killing Turks instead
- 30,000-300,000 - Hamidian (First Armenian) Massacre (1895-1896)
- 6,000-30,000 - 1909
- 600,000-2,000,000 - Second Armenian Massacre (1915-1918)
- 250,000-500,0000 - (1919-1923)
- 1,700,000 - Pol Pot's communalisation program (Cambodia, 1976-1979)
- 500,000-1,500,000 - Degars killed in Vietnam, (Vietnam,1975 - present)
- 800,000-1,000,000 - Partition of India and Pakistan, (1947-1948)
- 250,000-1,000,000 - Massacre of alleged communists, (Indonesia, 1965-1966)
- 800,000 - Genocide in Rwanda (Rwanda, 1994)
- 300,000 - Idi Amin's dictatorship (Uganda, 1971-1979)
- 260,000 - Greeks killed in Asia Minor (Turkey, 1912 - 1923)
- 182,000 - Al-Anfal Campaign (Iraq, 1986-1989)
- 40,000-100,000 - Herero massacre, (Namibia, 1904-1908)
- 30,000 - Dictatorship of François "Papa Doc" Duvalier, (Haiti, 1964 - 1971)
- 10,000-30,000 228 Incident, (Taiwan, 1947)
- 10,000-30,000 Argentina's Dirty War, (Argentina, 1976 - 1983)
- 15,000-18,000 - Dictatorship of Fidel Castro, (Cuba, 1959 - present)
- 14,000 - Haitians massacred by Rafael Leónidas Trujillo's government. (Dominican Republic, 1937)
- 3,000 - Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship (Chile, 1973 - 1990)
- 1,100,000 - Auschwitz concentration camp
- 700,000-1,000,000 - Treblinka extermination camp
- 260,000 Sobibór extermination camp
- 100,000 - Manila Massacre (Manila, Philippines, 1945)
- 70,000 - St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre (France, 1572)
- 30,000 - Babi Yar Yom Kippur Jewish Massacre (Kiev, Ukraine, 1941)
- 12,000 - La matanza (El Salvador, 1931)
- 5,000-12,000 - Massacre of Indians and Arabs in Zanzibar (Zanzibar, 1964)
- 5,000-7,000 - Halabja poison gas attack (Halabjah, Iraq, 1988)
- 328-5,500 - Sabra and Shatila Massacre (Lebanon, 1982)
- 379-1,000 - Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (Amritsar, India, 1919)
- 900 - El Mozote massacre (El Salvador, 1981)
- 268 - Plan de Sánchez massacre (Guatemala, 1982)
- 91-200 - Kristallnacht (Germany, 1938)
- 67 - Hebron 1929 Massacre (Palestine, 1929)
- 45-60 Acteal massacre (Mexico, 1997)
Note that any number of individual non-noteworthy attacks by various groups are not listed here. Generally these have been in the low to mid tens of deaths.
- 2,992 - September 11, 2001 attacks, (New York, Washington, DC, 2001) (see Casualties)
- 330 - Beslan School Siege, (Beslan, Russia, 2004)
- 329 - Air India flight 182 (Atlantic Ocean, south of Ireland, 1985)
- 299 - US and French barracks bombings, (Beirut, Lebanon, 1983)
- 270 - Pan Am Flight 103, (Lockerbie, Scotland, 1988)
- 257 - 1993 Mumbai bombings (Mumbai, India, 1993)
- 225 - 1998 U.S. embassy bombings, (Tanzania, Kenya, 1998)
- 220 - Kerbala and Baghdad attacks [1] (http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1160859,00.html), (Iraq, 2004)
- 202 - 2002 Bali terrorist bombing, (Indonesia, 2002)
- 191 - 11 March 2004 Madrid attacks, (Spain, 2004)
- 171 - UTA Flight UT-772, (Niger, 1989)
- 170 - Moscow Theatre Siege, (Russia, 2002)
- 168 - Oklahoma City bombing, (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, 1995)
- 116 - Superferry 14 bombing, (Philippines, 2004)
- 90 - Central Bank Bombing, (Colombo, Sri Lanka, 1996)
- 89 - Russian airplane bombings, (Russia, 2004)
- 86 - AMIA Bombing, (Buenos Aires, Argentina, 1994)
- 63 - April 1983 US Embassy bombing, (Beirut, Lebanon, 1983)
