Year |
Type |
Fatalities |
Damage (US$) |
Article |
Location |
Comments |
1900 |
Tropical cyclone |
6,000 to 12,000 |
$28,000,000 (approximate) |
1900 Galveston hurricane |
Texas |
Fatalities estimated. Remains the deadliest natural disaster in North American history. |
1906 |
Earthquake and fire (urban conflagration) |
3,000-6,000 |
|
1906 San Francisco earthquake |
San Francisco, California |
Conflagration followed quake; fatalities estimated |
2001 |
Terrorism - plane crashes |
2,996 |
$1,000,000,000 (2001) |
September 11 attacks |
New York City, Arlington County, Virginia, and Stonycreek Township near Shanksville, Pennsylvania |
2,977 victims and 19 hijackers. |
1928 |
Tropical cyclone |
2,812 |
$800,000,000 (2005) |
1928 Okeechobee hurricane |
Florida
Puerto Rico |
4,078 believed dead total. 2500 in Florida, 312 in Puerto Rico. |
1941 |
Military strike - bombing |
2,467 |
|
Attack on Pearl Harbor |
Honolulu, Hawaii |
2,403 U.S. victims and 64 Japanese attackers. |
1889 |
Accident - Dam burst |
2,209 |
|
Johnstown Flood |
Pennsylvania |
Much rain, deforestation; dam failed |
1893 |
Tropical cyclone |
2,000 |
|
1893 Cheniere Caminada hurricane |
Louisiana |
Fatalities estimated |
2005 |
Tropical cyclone |
1,836 |
$108,000,000,000 |
Hurricane Katrina |
Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, and Ohio |
Costliest natural disaster in U.S. history. |
1865 |
Accident - Shipwreck |
1,700 |
|
Sultana |
Memphis, Tennessee |
Steamboat sank due to boiler explosion; fatalities estimated |
1980 |
Heat wave |
1,700 |
|
1980 United States heat wave |
Central and southern states |
Official death toll, may have been higher |
1912 |
Accident - Shipwreck |
1,490-1,517 |
|
Sinking of the RMS Titanic |
Near Newfoundland
and Nova Scotia, Canada. |
En route to New York City from Queenstown, Ireland. |
1871 |
Fire (rural) |
1,200-2,500 |
|
Peshtigo Fire |
Peshtigo, Wisconsin
Upper Peninsula of Michigan |
Fatalities estimated; most deaths in single fire in U.S. history |
1904 |
Accident - Shipwreck |
1,021 |
|
PS General Slocum |
East River near New York City |
Steamship sank due to fire on board |
1893 |
Tropical cyclone |
1,000-2,000 |
|
1893 Sea Islands hurricane |
Georgia,
South Carolina |
Fatalities estimated |
1945 |
Direct action (military),
Shark attack,
Drowning,
Hypothermia |
879 |
|
USS Indianapolis (CA-35) |
Near Guam |
|
1915 |
Accident - Shipwreck |
844 |
|
S.S. Eastland |
Chicago, Illinois |
|
1995 |
Heat wave |
739 |
|
Chicago Heat Wave of 1995 |
Chicago, Illinois |
|
1925 |
Tornado |
695-747 |
$1,650,000,000 (2005) |
Tri-State Tornado |
Missouri, Illinois and Indiana (Kentucky, Tennessee) |
Lower number for single 3-state tornado; higher for 5-state outbreak |
1903 |
Fire (building) |
602 |
|
Iroquois Theatre fire |
Chicago, Illinois |
|
1919 |
Tropical cyclone |
600 |
|
1919 Florida Keys hurricane |
Florida
Texas |
|
1928 |
Accident - Dam failure |
600 |
|
St. Francis Dam |
Santa Clarita, California |
|
1938 |
Tropical cyclone |
600 |
|
1938 New England hurricane |
|
|
1947 |
Accident - Explosion |
581 |
|
Texas City disaster |
Texas City, Texas |
Ammonium nitrate onboard ship |
1871 |
Fire |
500 (estimated) |
|
Great Michigan Fire |
Michigan |
|
1942 |
Fire (building) |
492 |
|
Cocoanut Grove fire |
Boston, Massachusetts |
Nightclub |
1927 |
Exploitation, Silicosis |
476-1,000+ |
|
Hawks Nest Tunnel disaster |
Gauley Bridge, West Virginia |
178 admitted deaths, 476 with congressional inquiry, 1,000+ by epidemiologists. |
1918 |
Fire (rural) |
453 |
$7,300,000 |
1918 Cloquet fire |
Minnesota |
|
1936 |
Tornado outbreak |
436+ |
|
1936 Tupelo–Gainesville tornado outbreak |
Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee |
Two tornadoes in Tupelo, Mississippi, and Gainesville, Georgia, killed 233 and 203 people respectively |
1913 |
Flood |
428 |
|
1913 (Ohio) statewide flood |
Ohio |
|
1935 |
Tropical cyclone |
423 |
|
1935 Labor Day hurricane |
Florida |
|
1860 |
Accident - Shipwreck |
400 |
|
PS Lady Elgin |
Chicago, Illinois |
|
1888 |
Blizzard |
400 |
|
Great Blizzard of 1888 |
Northeast |
Fatalities estimated |
1857 |
Shipwreck |
400 |
|
SS Central America, 1857 |
Off the coast of Georgia |
Fatalities estimated |
1894 |
Fire (rural) |
400 |
|
Great Hinckley Fire |
Hinckley, Minnesota and vicinity |
|
1937 |
Flood |
385 |
$5,000,000,000 |
Ohio River flood of 1937 |
Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois |
|
1907 |
Accident - Coal mine |
362 |
|
Monongah mining disaster |
Monongah, West Virginia |
|
1913 |
Flood |
361 |
|
Great Dayton Flood |
Dayton, Ohio |
Flood was created by a series of three winter storms that hit the region in March, 1913 |
1950 |
Blizzard |
353 |
$66,700,000 (1950) |
Great Appalachian Storm of November 1950 |
Eastern US States |
|
2011 |
Tornado outbreak |
348 |
~$11,000,000,000 (2011) |
2011 Super Outbreak |
