List of disasters in Australia by death toll

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This is a list of disasters in Australia sorted by death toll.

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items.

100 or more deaths

Disaster	Location	Deaths	Date	Notes
1918 Spanish Influenza Epidemic	Australia-wide	12,000	1918-1919	Approximate death toll. Sydney was the worst affected area.
Polio epidemic	Australia-wide	1,013	1946-1955
Bubonic plague epidemic	Australia-wide	550	1900-1910
Heatwave	Victoria	438	January, 1939	Heatwave killed 438
Heatwave	Southern regions, Australia	437	1895-1896	Widespread heatwave killed 437, including 47 in Bourke, New South Wales
Cyclone Mahina	Bathurst Bay, Queensland	410	March, 1889	Estimated toll
Cataraqui	King Island, Tasmania	406	1845	Shipwreck
Zuytdorp	Murchison Coast, Western Australia	286	April, 1712	Shipwreck There has been speculation that there were some survivors, helped by local Aborigines.
AHS Centaur	Caloundra, Queensland	268	1943	Hospital ship torpedoed by Japanese submarine
Heatwave	Southern states	246	December, 1907-January, 1908
Air raids on Darwin	Darwin, Northern Territory	242	February 19, 1942	The toll may have been higher, itinerants and aboriginal persons may be under represented in the official count.
Cowra breakout	Cowra, New South Wales	235-238	August 5, 1944
Neva	King Island, Tasmania	224	May 13, 1835	Shipwreck
Vergulde Draeck	Perth, Western Australia	186	April, 1656	Shipwreck
Cyclone and sinking of SS Koombana	Western Australia	149	March 1, 1912
Heatwaves	Australia-wide	147	1920-1921
Heatwaves	Australia-wide	143+	1911-1912
Cyclone	Broome, Western Australia	141	March, 1935	Pearling fleet devastated
Cyclone	Eighty Mile Beach, Western Australia	140	1884	Pearling fleet sunk
George III shipwreck	D'Entrecasteaux Channel, Tasmania	133	April 12, 1835
Quetta	Cape York, Queensland	133	February 28, 1890	Shipwreck
Heatwave	Southern states	130	1926-1927
Batavia	Western Australia	125+	June-July, 1629	Shipwreck. Mutineers murdered 125 other passengers. The death toll of 125 does not include the mutineers, of whom 7 were immediately hung and 2 were cast away when Captain Pelsaert returned. Most of the remaining mutineers were later executed.
Heatwave	Australia-wide	122+	1913-1914
Cyclone and sinking of Yongala	North-eastern Queensland	122	March 16, 1911
Dunbar	Sydney, New South Wales	121	August 20, 1857	Shipwreck
Heatwave	Australia-wide	112	1939-1940
Heatwave	Australia-wide	109	1909-1910
Heatwave	Southern regions, Australia	105+	1959	One source puts death toll at 145
Gothenburg	Ayr, Queensland	102-112	February 24, 1875	Shipwreck during cyclone. Records of passengers vary
Richmond River massacre	Richmond River, New South Wales	100	January, 1846	Massacre of aborigines

50 to 99 deaths

Disaster	Location	Deaths	Date	Notes
Heatwave	Southern regions Australia	99	December, 1972 to February, 1973
1934 Cyclone	Northern Queensland	99	March, 1934	Cyclone and 9.1m storm surge
Mount Kembla Colliery gas explosion	Mount Kembla, New South Wales	94	July 31, 1902	coal mine gas explosion
Trial	Monte Bello Islands, Western Australia	93	April 23, 1622	Shipwreck Earliest recorded Australian shipwreck
Gundagai floods	Gundagai, New South Wales	89	June 24, 1852
Admella	Carpenter Rocks, South Australia	89	August 6, 1859	Shipwreck
Granville train disaster	Sydney, New South Wales	83	January 18, 1977	Derailment followed by bridge collapse
HMAS Voyager	twenty miles south-east of Jervis Bay, New South Wales	82	February 10, 1964	Sank after collision with HMAS Melbourne
Bulli Colliery gas explosion	Bulli, New South Wales	81	March 23, 1887	coal mine gas explosion
British Admiral	King Island, Tasmania	79	May 23, 1874	Shipwreck
1918 Innisfail Cyclone	Queensland coast, particularly Innisfail	77+	March 10, 1918	Cyclone and storm surge with death toll estimated between 77 and 100.
Clermont Floods	Clermont, Queensland	65	December 27, 1916
Cawarra sinking and storms	New South Wales	76	July 12, 1866	60 lives lost on Cawarra
Mount Mulligan coal dust explosion	Mount Mulligan, Queensland	76	September 16, 1921	coal dust explosion
Ash Wednesday fires	Victoria, South Australia	75	1983
USS Frank E. Evans	South China Sea	74	June 3, 1969	Sank after collision with HMAS Melbourne
Ly-Ee-Moon	Green Cape, New South Wales	71	May 31, 1886	Shipwreck
Black Friday	Victoria, Australia	71	1939
Cyclone Tracy	Darwin	71	December 24, 1974	Cyclone destroys city of Darwin On 17 March 2005, a Northern Territory Coroner's Inquest outcome increased the official death toll from 65 to 71.
1967 Tasmanian fires	Tasmania	62	1967	Bushfires in Southern Tasmania
Cyclone	near Roebourne and Geraldton, Western Australia	61-71	1894	Estimated toll includes those lost at sea and those killed in flooding at Geraldton
Zeewyk	Houtman Abrolhos Islands, Western Australia	60	1727	Approximate death toll
Bushfires	Victoria	60	February-March, 1926
Exmouth Cyclone	Exmouth Gulf, Western Australia	59-69	1875-1976	Most casualties were at sea
Loch Ard	Mutton Bird Island, off the Shipwreck Coast of Victoria	53	June 1, 1878	Shipwreck Sources vary on exact death toll
Bushfires	Victoria	51	1943-1944