- 57 - 2003 Istanbul Bombings, (Turkey, 2003)
- 52 - 2003 Mumbai bombings, (Mumbai, India, 2003)
- 40 - Wall Street bombing, (New York City, 1920)
- 34 - 2004 Sinai bombings, Taba and Nuweib, Egypt, 2004
- 33 - Dublin and Monaghan Bombings, (Ireland, 1974)
- 30 - Passover massacre, (Israel, 2002)
- 29 - Israeli Embassy Attack in Buenos Aires, (Argentina, 1992)
- 29 - Omagh Bombing, (Northern Ireland, 1998)
- 26 - bus No. 18 Jerusalem massacre, (Israel, 1996)
- 26 - Riyadh Compound Bombings, (Saudi Arabia, 2003)
- 23 - Jerusalem bus 2 massacre, (Israel, 2003)
- 22 - No. 5 bus Tel-Aviv massacre, (Israel, 1994)
- 22 - Tel-Aviv central bus station massacre, (Israel, 2003)
- 21 - Dolphinarium massacre, (Israel, 2001)
- 21 - Maxim restaurant suicide bombing, (Israel, 2003)
- 21 - Beit Lid junction massacre, (Israel, 1995)
- 19 - bus No. 18 Jerusalem massacre, (Israel, 1996)
- 19 - Patt junction massacre, (Israel, 2002)
- 19 - Birmingham pub bombing, (United Kingdom, 1974)
- 17 - Meggido junction massacre, (Israel, 2002)
- 17 - Haifa bus 37 massacre, (Israel, 2003)
- 17 - Jerusalem bus 14A massacre, (Israel, 2003)
- 16 - Mahane Yehuda massacre, (Israel, 1997)
- 16 - Rishon Lezion massacre, (Israel, 2002)
- 16 - Beersheba massacre, (Israel, 2004)
- 15 - Sbarro massacre, (Israel, 2001)
- 15 - Haifa Bus 16 massacre, (Israel, 2001)
- 15 - Matza restaurant massacre, (Israel, 2002)
- 14 - Bus 841 massacre, (Israel, 2002)
- 12 - Munich Massacre, Summer Olympics, (Germany, 1972)
- 11 - Ben Yehuda St. massacre, (Israel, 2001)
- 11 - Beit Yisrael massacre, (Israel, 2002)
- 11 - Moment cafe massacre, (Israel, 2002)
- 11 - Jerusalem bus 20 massacre, (Israel, 2002)
- 11 - Jerusalem bus 19 massacre, (Israel, 2004)
- 10 - Ashdod Port massacre, (Israel, 2004)
- 9 - Bloody Friday, (Northern Ireland, 1972)
- 6 - World Trade Center bombing, (New York, 1993)
- 3 - Sydney Hilton Hotel bombing, (Australia, 1978)
Murder (other than through terrorism)
- 400 - Abadan theater arson (Abadan, Iran, 1978)
- 360+ - Deaths in Ciudad Juárez (Mexico, 1990's- ) it is unknown how much the murders are related
- 323 - Circus arson, (Niteroi, Brazil, 1961)
- ~250 - Dr. Harold Shipman, Hyde, United Kingdom, (1970s?-1998)
- 189 - Subway arson (Daegu, South Korea, 2003)
- 140 - Luis Garavito, Colombia, (1992-1998)
- 97 - DuPont Plaza Hotel arson, San Juan, Puerto Rico, 1986)
- 87 - Happyland Fire, New York City, (1990)
- 53 - Andrei Chikatilo, Ukraine, (1982-1990)
- 52 - Anatoly Onopriyenko, Ukraine, (1996)
- 48 - Gary Ridgway, Green River Killer, Washington State, USA (1980s)
- 45 - Bath School Disaster, Bath, Michigan, USA (1927)
- 35 - Port Arthur Massacre, Australia (1996)
- 33 - John Wayne Gacy, Chicago, (1970s)
- 27 - Maria Swanenburg Leiden, Netherlands, (1880-1883)
- 23 - Ted Bundy, Florida, (1970s)
- 22+ - Robert Pickton, (Vancouver, 1990s)
- 21 - Yoo Young-Chul, (Seoul, 2003-2004)
- 21 - James Oliver Huberty, McDonald's massacre, San Ysidro, California, USA (1984)
- 18 - Dunblane Massacre, Scotland, United Kingdom (1996)
- 17 - Jeffrey Dahmer, Milwaukee, (1978-1991)
- 17 - Hungerford Massacre, England, (1987)
- 16 - Charles Whitman, University of Texas sniper, Austin, Texas (1966)
- 16 - Postal shooting, Edmond, Oklahoma (1986)
- 16 - Erfurt massacre, Erfurt, Germany (2002)
- 15 - Columbine High School massacre Colorado, (1999)