Midwestern United States, Southern United States, Eastern United States, Southern Ontario |
355 tornadoes, with one of the deadliest in Tuscaloosa and Birmingham, Alabama. 324 tornadic deaths, with another 24 from related weather. |
1932 |
Tornado outbreak |
330 |
$4,340,000 |
1932 Deep South tornado outbreak |
Southern United States |
At least 36 tornadoes, including 10 violent (F4 or F5) storms, resulting in 268 deaths in Alabama alone. |
1930 |
Fire (building) |
322 |
|
Ohio Penitentiary |
Columbus, Ohio |
|
1944 |
Accident - Explosion |
320 |
|
Port Chicago disaster |
Port Chicago, California |
WWII ammunition ignited |
1974 |
Tornado outbreak |
319 |
$3,500,000,000 (2005) |
1974 Super Outbreak |
Ontario, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia and New York |
148 tornadoes |
1993 |
Cyclonic Blizzard |
310 |
$6,650,000,000 (2008) |
1993 Storm of the Century |
Ontario, Quebec, Eastern United States, Cuba |
|
1865 |
Accident - Explosion |
300 |
|
Mobile magazine explosion |
Mobile, Alabama |
Civil War ammunition |
1937 |
Accident - Explosion |
296-319 |
$13,000,000 (2003) |
New London School explosion |
New London, Texas |
Gas leak |
1881 |
Fire (rural) |
282 |
$2,347,000 |
Thumb Fire |
Michigan |
|
1876 |
Fire (building) |
278 |
|
Brooklyn Theatre fire |
Brooklyn, New York |
|
1898 |
Explosion |
274 |
|
USS Maine |
Havana, Cuba |
A major event that precipitated the Spanish–American War. Exact cause remains unknown. |
1979 |
Accident - Aircraft |
273 |
|
American Airlines Flight 191 |
Chicago, Illinois |
Deadliest single-aircraft accident in US history |
1965 |
Tornado outbreak |
271 |
|
Palm Sunday tornado outbreak |
Iowa, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana |
78 tornadoes |
1999 |
Heat wave |
271 |
|
|
Midwest and Northeast |
|
2001 |
Accident - Aircraft |
265 |
|
American Airlines Flight 587 |
Queens, New York |
|
1913 |
Accident - Coal mine |
263 |
|
|
Dawson, New Mexico |
|
1909 |
Accident - Coal mine |
259 |
|
Cherry Mine disaster |
Cherry, Illinois |
|
1937 |
Accident - Coal mine |
257 |
|
|
Grundy, Virginia |
|
1969 |
Tropical cyclone |
256 |
|
Hurricane Camille |
Mississippi,
Alabama, and Virginia |
|
1896 |
Tornado |
255-400 |
$2,900,000,000 (1997) |
St. Louis-East St. Louis Tornado |
Missouri |
|
1913 |
Blizzard |
250 |
$5,000,000 (1913) |
Great Lakes Storm of 1913 |
Great Lakes region |
Fatalities estimated |
1953 |
Tornado outbreak sequence |
247 |
|
Flint–Worcester tornado outbreak sequence |
Michigan
Ohio, Nebraska and Massachusetts |
116 deaths in Flint, Michigan, 94 in Worcester, Massachusetts. |
1927 |
Flood |
246 |
$400,000,000 |
Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 |
Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee |
|
1972 |
Flood |
238 |
$160,000,000 (1972) $664,000,000 (2002) |
1972 Rapid City Flood |
Rapid City, South Dakota |
Average rainfall over area of 60 mi² measured at 10-15 inches (380 mm), over 6 hours in middle of night June 9–10, 1972. |
1996 |
Accident - Aircraft |
230 |
|
TWA Flight 800 |
Long Island, New York |
|
1997 |
Accident - Aircraft |
228 |
|
Korean Air Flight 801 |
Nimitz Hill, Guam |
|
1998 |
Terrorism |
223 |
|
1998 United States embassy bombings |
Tanzania
Kenya |
4,000+ injured |
1999 |
Accident - Aircraft |
217 |
|
EgyptAir Flight 990 |
Atlantic Ocean near Nantucket, Massachusetts |
|
1940 |
Fire (building) |
209 |
|
Rhythm Club fire |
Natchez, Mississippi |
|
1871 |
Fire (urban conflagration) |
200-300 |
|
Great Chicago Fire |
Chicago, Illinois |
Fatalities estimated; 125 bodies recovered |
1900 |
Accident - Coal mine |
200 |
|
Scofield Mine disaster |
Scofield, Utah |
|
1898 |
Accident - Shipwreck |
192 |
|
The Portland |
Gloucester, Massachusetts |
|
1863 |
Mass murder, Military operation |
185-200 |
|
Lawrence Massacre |
Lawrence, Kansas |
|
1947 |
Tornado |
181 |
|
1947 Glazier–Higgins–Woodward tornadoes |
Oklahoma (especially Woodward), Texas (including Glazier and Higgins), Kansas |
|
1890 |
Mass murder, Military operation |
178 |
|
Wounded Knee Massacre |
Wounded Knee Creek, South Dakota |
|
1908 |
Fire (building) |
174 |
|
Collinwood school fire |
Cleveland, Ohio |
|
1908 |
Fire (building) |
171 |
|
Rhoads Opera House fire |
Boyertown, Pennsylvania |
Sources conflict on number of fatalities: 170 or 171. |
1995 |
Terrorism |
168 |
|
Oklahoma City bombing |
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma |
|
1944 |
Fire (building) |
168 |
|
Hartford circus fire |
Hartford, Connecticut |
|
1917 |
Fire (mine) |
168 |
|
Speculator Mine disaster |
Butte, Montana |
|
1977 |
Fire (building) |
165 |
|
Beverly Hills Supper Club fire |
Southgate, Kentucky |
|
1946 |
Tsunami and Earthquake |
165 |
|
1946 Aleutian Islands earthquake |
Alaska
Hawaii |
|
1944 |
Maritime Accident |
163 |
|
West Loch disaster |
Pearl Harbor, Hawaii |
Classified as top secret until 1960. |
2011 |
Tornado |
158 |
$2,800,000,000 (2011) |