10 to 50 deaths

File:Westgatebridge.jpg

A view of the completed West Gate Bridge in Melbourne. The bridge collapsed during construction, killing 35 Australian workers in 1970.

Disaster	Location	Deaths	Date	Notes
Pearl	Brisbane, Queensland	50	February, 1896	Shipwreck
Cyclone	Around Broome, Western Australia	50	1908
Hunter Valley floods of 1955	Hunter Valley, New South Wales	50	February, 1955	Most deaths were around Singleton and Maitland, but most other river systems in the state were also in flood
Cyclonic effects	North coast, New South Wales	46	1923
Sunshine train disaster	Sunshine, Victoria	44	1908	Rear end collision
1912 North Mount Lyell Disaster	Queenstown, Tasmania	42+	1912	Mine fire. True toll may be higher due to subsequent deaths from the effects of the fire
Clan Ranald	near Edithburg, South Australia	40	January 31, 1909	Shipwreck
Sydney ferry disaster	Sydney	40-42	November 3, 1927	Shipwreck
Maria	Cardwell, Queensland	36	1872	Shipwreck Some of the survivors were killed by Aborigines although others were helped
Port Arthur massacre	Port Arthur, Tasmania	35	1996	Shooting massacre
West Gate Bridge collapse	Melbourne, Victoria	35	October 15, 1970	35 construction workers died due to a collapse during construction
Kempsey bus crash	Kempsey, New South Wales	35	December 12, 1989	Two tourist coaches collided head-on
Loch Vennachar	Kangaroo Island, South Australia	32	September, 1905	Shipwreck
Mackay Cyclone	Queensland coast, particularly Mackay	30	January, 1918
William Booth Memorial Hostel fire	Melbourne	30	August 13, 1966	Convalescent home for men .
TAA Fokker Friendship disaster	Mackay	29	1960	Crashed into sea
Cyclone Fifi	Western Australia	29	April, 1991	27 lost in shipwreck of Mineral Diamond
Myall Creek massacre	Myall Creek, near Inverell, New South Wales	28	June 9, 1838	28 Aboriginal people murdered by white stockmen
1897 cyclone	Darwin, Northern Territory	28	January, 1897
ANA Skymaster Amana crash	York near Perth	28	June 26, 1950	1 survivor
Maria	Coorong, South Australia	26	1840	Shipwreck, survivors killed by Aborigines, possibly after making sexual advances . Exactly what took place remains controversial.
Gold Coast Cyclone	Gold Coast and northern New South Wales	26	February, 1954
Port Hedland plane crash	Port Hedland, Western Australia	26	1968	In-flight break up
Wodonga train and bus disaster	Wodonga, Victoria	25	1943	Train hit bus carrying army personnel
Seven Mile Beach plane crash	Seven Mile Beach, near Hobart	25	March, 1946	Australian National Airways plane
Ansett-ANA Viscount disaster	Winton, Queensland	24	September 22 1966	VH-RMI enroute Mount Isa - Longreach
Maitland	Newcastle	24	May 6, 1898	Shipwreck
Bushfire	Southern regions of Victoria	23	January, 1969	280 fires. 17 casualties at Lara .
Heatwave	South-east Queensland	22	January, 2000
Grafton bus crash	Grafton, New South Wales	21	1989	A head-on collision between a tourist coach and a truck
Trial Bay shipwreck	Trial Bay, New South Wales	19-21	September, 1816
Rembrant Hotel fire	Kings Cross, New South Wales	19	August 25, 1981
Star of Greece	Adelaide, South Australia	18+	July 13, 1888	Shipwreck Exact number of lives lost uncertain