- 15 - Dennis Nilsen London, United Kingdom, (1978-1983)
- 14 - Montreal Massacre, Montreal, Canada, (1989)
- 13 - Howard Unruh, Camden, New Jersey, (1949)
- 13 - Hatfield-McCoy feud West Virginia/Kentucky (1860 - 1891)
- 12 - Fred West, Gloucester, England, (1973 - 1987)
- 11 - Juan Manuel Alvarez, Glendale, California, (2005)
- 5+ - Jack the Ripper, London, England (1888)
Riot or political demonstration
- 87,000 - Tibetan riots against Chinese Government (Tibet, China 1959)
- 30,000 - Nika riots (Constantinople, 532)
- 11,000 - Romanian Peasants' Revolt, 1907
- 7,500 - March 1st Movement (Seoul, Korea, 1919)
- 300-5,000 - Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, (China, 1989)
- 500 -- 2,600 - Aftermath of Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 (China, 1989)
- 400 - Iranian pilgrim riot, (Mecca, 1987)
- 300 - Tulsa Race Riot
- 200-300 - Tlatelolco massacre (Mexico, 1968)
- 285 - Gordon riots, (1780)
- 184 - May 13 Incident, ( Kuala Lumpur, 1969)
- 100 - Napoleon's "whiff of grapeshot", (Paris, 1795)
- 100 - New York Draft Riots, (1863)
- 95 - Riots in Palestine of May, 1921, (Tel Aviv, 1921)
- 94 - Jerusalem Riots of 1947
- 84 - Riot and crushing during mass arrests (Narathiwat province, Thailand, 2004)
- 50-60 - L.A. riot (1992)
- 7-60 - Massacre in Côte d'Ivoire by French troops (Côte d'Ivoire, 2004)
- 50 - Champ-de-Mars massacre, (Paris, 1791)
- 43 - Attica Prison riots (New York, 1971)
- 43 - 12th Street Riot (Detroit, 1967)
- 40-50 - Newton Rebellion (Newton, Northamptonshire, UK, 1607)
- 34 - Watts Riot (Los Angeles, 1965)
- 25 - Corpus Christi Massacre (Mexico City, 1971)
- 14 - Bloody Sunday (1972)
- 11 - Peterloo massacre (England, 1819)
- 5 - Greensboro massacre (United States, 1979)
- 4 - Kent State shootings (United States, 1970)
- 830,000 - Shaanxi earthquake (China, 1556)
- 400,000 - Tangshan earthquake (China, 1976)
- 226,000 - (ongoing) - Indian Ocean earthquake & tsunamis (outside Indonesia, 2004)
- 200,000 - Gansu earthquake (China, 1920)
- 200,000 - Xining earthquake (China, 1927)
- 140,000 - Great Kanto earthquake (Japan, 1923)
- 100,000 - Messina earthquake (Italy, 1908)
- 100,000 - 1755 Lisbon earthquake (Portugal, 1755)
- 80,000 - Shemakha earthquake (Caucasus, 1667)
- 77,000 - Tabriz earthquake (Iran, 1727)
- 70,000 - Gansu earthquake (China, 1932)
- 66,000 - Peru earthquake (1970)
- 60,000 - Sicily earthquake (1693)
- 60,000 - Quetta earthquake (Pakistan, 1935)
- 50,000 - Calabria earthquake (Italy, 1783)
- 50,000 - Iran earthquake (1990)
- 31,000-41,000 - Bam earthquake (Iran, 2003)
- 32,700 - Erzincan earthquake (Turkey, 1939)
- 25,000 - Spitak earthquake (Armenia, 1988)
- 24,000 - Chi-Chi earthquake (Taiwan, 1999)
- 23,000 - Guatemala earthquake (1976)
- 20,000 - Gujarat earthquake (India, 2001)
- 20,000 - Valparaíso earthquake (Chile, 1960)
- 17,118 - Izmit earthquake (Turkey, 1999)
- 15,621 - Tonghai earthquake (China, 1970)
- 11,000 - Naples earthquake, (Italy, 1857)
- 10,700 - Bihar earthquake (India, 1934)
- 10,000 - Agadir earthquake (Morocco, 1960)
- 9,748 - India earthquake (India, 1993)
- 9,500 - Michoacan earthquake (Mexico, 1985)
- 6,433 - Great Hanshin earthquake, (Kobe, Japan, 1995)
- 1,570 - Romania earthquake (Romania, 1977)
- 700 - 1906 San Francisco earthquake (California, 1906)
- 571 - Morocco earthquake (Al Hoceima Province, 2004)