2011 Joplin tornado |
Joplin, Missouri |
Part of the May 21–26, 2011 tornado outbreak sequence. 4 additional fatalities resulted indirectly from this tornado. |
1987 |
Accident - Aircraft |
156 |
|
Northwest Airlines Flight 255 |
Detroit, Michigan |
|
1982 |
Accident - Aircraft |
153 |
|
Pan Am Flight 759 |
New Orleans, Louisiana |
|
1911 |
Fire (building) |
146 |
|
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire |
New York City, New York |
|
1976 |
Flood |
145 |
|
Big Thompson Canyon Flood of 1976 |
Colorado |
|
1978 |
Accident - Aircraft |
144 |
|
PSA Flight 182 |
San Diego, California |
|
1840 |
Accident - Shipwreck |
139 |
|
Lexington |
Long Island Sound |
Steamship sank due to fire on board |
1985 |
Accident - Aircraft |
137 |
|
Delta Air Lines Flight 191 |
Dallas, Texas |
|
1967 |
Fire |
134 |
>$72,000,000 |
1967 USS Forrestal fire |
Gulf of Tonkin, Vietnam |
|
1960 |
Accident - Aircraft |
134 |
|
1960 New York mid-air collision |
New York City, New York |
|
1994 |
Accident - Aircraft |
132 |
|
USAir Flight 427 |
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
|
1944 |
Accident - Explosion |
130 |
$7,000,000- $15,000,000 |
Cleveland East Ohio Gas explosion |
Cleveland, Ohio |
|
1963 |
Accident - Submarine |
129 |
|
USS Thresher (SSN-593) |
Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Massachusetts |
Deadliest submarine disaster in history. |
1956 |
Accident - Aircraft |
128 |
|
1956 Grand Canyon mid-air collision |
Grand Canyon, Arizona |
Parts of wreckage still visible |
1915 |
Incident - Maritime |
128 |
|
Sinking of the RMS Lusitania |
Atlantic Ocean near Kinsale, Ireland |
Ship torpedoed by a German U-boat. 1,198 fatalities resulted overall; 128 of them were Americans. |
1972 |
Accident - Dam burst |
125 |
|
Buffalo Creek flood |
Logan County, West Virginia |
|
1929 |
Fire (building) |
123 |
|
Cleveland Clinic fire of 1929 |
Cleveland, Ohio |
|
2005 |
Tropical cyclone |
120 |
$12,000,000,000 (2005) |
Hurricane Rita |
Louisiana |
|
1933 |
Earthquake |
120 |
$50,000,000 (1933) |
Long Beach earthquake |
Long Beach, California |
|
1946 |
Fire (building) |
119 |
|
Winecoff Hotel |
Atlanta, Georgia |
|
1899 |
Tornado |
117 |
>$300,000 ($8,381,000 in today's dollars). |
New Richmond tornado |
New Richmond, Wisconsin |
Tornado hit the same time the circus was in town. |
1918 |
Earthquake |
116 |
|
1918 San Fermin earthquake |
Puerto Rico |
|
1938 |
Flood |
115 |
|
Los Angeles flood of 1938 |
Los Angeles, California |
|
1964 |
Tsunami and Earthquake |
115 |
$1,800,000,000 (2006) |
Good Friday earthquake |
Alaska, Hawaii, Oregon, California, British Columbia |
|
1837 |
Accident - Shipwreck |
115 |
|
Wreck of the Mexico |
Long Beach, New York |
Eight people rescued from shore. One hundred fifteen crew and passengers (mostly Irish immigrants, and many of them women and children) froze to death on the deck of the ship just 200 yards from shore. See book: "Water and Ice: The Tragic Wrecks of the Bristol and the Mexico on the South Shore of Long Island" @ www.Lynhistory.com The wreck of the Mexico is the subject of Walt Whitman's poem, "Sleepers" in Leaves of Grass. |
1953 |
Tornado |
114 |
|
1953 Waco tornado outbreak |
Waco, Texas |
Other tornadoes in the outbreak caused an additional 30 deaths |
1981 |
Accident - collapse |
114 |
|
Hyatt Regency walkway collapse |
Kansas City, Missouri |
|
1975 |
Accident - Aircraft |
113 |
|
Eastern Air Lines Flight 66 |
New York City, New York |
|
2008 |
Tropical cyclone |
112 |
$29,500,000,000 (2008) |
Hurricane Ike |
Texas; Louisiana |
34 people still missing as of 2013 |
1947 |
Accident - Coal mine |
111 |
|
Centralia mine disaster |
Centralia, Illinois |
|
1971 |
Accident - Aircraft |
111 |
|
Alaska Airlines Flight 1866 |
Juneau, Alaska |
|
1989 |
Accident - Aircraft |
111 |
|
United Airlines Flight 232 |
Sioux City, Iowa |
|
1996 |
Accident - Aircraft |
110 |
|
ValuJet Flight 592 |
Florida Everglades |
|
1869 |
Accident - Coal mine |
108 |
|
Avondale Mine disaster |
Plymouth, Pennsylvania |
|
1918 |
Accident - Railroad |
101 |
|
Great Train Wreck of 1918 |
Nashville, Tennessee |
Deadliest rail accident in U.S. history |
1963 |
Accident - Aircraft |
101 |
|
Northwest Airlines Flight 293 |
Near Annette Island, Alaska |
|
1972 |
Accident - Aircraft |
101 |
|
Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 |
Miami, Florida |
|
1978 |
Blizzard |
100 |
$1,075,000,000 (2010) |
Northeastern United States blizzard of 1978 |
Northeast |
Fatalities estimated |
2003 |
Fire (building) |
100 |
|
The Station nightclub fire |
West Warwick, Rhode Island |
4th-deadliest nightclub fire in U.S. history, killing 100 people and injuring more than 200. |
1890 |
Accident - Shipwreck |
98 |
|
Sea Wing disaster |
Lake Pepin near Lake City, Minnesota |
Strong winds toppled the excursion vessel. |
1922 |
Roof collapse (snow) |
98 |
|
Knickerbocker Theatre |