Tumut Pond bus crash	Tumut Pond, New South Wales	18	September 1, 1973	Brake failure cause bus to plummet into reservoir
Blackhawk helicopter crash	Townsville, Queensland	18	June 12, 1996	Army helicopters collided
1997 Thredbo landslide	Thredbo, New South Wales	18	1997	Landslide
Brooklyn Train crash	Brooklyn, New South Wales	17	1944	Train ploughs into bus at Hawksbury River station
Wasleys Crossing (Gawler) disaster	Wasleys Crossing, near Gawler, South Australia	17	April 12, 1970	Bus collided with a passenger train
Box Flat Colliery mine explosion	Ipswich, Queensland	17	July 31, 1972	Mine gas explosion in the Box Flat Colliery
Heatwave	South-Eastern regions, Australia	17	February, 1993	Possibility of additional unreported deaths
Camp Mountain train disaster	Camp Mountain, Queensland	16	May 5, 1947	a crowded picnic train derailed on bend
Pacific Nursing Home fire	Sylvania Heights, New South Wales	16	April 29, 1981
Ansett-ANA Viscount plane crash	Botany Bay, New South Wales	15	November 30, 1961	All occupants (11 passengers and 4 crew) died.
Savoy Hotel Fire	Kings Cross, New South Wales	15	December 25, 1975	Arson
Cyclone Hazel	near Carnarvon, Western Australia	15	1979	Shipwreck
Heatwave	South-eastern regions of Australia	15	February, 1981
Lockhart River plane crash	Lockhart River, Queensland	15	May 7, 2005
Childers Palace fire	Childers, Queensland	15	June , 2000	Robert Long received a life sentence for starting the fires
Dandenong and Lara bushfires	Dandenong and Lara, Victoria	14*	January 14 - January 16, 1962	*14 casualties . or 32? . Other sources state 9 casualties .
Bushfires	Sydney, Blue Mountains and Illawarra, New South Wales	14*	January, 1968	*Sources vary on death toll but most say 14 .
Cyclone Ada	Whitsunday Islands, Queensland	14	January, 1970
1974 Brisbane flood	Brisbane, Queensland	14	January 27, 1974	Cyclone Wanda
Appin Colliery Gas Explosion	Appin, New South Wales	14	July 24, 1979	gas explosion during a pre-planned ventilation change
Dalyson Colliery explosion	Wonthaggi, Victoria	13	February 15, 1937
Plane crash	Tamworth, New South Wales	13	January, 1960
Kianga Mining disaster	Kianga, near Moura, Queensland	13	September 20, 1975	Mine explosion
Beech 200 plane crash	Sydney Airport	13	February 21, 1980	Light aircraft suffers engine failure
Hot air balloon accident	near Alice Springs, Northern Territory	13	August 13, 1989	Collision between 2 balloons
1989 Newcastle earthquake	Newcastle, New South Wales	13	December 28, 1989	Earthquake
SS Georgette	Calgardup Bay, Western Australia	12	December 1, 1876	Shipwreck
Tasman Bridge disaster	Hobart, Tasmania	12	1975	The bulk ore carrier Lake Illawarra collided with the bridge, causing a section to fall onto the vessel. 7 crewmen died as the ship sank. 5 people perished as their cars plummeted off the edge.
Moura mining disaster	Moura, Queensland	12	July 16, 1986	Explosion in Moura No 4 Mine
Palm Grove Hostel fire	Dungog, New South Wales	12	August 2, 1991
Boondall bus crash	Boondall, Queensland	12	October 1, 1994
Cessna plane crash	Mount Emerald, Queensland	11	May 11, 1990