- 258 - Napier earthquake (New Zealand, 1931)
- 66 - Loma Prieta earthquake (California, 1989)
- 65+ - Sylmar earthquake (California, 1971)
- 57 - Northridge earthquake (California, 1994)
- 27 - 1872 Lone Pine earthquake (California, 1872)
- 13 - Newcastle earthquake (Australia, 1989)
- 1,000,000-3,700,000 - 1931 Huang He flood (China, 1931)
- 900,000-2,000,000 - 1887 Huang He flood (China, 1887)
- 145,000 - 1935 Yangtze river flood
- 142,000 - 1931 Yangtze river flood
- 100,000 - flood (North Vietnam, 1971)
- 100,000 - 1911 Yangtze river flood
- 35,000 - European Heat Wave of 2003 (Europe, 2003)
- 30,000 - 1954 Yangtze river flood
- 15,000 - torrential rains and mudslides in Venezuela (1999)
- 12,000 - Great Smog of 1952, (United Kingdom, 1952)
- 10,000 - Great Iran Flood, (Iran, 1954)
- 4,000 - heat waves in Texas, Middle East and India (1998)
- 4,000 - blizzard, (Iran, 1972)
- 2,142 - North Sea Flood of 1953 storm surge, (Netherlands, United Kingdom, 1953)
- 1,909 - Vajont Dam landslide and flood disaster, (Italy, 1963)
- 1,605 - 3,363 - spring flooding in Haiti and Dominican Republic (2004)
- 739 - Chicago Heat Wave of 1995 (Chicago, 1995)
- 695 - Tri-State Tornado, (1925)
- 669 - heavy storms ("Winnie") (and 695 missing), (Philippines, 2004)
- 271 - heat waves in Midwest and Northeast (1999)
- 16 - Brisbane flood (Australia, 1974)
- 500,000 - Bhola cyclone (Bangladesh, 1970)
- 138,000 - cyclone, (Chittagong Bangladesh, 1991)
- 60,000 - typhoon, (China, 1922)
- 60,000 - typhoon, (India, 1864)
- 50,000 - typhoon, (China, 1912)
- 40,000 - typhoon, (India, 1942)
- 30,000 - cyclone (Bangladesh, June 1, 1965)
- 22,000 - Great Hurricane of 1780, (Barbados, Martinique, St. Eustatius 1780)
- 22,000 - cyclone (Pakistan, 1963)
- 20,000 - cyclone (India, 1977)
- 17,000 - cyclone (Bangladesh, May 11, 1965)
- 6,000 - 12,000 - Galveston Hurricane of 1900 (Texas, United States September 8, 1900)
- 11,000 - Hurricane Mitch (Central America 1998)
- 10,000 - cyclone (Karachi, Pakistan, 1965)
- 10,000 - cyclone in Orissa, India (1999)
- 10,000 - typhoon with tsunami (Hong Kong, 1906)
- 9,574 - cyclone (India, 1999)
- 8,000 - cyclone (Dominican Republic, 1930)
- 8,000 - Hurricane Fifi (Honduras, 1974)
- 7,200 - Hurricane Flora (Haiti, Cuba, 1963)
- 6,000 - Typhoon Thelma (Philippines, 1991)
- 6,000 - cyclone, (Pakistan, 1960)
- 5,000 - Typhoon Vera (Japan, 1958)
- 4,170 - Hurricane of Independence, (U.S., Canada, 1776)
- 3,037 - Hurricane Jeanne, (Haiti, 2004)
- 2,334 - Typhoon Iris (China, 1959)
- 1,836 - hurricane (Florida, 1928)
- 1,600 - Typhoon Mary, (China, 1960)
- 1,500 - Hurricane Hazel (Grenada, Bahamas, Haiti, U.S., Canada, 1954)
- 1,300 - Typhoon Ike, (Philippines, 1984)
- 1,200 - Hurricane David, (Dominican Republic, U.S., 1980)
- 1,130 - Hurricane Gordon (Haiti, U.S., 1994)
- 1,000 - cyclone (India, 1998)
- 650 - hurricane (Cuba, 1926)
- 650 - New England Hurricane, (U.S., 1938)
- 600 - hurricane (Florida, Louisiana, Texas, 1919)
- 500 - Hurricane Janet, (Honduras, Mexico, 1955)
- 408 - Labor Day Hurricane (Florida, 1935)
- 400 - Cyclone Mahina (Australia, 1899)
- 400 - Hurricane Hattie, (Belize, 1961)
- 256 - Hurricane Camille, (U.S., 1969)
- 228 - Hurricane Allen (Caribbean, U.S. 1980)
- 200 - Hurricane Hilda (Mexico, 1955)
- 120 - Hurricane Ivan, (Caribbean, USA, 2004)
- 86 - Hurricane Hugo (Leeward Islands, Puerto Rico, US mainland, 1989)