Washington, District of Columbia |
|
1904 |
Accident - Railroad |
97 |
|
Eden train wreck |
Pueblo, Colorado |
|
1910 |
Avalanche |
96 |
|
Wellington avalanche |
Wellington, Washington |
|
1962 |
Accident - Aircraft |
95 |
|
American Airlines Flight 1 |
New York City, New York |
|
1958 |
Fire (building) |
95 |
|
Our Lady of the Angels School fire |
Chicago, Illinois |
|
1954 |
Tropical cyclone |
95 |
|
Hurricane Hazel |
North Carolina; South Carolina |
U.S. victims only |
1918 |
Accident - Railroad |
93 |
|
Malbone Street Wreck |
Brooklyn, New York |
|
1876 |
Accident - Railroad |
92 |
|
Ashtabula River railroad disaster |
Ashtabula, Ohio |
|
1974 |
Accident - Aircraft |
92 |
|
TWA Flight 514 |
Berryville, Virginia |
|
1973 |
Accident - Aircraft |
89 |
|
Delta Air Lines Flight 723 |
Boston, Massachusetts |
|
2000 |
Accident - Aircraft |
88 |
|
Alaska Airlines Flight 261 |
Pacific Ocean near Anacapa Island, California |
|
1990 |
Fire (building) |
87 |
|
Happy Land fire |
New York City, New York |
|
1910 |
Fire (rural) |
86 |
|
Great Fire of 1910 |
Washington, Idaho, Montana |
|
1918 |
Accident - Railroad |
86 |
|
Hammond Circus Train Wreck |
Hammond, Indiana |
|
1993 |
Police raid - Fire |
86 |
|
Waco siege |
Branch Davidian Complex, Waco, Texas |
6 Davidians and 4 police killed in initial raid, 76 Davidians died in assault weeks later when building was set on fire by Davidan leader David Koresh to gain martyrdom. |
1968 |
Accident - Aircraft |
85 |
|
United Airlines Flight 629 |
Dawson, Texas |
|
1951 |
Accident - Railroad |
85 |
|
Woodbridge train wreck |
Woodbridge, New Jersey |
|
1980 |
Fire (building) |
84 |
|
MGM Grand fire |
Las Vegas, Nevada |
|
1965 |
Accident - Aircraft |
84 |
|
Eastern Air Lines Flight 663 |
New York City, New York |
|
1969 |
Accident - Aircraft |
83 |
|
Allegheny Airlines Flight 853 |
Shelby County, Indiana |
A Piper Cherokee 140, piloted by a student who was a week away from getting his private pilot's license, collided with an Allegheny Airlines DC-9. The flight originated in Boston and had stopped in Baltimore and Cincinnati.[1] |
1967 |
Accident - Aircraft |
82 |
|
Piedmont Airlines Flight 22 |
Hendersonville, North Carolina |
|
1986 |
Accident - Aircraft |
82 |
|
1986 Cerritos mid-air collision |
Cerritos, California |
|
1887 |
Accident - Railroad |
81-85 |
|
Great Chatsworth train wreck |
Chatsworth, Illinois |
|
1963 |
Accident - Aircraft |
81 |
|
Pan Am Flight 214 |
Elkton, Maryland |
Lightning strike |
1943 |
Accident - Railroad |
79 |
|
Frankford Junction train wreck |
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
|
1982 |
Accident - Aircraft |
78 |
|
Air Florida Flight 90 |
District of Columbia |
|
1976 |
Accident - Shipwreck |
78 |
|
MV George Prince ferry disaster |
Mississippi River, Louisiana |
Deadliest ferry disaster in US history |
1968 |
Accident - Coal mine |
78 |
|
Farmington Mine disaster |
Farmington, West Virginia |
|
1961 |
Accident - Aircraft |
78 |
|
TWA Flight 529 |
Hinsdale, Illinois |
|
1950 |
Accident - Railroad |
78 |
|
Kew Gardens train crash |
Kew Gardens, New York |
|
1961 |
Accident - Aircraft |
77 |
|
Imperial Airlines Flight 201/8 |
Richmond, Virginia |
|
1970 |
Accident - Aircraft |
75 |
|
Southern Airways Flight 932 |
Ceredo, West Virginia |
Deadliest sports tragedy in US history |
1963 |
Accident - Explosion |
74 |
|
Indiana State Fair Coliseum |
Indianapolis, Indiana |
|
1913 |
Stampede |
73 |
|
Italian Hall disaster |
Calumet, Michigan |
Second-largest loss of life within the state of Michigan. |
1933 |
Accident - Airship |
73 |
|
USS Akron (ZRS-4) |
Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of New Jersey |
Deadliest airship disaster in history. |
1957 |
Fire (building) |
72 |
|
Warrenton Nursing Home fire |
Warrenton, Missouri |
|
1974 |
Accident - Aircraft |
72 |
|
Eastern Air Lines Flight 212 |
Charlotte, North Carolina |
|
1943 |
Accident - Railroad |
72 |
|
Rennert railroad accident |
Rennert, North Carolina |
|
2012 |
Tropical cyclone |
72 |
$71,400,000,000 |
Hurricane Sandy |
Most of the United States East Coast |
87 indirect fatalities occurred in the United States. At least 126 additional fatalities (75 direct; 51 indirect) occurred in the Caribbean and the Bahamas; 21 people are still missing in Haiti. |
1985 |
Accident - Aircraft |
70 |
|
Galaxy Airlines Flight 203 |
Reno, Nevada |
|
1936 |
Flood |
69 |
$3,000,000,000 (2006) |
Pittsburgh Flood of 1936 |
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area |
|
1989 |
Earthquake |
69 |
$6,000,000,000 (1989) |
Loma Prieta earthquake |
San Francisco Bay Area, California |
|
1994 |
Accident - Aircraft |
68 |
|
American Eagle Flight 4184 |
Roselawn, Indiana |
|
1888 |
Accident - Railroad |
66 |
|
Mud Run disaster |
Eastern Pennsylvania |
|
1955 |
Accident - Aircraft |
66 |
|
United Airlines Flight 409 |
Medicine Bow Peak, Wyoming |
|
1959 |
