Biggest Natural Disasters in Human History

Human beings have always been at the mercy of devastating natural disasters. The geographical landscapes of planet earth have changed drastically over the period of time following these natural disturbances.

Well I have compiled a list of major natural disasters that have taken place in the human history.

TYPE
DATE
PLACE
CONSEQUENCES
Salinization



1500 BC
Indus valley
Collapse of earlier civilizations.
Volcanoes




1623 BC
Thera (Santorini)
Akrotiri destroyed.

1815
Tambora (Indonesia)
10,000 killed; ash cloud cools planet leading to further 100,000 deaths from famine and disease.

1902
Mount Pele’e
30,000 killed by pyroclastic flows.
Earthquakes




526
Antioch (Turkey)
75,000 killed.

856
Corinth (Greece)
45,000 killed; city abandoned.

1556
Shanzi Province
(China)
800,000 killed directly; huge toll from landslides.

1755
Lisbon (Portugal)
100,000 killed; Portuguese influence plummets.

1923
Kanto Plains (Japan)
150,000 killed; modern Tokyo reconstructed.

2003
Bam (Iran)
23,000 killed in poorly built houses.

2005
Mountainous Pakistan
80,000 crushed in building collapses and landslides.
Tsunamis




1623 BC
Thera
Huge toll; Minoan culture devastated.

1531
Lisbon (Portugal)
70,000 killed (30,000 in earthquake).

1883
Krakatau cone (Indonesia)
37,000 killed; some climate effects.

2004
 Indian Ocean 9.3
earthquake
300,000 killed; many communities destroyed.
Landslides
1966 Wales 144 people killed.
1998 Honduras
18,000 people killed.
Floods
  1931
Yellow River (China)
3.7 million people killed; weakened resistance to invasion by Japan.
Fires
  64
Two-thirds of Rome burned
Death toll limited; Christians blamed for destruction.
1666 London
Most of London burned; a true restoration followed.
1871 Chicago
300 killed, but this allowed rejuvenation of city.
Hurricanes
  1274 Sea of Japan
12,000 Mongols killed invading Japan.
1281 Sea of Japan
70,000 Mongols killed during second invasion.
1780 Martinique,
Barbados		 20,000 killed.
1900 Galveston, Texas 12,000 killed.
1970 Bangladesh 500,000 killed by storm surges.
1974 Honduras 10,000 killed.

Source: Environmental Disasters, Natural Recovery and Human Responses by Roger Del Moral & Lawrence R. Walker

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