- 65 - Cyclone Tracy (Australia, 1974)
- 57 - Hurricane Floyd, (Bahamas, U.S., 1999)
- 41 - Tropical Storm Allison (U.S.. 2001)
- 40 - Hurricane Isabel (United States, 2003)
- 26 - Hurricane Andrew (Bahamas, United States, 1992)
- 225,000 (ongoing) - Indian Ocean earthquake with tsunami, (Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Somalia, Myanmar, and other countries (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_Indian_Ocean_earthquake#Damage_and_casualties)) 2004
- 100,000 - 1755 Lisbon earthquake, tsunami, earthquake and fire, 1755, Portugal and Morocco
- 100,000 - Awa, Japan, 1703
- 70,000 - Messina, Italy, earthquake and tsunami, 1908
- 40,000 - South China Sea, 1782, including deaths in Taiwan
- 36,000 - Krakatoa volcano explosion, 1883
- 30,000 - Tokaido-Nankaido, Japan, 1707
- 27,000 - Japan, 1826
- 25,674 - Chile, 1868
- 22,070 - Sanriku, Japan, 1896
- 15,030 - Southwest Kyushu, Japan, 1792
- 13,486 - Ryukyu Trench, 1771
- 5,233 - Tokaido-Kashima, Japan, 1703
- 5,000 - Nankaido, Japan, 1605
- 5,000 - Moro Gulf, Philippines, 1976
- 3,000 - Papua New Guinea, 1998
- 3,008 - Sanriku, Japan, 1933
- 2,000 - Great Chilean Earthquake, deaths in Chile, U.S. (Hawaii), Philipines and Japan, 1960
- 165 - Aleutian Island earthquake, deaths in Hawaii and Alaska, U.S., 1946
- 122 - Good Friday Earthquake, Alaska and Hawaii, U.S., 1964
- 27 or 51 - Placentia Bay, Newfoundland, Canada, 1929
- 92,000 - Mount Tambora, (Indonesia, 1815) (see also Year Without a Summer)
- 40,000 - Mount Pelée, (Martinique, 1902)
- 36,000 - Krakatoa, (Indonesia, 1883)
- 23,000 - Nevado del Ruiz, (Colombia, 1985)
- 18,000 - Mount Vesuvius, (1631)
- 15,000 - Unzen, (Japan, 1792)
- 10,000 - Kelut, (Indonesia, 1586)
- 9,350 - Laki, (Iceland, 1783)
- 3,600 - Mount Vesuvius, (79)
- 1,680 - Soufrière, (St. Vincent, West Indies, 1902)
- 1,000 - Cotopaxi, (Ecuador, 1887)
- 700 - Mount Pinatubo (Philippines, 1991)
- 245 - Nyiragongo, (Congo, 2002)
- 57 - Mount St. Helens (Washington, 1980)
(The 'Supervolcano' that erupted at Lake Toba, 74000 years ago is thought to have reduced the global modern human population to less than 10 thousand individuals).
- 300,000,000+ - Smallpox (20th Century)
- 100,000,000 - Plague of Justinian (Europe 540-590) (disputed)
- 55,000,000 - Black Death (Europe, Asia 1300s)
- 25,000,000-50,000,000 - Spanish Flu (worldwide, 1918 - 1919)
- 19,000,000 - AIDS (worldwide, 1981 - )
- 10,000,000 - Bubonic Plague (China, 1892 - 1896)
- 1,000,000 - Asian Flu pandemic (worldwide, 1957)
- 1,000,000 - Hong Kong Flu pandemic (worldwide, 1968)
- 130,000 - North American smallpox epidemic (1775 - 1782
- 775 - Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) (Mostly East Asia, few cases in Europe, Canada and United States, 2002-2003)
- 677 - West Nile Virus outbreak (North America, 1999 - 2004)
some of these famines may be partially or completely caused by humans
- 1,000,000-43,000,000 - Great Leap Forward (China, 1958 - 1961) (most estimates are between 25 and 35 million)
- 24,000,000 Chinese Famine of 1907
- 5,000,000 Chinese Famine of 1936
- 5,000,000 Ukraine and Volga Famine (USSR 1921-1922)
- 3,000,000 Chinese Drought 1941
- 3,000,000 Chinese Famine of 1928-1930
- 3,000,000 Indian Drought of 1900
- 1,500,000 - 3,000,000 Bengal Famine (India, 1943)
- 1,500,000 Indian Drought of 1965-1967