Accident - Aircraft |
65 |
|
American Airlines Flight 320 |
New York City, New York |
|
1971 |
Earthquake |
65 |
$500,000,000 |
Sylmar earthquake |
Greater Los Angeles Area, California |
|
1903 |
Accident - Railroad |
64 |
|
Connellsville train wreck |
Connellsville, Pennsylvania |
|
1983 |
Terrorism |
64 |
|
1983 United States embassy bombing |
Beirut, Lebanon |
|
1960 |
Accident - Aircraft |
63 |
|
Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 710 |
Tell City, Indiana |
Wing failure resulting from freak vibrations in clear weather turbulence was the probable cause.[1] |
1963 |
Fire (building) |
63 |
|
Golden Age Nursing Home fire |
Fitchville, Ohio |
|
1960 |
Accident - Aircraft |
62 |
|
Eastern Air Lines Flight 375 |
Boston, Massachusetts |
|
1944 |
Military aircraft, Accident |
61 |
|
Freckleton air disaster |
Freckleton, England |
An American United States Army Air Forces Consolidated B-24 Liberator heavy bomber crashed into the centre of the village of Freckleton. It crashed into a church, 3 houses, and a pub. 38 children were killed. |
1960 |
Tsunami |
61 |
$500,000 (2005) |
Great Chilean earthquake |
Hawaii, Alaska |
2,290 to 6,600 killed and $3,500,000,000 (2005) in damage worldwide. 61 killed in Hilo, Hawaii. $500,000 in U.S. property damage |
1864 |
Accident - Railroad |
60+ |
|
Shohola train wreck |
Shohola, Pennsylvania |
|
1856 |
Accident - Railroad |
59-67 |
|
Great Train Wreck of 1856 |
Fort Washington, Pennsylvania |
|
2008 |
Tornado outbreak |
59 |
|
2008 Super Tuesday tornado outbreak |
Tennessee, Arkansas, Kentucky, Alabama, and Illinois |
|
1950 |
Accident - Aircraft |
58 |
|
Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 2501 |
Lake Michigan |
Airplane wreckage never found |
1964 |
Accident - Aircraft |
58 |
|
Eastern Air Lines Flight 304 |
Lake Pontchartrain, Louisiana |
|
1965 |
Accident - Aircraft |
58 |
|
American Airlines Flight 383 |
Cincinnati, Ohio |
|
1980 |
Volcano |
57 |
|
1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens |
Washington |
|
1994 |
Earthquake |
57 |
$23,000,000,000 |
Northridge earthquake |
Greater Los Angeles area, California |
|
1904 |
Accident - Railroad |
56 |
|
New Market train wreck |
New Market, Tennessee |
|
1949 |
Accident - Aircraft |
55 |
|
Eastern Air Lines Flight 537 |
Alexandria, Virginia |
|
2016 |
Blizzard |
55 |
$500,000,000, to $3,000,000,000 (2016) |
January 2016 United States blizzard |
Eastern United States |
|
2004 |
Tropical cyclone |
54 |
$13,000,000,000 (2004) |
Hurricane Ivan |
Texas, Florida |
Damage and death figures are for the US only. Storm caused an additional 67 deaths and ~$7 billion USD in damage across the Caribbean. |
1906 |
Accident - Railroad |
53 |
|
1906 Atlantic City train wreck |
Atlantic City, New Jersey |
|
1906 |
Accident - Railroad |
53 |
|
1906 Washington, D.C., train wreck |
Washington, D.C. |
|
1947 |
Accident - Aircraft |
53 |
|
Eastern Air Lines Flight 605 |
Near Port Deposit, Maryland |
|
1910 |
Accident Railroad |
52 |
|
Green Mountain train wreck |
Green Mountain, Iowa |
|
1947 |
Accident - Aircraft |
52 |
|
United Airlines Flight 608 |
Bryce Canyon, Utah |
|
1956 |
Accident - Shipwreck |
51 |
|
SS Andrea Doria, MS Stockholm |
Off the coast of Nantucket, Massachusetts |
|
1978 |
Accident - Construction |
51 |
|
Willow Island disaster |
Willow Island, West Virginia |
Scaffolding fell 166 feet (51 m) with insufficiently cured concrete |
2016 |
Terrorism |
50 |
|
2016 Orlando nightclub shooting |
Orlando, Florida |
49 victims and 1 perpetrator. Deadliest shooting in U.S. history, and deadliest terror attack on U.S. soil since 9/11. |
1896 |
Accident - Railroad |
50 |
|
1896 Atlantic City rail crash |
Atlantic City, New Jersey |
|
1925 |
Accident - Railroad |
50 |
|
Rockport train wreck |
Hackettstown, New Jersey |
|
1993 |
Flood |
50 |
$15,000,000,000 |
Great Flood of 1993 |
Midwest |
|
2009 |
Accident - Aircraft |
50 |
|
Colgan Air Flight 3407 |
Clarence Center, New York |
|
1867 |
Accident - Railroad |
49 |
|
Angola Horror |
Angola, New York |
|
1917 |
Accident - Railroad |
49 |
|
Shepherdsville train wreck |
Shepherdsville, Kentucky |
|
1989 |
Tropical cyclone |
49 |
$7,000,000,000 (1989) |
Hurricane Hugo |
Caribbean and Eastern North America. |
Damage figure for U.S. only. At least 111 total deaths, with 37 in the continental U.S., as far north as Michigan, and 12 in the U.S. possession of Puerto Rico. |
2004 |
Tropical cyclone |
49 |
$9,000,000,000 |
Hurricane Frances |
Florida |
|
2006 |
Accident - Aircraft |
49 |
|
Comair Flight 5191 |
Lexington, Kentucky |
|
2016 |
Tropical cyclone |
49 |
$5,500,000,000 – 7,500,000,000 (2016) |
Hurricane Matthew |
Florida, Georgia, The Carolinas |
Damage and death figures are for the US only. Storm caused up to 1,606 additional deaths and $5.08 billion USD in damage across the Caribbean. |
1853 |
Accident - Railroad |
48 |
|
Norwalk rail accident |