- 1,200,000 - North Korean famine (North Korea, 1995 - 1998)
- 1,100,000 - Irish potato famine (1846-1849)
- 1,000,000 - Ethiopian famine (1984)
- 30,000 - Dutch famine of 1944
Death from other causes
- 2,500 (approx.) - Church of La Compana (Santiago, Chile, 1863)
- 2,000 (approx.) - Peshtigo Fire, (Wisconsin, 1871)
- 1,700 - Waterfront fire, (Chongqing, China, 1949)
- 1,670 - theater fire (Canton, China, 1845)
- 694 - theater fire (Xinjiang, China, 1977)
- 658 - Antoung Movie Theater (China, 1937)
- 620 - Ring Theatre (Vienna, Austria, 1881)
- 602 - Iroquois Theater Fire, (Chicago, 1903)
- 559 - forest fire (Cloquet, Minnesota, 1918)
- 500 - Pemex LP gas fire (Mexico City, Mexico, 1984)
- 500 - flood-spread fuel fire (Durunka, Egypt, 1994)
- 492 - Cocoanut Grove fire, (Boston, 1942)
- 468 - Texas City Disaster, (Texas City, Texas, 1947)
- 465+ - Asunción Paraguay supermarket fire, (2004)
- 441 - Rajiv Marriage Palace (school function) (Mandi Dabwali, India, 1995)
- 418 - Hinckley Fire (Minnesota, 1894)
- 400 - Abadan theater arson (Abadan, Iran, 1978)
- 326 - North German Lloyd Steamship Line piers (Hoboken, New Jersey, 1900)
- 324 - movie theater, (Xinjiang, China, 1994)
- 323 - Circus arson, (Niteroi, Brazil, 1961)
- 322 - L'Innovation department store (Brussels, Belgium, 1967)
- 320 - Ohio State Penitentiary fire, (Columbus, Ohio, 1930)
- 310 - theater fire (Karamay, China, 1994)
- 309 - Disco fire (Luoyang, China, 2000)
- 300 - subway fire, (Baku, Azerbaijan, 1995)
- 300 - Great Chicago Fire (Chicago, 1871)
- 285 - Conway's Theater, (New York City, 1876)
- 282 - Thumb Fire, (Michigan, 1881)
- 189 - Subway arson (Daegu, South Korea, 2003)
- 189 - multi-story bank building, (São Paulo, Brazil, 1974)
- 187 - Doll factory (Bangkok, Thailand, 1993)
- 186 - República Cromagnon nightclub fire, (Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2004)
- 178 - School fire Collinwood, Ohio, 1908)
- 170 - Rhoads Opera House (Boyerton, Pennsylvania, 1908)
- 167 - Piper Alpha oil platform, (North Sea, 1988)
- 165 - Beverly Hills Supper Club fire, (Southgate, Kentucky, 1977)
- 168 - Hartford Circus Fire, (Hartford, Connecticut, 1944)
- 160 - Richmond Theater, (Richmond, Virginia, 1811)
- 160 - Miramichi Fire, (New Brunswick, 1825)
- 156 - Alpine tunnel fire (Kaprun, Austria, 2000)
- 150 - Clifford's Tower, (York, England, 1190)
- 145 - Triangle Factory fire, (New York, 1911)
- 140 - Gas truck crash, (Tarragona, Spain, 1978)
- 100 - The Station nightclub fire (Rhode Island, 2003)
- 97 - DuPont Hotel arson, San Juan, Puerto Rico, 1986)
- 76 - "Ash Wednesday" bushfires (Australia, 1983)
- 72 - Branch Davidian compound (Waco, Texas, 1993)
- 71 - "Black Friday" bushfires (Australia, 1939)
- 63 - discotheque fire (Göteborg, Sweden, 1998)
- 62 - Hobart bushfire (Australia, 1967)
- 48 - Stardust Nightclub Dublin Ireland. 1981
- 36 - Hindenburg disaster, (Lakehurst, New Jersey, 1937)
See also List of historic fires
not including terrorist bombings
- 1,635 - Halifax Explosion, (Nova Scotia, 1917)
- 1,549 - Benxihu Colliery explosion, (China, 1942)
- 1,100 - ammunition trucks (Cali, Colombia, 1956)
- 1,060 - Coal mine explosion (Courrières, France, 1903)
- 1,000 - Ammunition dump fire, (Lagos, Nigeria, 2002), many deaths were from drowning during the panic
- 568 - Texas City Disaster (Texas, 1947)
- 500 - Pipeline explosion beside Trans-Siberian railway (Ufa, Russia, 1989)
- 472 - coal mine (Wankie, Rhodesia, 1972)
- 447 - coal mine (Omuta, Japan, 1963)
- 437 - coal mine (Coalbrook, South Africa, 1960)
- 430 - chemical plant (Oppau, Germany, 1921)
- 375 - coal mine (Bihar, India, 1965)
- 372 - coal mine (Dhanbad, India, 1975)
- 362 - coal mine (Monongah, West Virginia, 1907)
- 344 - Pretoria Pit Disaster, (Westhoughton, England, 1910)
- 322 - Port Chicago disaster (Port Chicago, California, 1944)
- 298 - coal mine (Saarland, West Germany, 1962)
- 294 - schoolhouse (New London, Texas, 1937)
- 263 - coal mine (Dawson, New Mexico, 1913)
- 262 - coal mine (Marcinelle, Belgium, 1956)
- 259 - coal mine (Cherry, Illinois, 1909)
- 239 - coal mine (Jacobs Creek, Pennsylvania, 1907)
- 236 - coal mine (Fukuoka, Japan, 1965)
- 206 - gas explosions (Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico 1992)
- 200 - coal mine (Scofield, Utah, 1900)
- 130 - LP gas tanks (Cleveland, Ohio, 1944)
- 126 - Nedelin catastrophe, (USSR, 1960)
- 103 - USS Bennington, (off Quonset Point, Rhode Island, 1954)
- 48 - Vostok rocket explosion (Soviet Union, 1980)
- 40 - Lapua ammo factory (Finland, 1976)
- 22 - fireworks factory (Enschede, Netherlands, 2000)
- 21 - Brazilian rocket explosion (Brazil, 2003)
- 583 - Tenerife disaster (Tenerife, 1977)
- 520 - Japan Airlines Flight 123, (Japan, 1985)
- 350 - cargo plane crashes on marketplace (Kinshasa, Zaire, 1996)
- 349 - Saudi Arabian Airlines plane collided with a Kazak Airlines plane, (New Delhi, 1996)
- 346 - Turkish Airlines (Paris, 1974)
- 329 - Air India flight 182 (Atlantic Ocean, south of Ireland, 1985)
- 301 - Saudi Arabian Airlines (Jeddah, 1980)
- 290 - Iran Air Flight 655 (Persian Gulf, 1988)
- 276 - Iranian military airplane, (Sirach Mountains, 2003)
- 275 - American Airlines Flight 191 (Chicago, 1979)
- 270 - Pan Am Flight 103 (Lockerbie, 1988)
- 269 - Korean Air Flight 7 (Sakhalin Island, 1983)
- 265 - American Airlines Flight 587, (New York City, 2001)
- 264 - China Airlines (Nagoya, 1994)
- 261 - Haj charter plane (Jedda, 1991)
- 257 - Air New Zealand Flight 901 (Antarctica, 1979)
- 256 - Arrow Air U.S. military charter (Gander, Newfoundland, 1985)
- 230 - TWA Flight 800 (Long Island, 1996)
- 229 - Swissair Flight 111 (Halifax, Nova Scotia, 1998)
- 225 - China Airlines Flight 611 (Penghu Islands, 2002)
- 202 - EgyptAir Flight 990 (Cape Cod), 2001
- 110 - ValuJet Flight 592 (Florida Everglades, 1996)
- 104 - Silkair Flight MI-185 (Sumatra, 1997)
- 83 - Singapore Airlines Flight 6 (Taipei, 2000)
- 70 - Ramstein airshow disaster (Germany, 1988)
- 35 - Hindenburg disaster (New Jersey, 1937)
Wartime disasters
- 7,000 - Goya, 1945 (minimum)
- 6,050 - KdF Ship Wilhelm Gustloff, 1945 (sometimes reported as high as 10,000)
- 5,620 - Junyo Maru, 1944
- 5,400 - Toyama Maru, 1944 (approx.)
- 5,000 - Ukishima Maru, 1945 (approx.)
- 4,650 - Cap Arcona, 1945
- 4,000 - HMT Lancastria, 1940
- 3,000 - SS General von Steuben, 1945
- 3,000 - Yoshida Maru, 1944
- 2,750 - Thielbek, 1945
- 2,571 - M.S. Rigel, 1944
- 2,498 - Yamato, 1945
- 2,097 - DKM Bismarck, 1941
- 2,003 - Awa Maru, 1945
- 2,000 - Ural Maru, 1944 (approx.)
- 2,000 - Josef Stalin, 1941
- 1,875 - Arisan Maru, 1944
- 1,650 - Taiho, 1944
- 1,529 - Tsushima Maru, 1944
- 1,435 - Shinano, 1944
- 1,414 - HMS Hood, 1941
- 1,400 - Yamashiro, 1944
- 1,400 - Fuso, 1944 (approx.)