Norwalk, Connecticut |
|
1944 |
Accident - Railroad |
48 |
|
Bagley train wreck |
West of Ogden, Utah |
|
1958 |
Accident - Railroad |
48 |
|
Newark Bay rail accident |
Newark Bay, New Jersey |
|
1999 |
Tornado outbreak |
48 |
$1,500,000,000 (2005) |
1999 Oklahoma tornado outbreak |
Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, Tennessee |
66 tornadoes |
1938 |
Accident - Railroad |
47 |
|
Custer Creek train wreck |
Saugus, Montana |
|
1944 |
Accident - Railroad |
47 |
|
Stockton train wreck |
Stockton, Georgia |
|
1993 |
Accident - Railroad |
47 |
|
Big Bayou Canot train disaster |
Mobile, Alabama |
Deadliest train crash in Amtrak history. |
2011 |
Tropical cyclone |
47 |
$15,800,000,000 (2011) |
Hurricane Irene |
Caribbean, East Coast of the United States, Eastern Canada |
47 fatalities in U.S. with 10 additional fatalities elsewhere. |
1967 |
Accident - Bridge collapse |
46 |
|
Silver Bridge - over the Ohio River |
Point Pleasant, West Virginia
Gallipolis, Ohio |
|
1927 |
Mass murder |
45 |
|
Bath School disaster |
Bath Township, Michigan |
|
1972 |
Accident - Railroad |
45 |
|
1972 Chicago commuter rail crash |
Chicago, Illinois |
|
1972 |
Accident - Aircraft |
45 |
|
United Airlines Flight 553 |
Chicago, Illinois |
|
1955 |
Accident - Aircraft |
44 |
|
United Airlines Flight 629 |
Longmont, Colorado |
|
1940 |
Accident - Railroad |
43 |
|
Doodlebug disaster |
Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio |
|
1963 |
Accident - Aircraft |
43 |
|
Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 705 |
Everglades, Florida |
|
1987 |
Accident - Aircraft |
43 |
|
PSA Flight 1771 |
Near Cayucos, California |
|
2011 |
Tornado outbreak |
43 |
|
April 14–16, 2011 tornado outbreak |
Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Missouri, Louisiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania |
162 tornadoes |
2014 |
Mudflow |
43 |
|
2014 Oso mudslide |
Oso, Washington |
|
1989 |
Accident - Bridge collapse |
42 |
|
Cypress Street viaduct |
Oakland, California |
|
1977 |
Fire (building) |
42 |
|
Maury County jail fire |
Maury County, Tennessee |
33 prisoners and 9 visitors killed |
1859 |
Bridge washout |
41 |
|
Springbrook Bridge washout |
South Bend, Indiana |
|
1968 |
Natural gas explosion |
41 |
|
Richmond, Indiana explosion |
Richmond, Indiana |
|
2001 |
Tropical cyclone |
41 |
$5,500,000,000 |
Tropical Storm Allison |
Texas,
Louisiana, and Pennsylvania |
|
1912 |
Accident - Railroad |
39 |
|
Corning train wreck |
Corning, New York |
|
1977 |
Accident - Dam failure |
39 |
|
Kelly Barnes Dam |
Toccoa, Georgia |
|
1997 |
Mass suicide |
39 |
|
Heaven's Gate (religious group) |
San Diego, California |
Cult leaders Marshall Applewhite and Bonnie Nettles convinced followers they would join Comet Hale-Bopp to take them to another planet by swallowing poison. |
1969 |
Accident - Aircraft |
38 |
|
United Airlines Flight 266 |
Santa Monica Bay, California |
|
1920 |
Terrorism |
38 |
|
Wall Street bombing |
Manhattan, New York |
|
1883 |
Tornado |
37 |
$700,000 (1883) |
1883 Rochester tornado |
Rochester, Minnesota |
F5 tornado killed 37 and injured hundreds more. It led to the creation of the Mayo Clinic. |
1937 |
Accident - airship |
36 |
|
Hindenburg disaster |
Manchester, New Jersey |
Hydrogen-filled zeppelin |
1969 |
Accident - aircraft |
35 |
|
Hawthorne Nevada Airlines Flight 708 |
Lone Pine, California |
|
1980 |
Ship collision |
35 |
|
Sunshine Skyway Bridge |
St. Petersburg, Florida |
|
1967 |
Accident - Aircraft |
34 |
|
Mohawk Airlines Flight 40 |
Blossburg, Pennsylvania |
|
2007 |
Mass murder - School shooting |
33 |
|
Virginia Tech shooting |
Blacksburg, Virginia |
Armed with two semi-automatic handguns, student Seung-Hui Cho shot to death 32 people in two separate attacks on the campus of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. 23 other people were wounded, 17 by gunfire. Cho committed suicide.[2] |
2015 |
Accident - Shipwreck |
33 |
|
SS El Faro |
Atlantic Ocean near the Bahamas |
A US-flagged vessel sank during Hurricane Joaquin with all on board perishing. |
1963 |
Accident – bus |
32 |
|
1963 Chualar bus crash |
Chualar, California |
Deadliest road accident in US history |
1973 |
Fire (building) |
32 |
|
UpStairs Lounge arson attack |
New Orleans, Louisiana |
|
1855 |
Bridge - Accident |
31 |
|
Gasconade Bridge train disaster |
Gasconade, Missouri |
|
1981 |
Fire |
31 |
|
[3] |
Keansburg, New Jersey |
Nursing home full of elderly and mentally disabled |
2009 |
Tsunami |
31 |
|
2009 Samoa earthquake and tsunami |
American Samoa and nearby islands |
189 total deaths, with 31 in American Samoa. |
1887 |
Structural failure |
30 |
|
Forest Hills disaster |
Boston, Massachusetts |
|
1923 |
Accident – railroad |
30 |
|
Glenrock train wreck |
Meadow Acres, Wyoming |
|
1956 |
Accident – railroad |
30 |
|
Redondo Junction train wreck |