- 1,297 - SS Khedive Ismail, 1944
- 1,263 - Shokaku, 1944
- 1,250 - Kongo, 1944
- 1,239 - Unryu, 1944
- 1,209 - Conte Rosso, 1941
- 1,207 - HMS Glorious, 1940
- 1,198 - RMS Lusitania, 1915
- 1,177 - USS Arizona (BB-39), (Pearl Harbor 1941)
- 380 - Mary Rose (Portsmouth, 1545)
- 450 - HMS Birkenhead (near Cape Town, 1852)
Peacetime disasters
- 1,550+ - Doña Paz ferry, (Philippines, 1987)
- 1,547 - Sultana, 1865
- 1,518 - RMS Titanic, 1912
- 1,021 - General Slocum, (New York 1904)
- 1,012 - RMS Empress of Ireland, (Saint Lawrence River 1914)
- 1,000 - Joola, (2002)
- 852 - MS Estonia, (Baltic Sea 1994)
- 835 - Eastland, (Chicago, 1915)
- 608 - Novorossiysk (Sevastopol, 1955)
- 558 - Principe de Asturias (off Brazil, 1916)
- 546 - RMS Atlantic (Nova Scotia, 1873)
- 400 - Lady Elgin (Chicago, 1860)
- 358 - HMS Victoria (near Tripoli, Lebanon, 1893)
- 353 - SIEV-X (off Australia, 2001)
- 260 - USS Maine (Havana, Cuba, 1898) maybe accidental; maybe terrorism
- 260 - Earl of Abergavenny (off Portland Bill, 1805)
- 260 - Nuestra Señora de Atocha (Florida Keys, 1622)
- 226 - Ville de Havre (North Atlantic, 1873)
- 185 - Batavia (off Australia, 1629) includes both drowned and murdered
- 193 - Herald of Free Enterprise (English Channel, 1980)
- 170 - Staffordshire (Cape Sable, 1853)
- 148 - Medusa (off Senegal, 1816)
- 134 - SS Morro Castle (off Asbury Park, New Jersey, 1934)
- 129 - USS Thresher, (N. Atlantic, 1963)
- 128 - HMS Gladiator (Isle of Wight, 1908)
- 118 - Kursk (2000)
- 99 - USS Scorpion (near Azores, 1968)
- 80 - Pamir (1957)
- 51 - TEV Wahine (Wellington, NZ, 1968)
- 51 - SS Andrea Doria (off Nantucket, Mass. 1956)
- 36 - FV Gaul (Barents Sea, 1974)
- 35 - HMS Pandora (Torres Strait, 1791)
- 29 - SS Edmund Fitzgerald (Lake Superior, 1975)
- 13 - Essex (South Pacific, 1819)
- 6 - Andrea Gale (North Atlantic, 1991)
Space travel
See also List of space disasters
Sporting events
- 340 - Moscow soccer match crush (Moscow, 1982)
- 300 - Peru vs. Argentina soccer game riot (Lima, Peru, 1964)
- 123 - Hearts of Oak vs. Kumasi Ashanti Kotoko soccer match crush (Accra, Ghana, 2001)
- 96 - Hillsborough disaster crush (England, 1989)
- 84 - Guatemala and Costa Rica soccer match crush (Guatemala City,
- 82 - 24 hours of Le Mans disaster (France, 1955)
- 80 - soccer match crush (Katmandu, Nepal, 1988)
- 66 - Second Ibrox disaster crush (Glasgow, 1971)
- 56 - Bradford City soccer stadium fire (Bradford, England, 1985)
- 39 - Heysel Stadium disaster soccer stadium hooliganism (Bruxelles, Belgium, 1985)
- 26 - First Ibrox disaster, terracing collapse (Glasgow, 1902)
- 21 - Olympiacos stampede at the old Karaiskaki stadium (Piraeus, Greece, 1981)
Industrial accidents
Other accidents
- 229,000 - Banqiao Dam failure, China, 1975. Approximately 86,000 people died from flooding and another 145,000 died during subsequent epidemics.
- 4,000 - mass panic, (Chongqing, China, 1941)
- 3,000 - Ryongchon disaster (North Korea, 2004)
- 2,200 - Johnstown Flood (Pennsylvania, 1889)
- ca. 1,700 "Queen of the Sea" train disaster, Telwatta, Sri Lanka caused by the tsunami created by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.
- 1,635 - Halifax Explosion, (Nova Scotia, 1917)
- 800+ - train wreck, (Bihar, India, 1981)
- 800 - crowd crush at religious festival (Allahabad, India, 1954)
- 400 - St. Francis Dam failure, (California, 1928)
- 300 - subway fire, (Baku, Azerbaijan, 1995)
- 270 - Great Sheffield flood dam disaster, (England, 1864)
- 258 - crowd crush at religious festival (Wai, India, 2005)
- 144 - Aberfan landslide disaster (Wales, 1966)
- 126 - Nedelin catastrophe, (USSR, 1960)
- 101 - ICE high-speed train disaster, (Germany, 1998)
- 75 - Tay Rail Bridge (Scotland, 1879)
- 48 - Vostok rocket explosion (Soviet Union, 1980)
- 21 - Brazilian rocket explosion (Brazil, 2003)
Nuclear accidents
See List of nuclear accidents
See also
External links
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