Los Angeles, California |
|
1998 |
Blizzard |
30 |
|
North American ice storm of 1998 |
Canada and Northeast |
|
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 |
|
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
Crest Hill, 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
Missouri |
|
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 collision |
Carrollton, Kentucky |
|
2010 |
Flood |
26 |
|
Nashville Flood |
Nashville, Tennessee |
|
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 |
|
1982 |
Fire (building) |
25 |
|
Dorothy Mae Apartments |
Los Angeles, California |
Arson fire killed 19 residents on scene, 6 others died later from injuries. |
1986 |
Accident - Aircraft |
25 |
|
Grand Canyon Airlines Flight 6 |
Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona |
Deadliest accident involving a helicopter in US history |
1991 |
Fire (building) |
25 |
|
Hamlet chicken processing plant fire |
Hamlet, North Carolina |
Workers trapped behind locked doors |
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
Execution
Neglect |
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
Louisiana |
|
1983 |
Accident - Aircraft |
23 |
|
Air Canada Flight 797 |
Cincinnati, Ohio |
|
1977 |
Blizzard |
23 |
$56,250,000 (1977) |
Great Lakes Blizzard of 1977 |
New York
Ontario |
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) |
Great Molasses Flood |
Boston, Massachusetts |
Damages are out-of-court settlements only; repairs took 133 man-months |
1910 |
Bombing |
21 |
|
Los Angeles Times bombing |
Los Angeles, California |
|
2010 |
Flood |
20 |
|
June 2010 Arkansas floods |
Albert Pike Recreation 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 |
|
1965 |
Accidents - Pipeline accidents |
17 |
|
Pipeline explosion and fire |
Natchitoches, Louisiana |
|
1966 |
Mass murder |
17 |
|
University of Texas massacre |
Austin, Texas |
|
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 |
2016 |
Accident - Hot air balloon |
16 |
|
2016 Lockhart hot air balloon crash |
Lockhart, Texas |
Deadliest ballooning disaster in U.S. history |
1954 |
Fire (building) |
15 |
|
Cleveland Hill Middle School fire |
Cheektowaga, New York |
|
1986 |
Mass murder |
15 |
|
Edmond post office shooting |
Edmond, Oklahoma |
14 victims and 1 perpetrator |
1999 |
Mass murder |
15 |
|
Columbine High School massacre |
Jefferson County, Colorado |
Armed with 2 sawed-off shotguns, a TEC-9 pistol and a carbine, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold entered their school in Littleton and opened fire at the students and staff, killing 12 students, 1 teacher and then killing themselves. |
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. |
2009 |
Mass murder |
14 |
|
Binghamton shootings |
Binghamton, New York |
|
1905 |
Accident - Railroad |
13 |
|
Ninth Avenue derailment |
New York City, New York |
|
1949 |
Mass murder |
13 |
|
Camden massacre |
Camden, New Jersey |
Howard Unruh killed 13. |
1963 |
Accident - bus |
13 |
|
|
Hole in the Rock Trail, Utah |
Bus carrying Boy Scouts overturned climbing steep hill. |
1983 |
Mass murder |
13 |
|
Wah Mee massacre |
Seattle, Washington |
|
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 |
|
2009 Fort Hood shooting |
Fort Hood, Texas |
|
2013 |
Mass murder |
13 |
|
Washington Navy Yard shooting |
Washington, D.C. |
|
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 |
|
2000 |
Accidents - Pipeline accidents |
12 |
|
Gas pipeline explosion and fire |
Carlsbad, New Mexico |
|
2012 |
Mass murder |
12 |
|
2012 Aurora shooting |
Aurora, Colorado |
70 others were injured. |
1999 |
Accident - Railroad |
11 |
|
1999 Bourbonnais, Illinois, train crash |
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 |
|
2009 |
Mass murder |
11 |
|
Geneva County massacre |
Geneva County, Alabama |
|
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 |
|
2004 |
Accident - Aircraft |
10 |
|
2004 Hendrick Motorsports plane crash |
Martinsville, Virginia |
|
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 |
2008 |
Mass murder |
10 |
|
Covina massacre |
Covina, California |
|
2015 |
Mass murder - School shooting |
10 |
|
Umpqua Community College shooting |
Roseburg, Oregon |
9 victims and 1 perpetrator |
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. |
1989 |
Mass murder |
9 |
|
Standard Gravure shooting |
Louisville, Kentucky |
|
1993 |
Mass murder |
9 |
|
101 California Street shooting |
San Francisco, California |
|
2005 |
Accident - Railroad |
9 |
|
Graniteville, South Carolina, train crash |
Graniteville, South Carolina |
|
1903 |
Accident - Railroad |
9 |
|
Wreck of the Old 97 |
Danville, Virginia |
|
2007 |
Mass murder |
9 |
|
Westroads Mall shooting |
Omaha, Nebraska |
8 victims and 1 perpetrator |
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, D.C. |
Approximately 80 injuries. |
2010 |
Mass murder |
9 |
|
Hartford Distributors shooting |
Manchester, Connecticut |
|
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 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). |
2010 |
Accident - Pipeline accidents |
8 |
|
San Bruno pipeline explosion |
San Bruno, California |
58 additional injuries |
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 |
|
2009 |
Mass murder |
8 |
|
Carthage nursing home shooting |
Carthage, North Carolina |
|
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 gas explosion |
New York City, New York |
1987 |
Earthquake |
8 |
$358,000,000 |
Whittier Narrows earthquake |
San Gabriel Valley, California |
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 |
2015 |
Mass murder |
8 |
|
2015 Tyrone shooting |
Tyrone, Missouri |
|
1982 |
Mass murder - Poisoning |
7 |
|
Chicago Tylenol murders |
Chicago, Illinois |
Investigation still underway, as of 2012 |
2012 |
Mass murder - School shooting |
7 |
|
Oikos University shooting |
Oakland, California |
|
1976 |
Mass murder - School shooting |
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 |
|
1983 Buffalo propane explosion |
Buffalo, New York |
Blast killed 5 firemen 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 |
2014 |
Mass murder |
7 |
|
2014 Isla Vista killings |
Isla Vista, California |
Elliot Rodger killed 6, then killed himself. |
1974 |
Mass murder |
6 |
|
"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 |
|
Flint crack murders |
Flint, Michigan |
|
1991 |
Shipwreck |
6 |
|
"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 - School shooting |
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 1995 Louisiana flood |
New Orleans, Louisiana area |
|
1999 |
Fire (building) |
6 |
|
Worcester Cold Storage and Warehouse Co. 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 |
2006 |
Mass murder - School shooting |
6 |
|
West Nickel Mines School shooting |
Bart Township, Pennsylvania |
|
2008 |
Mass murder |
6 |
|
Atlantis Plastics shooting |
Henderson, Kentucky |
|
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 were 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 |
Terrorism |
6 |
|
Boston Marathon bombing |
Boston, Massachusetts |
3 immediate fatalities; 2 more people (including one of the perpetrators) were killed a few days later, and one other person died from their injuries the following year. 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). |
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] |
2013 |
Mass murder |
6 |
|
2013 Santa Monica shooting |
Santa Monica, California |
|
2015 |
Mass murder |
6 |
|
2015 Chattanooga shootings |
Chattanooga, Tennessee |
|
2016 |
Mass murder |
6 |
|
2016 shooting of Dallas police officers |
Dallas, Texas |
Micah Johnson shot and killed 5 officers, then was killed the next day. |
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
Boca Raton, Florida
Washington, D.C. |
17 others infected |
2010 |
Accident - Explosion |
5[10] |
|
2010 Connecticut power plant explosion |
Middletown, Connecticut |
12 or more injuries[11] |
2011 |
Mass murder |
5 |
|
2011 IHOP shooting |
Carson City, Nevada |
7 injured |
2013 |
Avalanche |
5 |
|
2013 Loveland Pass, Colorado avalanche |
Loveland Pass, Colorado |
|
2014 |
Mass murder |
5 |
|
Marysville Pilchuck High School shooting |
Marysville, Washington |
|
2016 |
Mass murder |
5 |
|
2016 Cascade Mall shooting |
Burlington, Washington |
|
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 |
2016 |
Mass murder |
4 |
|
2016 shooting of Baton Rouge police officers |
Baton Rouge, Louisiana |
Gavin Long killed 3 officers, then was shot dead by police |
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. |
2011 |
Tornado |
3 |
|
2011 Springfield tornado |
Springfield, Massachusetts |
F3 tornado |
1835 |
Fire (urban conflagration) |
2 |
$20,000,000 (1835) |
Great Fire of New York |
New York City, New York |
|
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 |
|
2000 Phillips explosion |
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 2,500 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 (2.5 m). Extensive damage also reported in three Hawaiian islands, with tsunami waves up to 12 feet (3.7 m) high. |
1894 |
Fire (urban conflagration) |
0 |
|
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 miles per hour (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 1,900 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 (1,810 m) 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. |
1933 |
Accident - Railroad |
14 |
|
|
Binghamton, New York |
collision between Erie Railroad's Atlantic Express passenger train and milk train[12] |
1943 |
Accident - Railroad |
27 |
|
|
Wayland, New York |
Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad passenger train sideswiped a freight train[13] |
2016 |
Fire (building) |
33 |
Unknown |
2016 Oakland warehouse fire |
Oakland, California |
Death toll expected to rise |