10 or fewer deaths

File:Julian knight.jpg

Julian Knight murders 7 people in the Hoddle Street massacre, in 1987

Disaster	Location	Deaths	Date	Notes
Bushfires	Victoria	10	January, 1965
Heatwave	Eastern and Southern regions Australia	10+	January-February, 1997	Strong likelihood of additional unreported deaths
Violet Town railway disaster	Violet Town, Victoria	9	7 February 1969	Head on collision after driver dies at controls
Gracetown Cliff Collapse	Gracetown, Western Australia	9	September 27, 1996	5 adults and 4 children died when a cliff face collapsed at Cowaramup Bay near Gracetown (Margaret River)
Eyre Peninsula bushfires	Eyre Peninsula, South Australia	9	January 11, 2005	Worst bushfires since Ash Wednesday
Wandillo bushfires	Wandillo, South Australia	8	April, 1958	8 firefighters died
Bushfires	Western Victoria	8	February, 1977	Around Streatham was the worst affected area
Queen Street massacre	Melbourne, Victoria	8	1987	Shooting massacre
Whyalla Airlines Disaster	Off Whyalla, South Australia	8	2000	All on board drowned, Chris Schuppan's body was never recovered
Snowtown murders	Remains discovered in Snowtown, South Australia	8	1999	Serial killings
Nigo Kim cargo ship explosion	Off Dampier, Western Australia	8	November 18, 2001	Cargo ship explosion
Flash flooding	Canberra	7	1971	Seven motorists were killed when their cars were swept into a creek
Truro murders	Remains discovered in bushland near Truro, South Australia	7	1977	Serial killings
Milperra Bikie massacre	Milperra, New South Wales	7	1984	Shooting massacre
Hoddle Street massacre	Clifton Hill, Victoria	7	1987	Shooting massacre
Nyngan and Charleville Flood	Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria	7	1990	More than a million square kilometres of flooding
Strathfield Massacre	Strathfield, New South Wales	7	1991	Massacre in Sydney.
Cyclone Justin	Around Cairns, Queensland	7	March, 1997	1 death from landslide. There were also 26 deaths from the same cyclone in PNG.
Glenbrook train disaster	Glenbrook, New South Wales	7	1999	Collision after "Stop and Proceed"
Heatwave	around Adelaide, South Australia	7	February, 2000
Waterfall train disaster	Waterfall, New South Wales	7	2003	Excessive speed after driver died at the controls
Spotswood Sewer Disaster	Spotswood, Victoria	6	1895	The drilling of an underground sewer in Melbourne went too close to the Yarra River .
Hills Railway line disaster	Between Blackwood, South Australia and Belair, South Australia	6	January 31, 1928	Railway embankment collapsed during tunnel demolition
Sydney floods	Sydney and Penrith, New South Wales	6	February to March, 1978
Hawkesbury and Georges River Flood	Hawkesbury, New South Wales	6	August, 1986
Air Ambulance Plane Crash	Essendon, Victoria	6	September 4, 1986	Air Ambulance Cessna (call signal RED) crashed on take off after double engine failure
Cyclone Nancy flood	Southern Queensland and northern New South Wales	6	February, 1990	Drowning deaths
Brooklyn train disaster	Brooklyn, New South Wales	6	May 6, 1990	commuter train crashed into a stalled chartered steam train
1998 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race	Tasman Sea	6	1998	5 boats sank and 6 people died
Plane crash	Willowbank, Queensland	5	January 2, 2006	Skydiving Cessna 206 plane crash.
Riverstone landslide	Cairns, Queensland	5	May 31, 1900	Tramway cutting caves in on workers
Sydenham Rail Disaster	Sydenham, New South Wales	5	1953	Wrong side failure causes rear end collision of two trains
Heatwave	Southern South Australia and northern Victoria	5+	January, 1990	Likelihood of additional unreported deaths
Heatwave	Townsville region	5	January, 1994
Linton bushfire	Linton, Victoria	5	1998	Wildfire engulfs five volunteer firefighters
HMAS Warrnambool	Cairns, Queensland	4	September 13, 1947	Sunk after hitting a mine left over from WW2
Floods from Cyclone Joy	North and Central Coast, Queensland	4-5	December, 1990 and January, 1991	Extensive damage from flooding
Heatwave	Melbourne, Victoria	4+	December, 1990	Likelihood of additional unreported deaths
Bushfires	Eastern Seaboard, New South Wales	4	January, 1994	Over 800 bushfires. 3 of the dead were firefighters
Flood	Southern Queensland and Northern New South Wales	4	May, 1996
Cradle Mountain landslide	Cradle Mountain National Park	4	February 18, 2001	4 people died when landslide causes a bus to fall into a ravine
Plane crash	Toowoomba, Queensland	4	November 27, 2001	Plane hit powerlines
2003 Canberra bushfires	Canberra	4	January 18, 2003	Bushfire reaches capital city suburbs
HMAS Westralia	Indian Ocean	4	May 5, 1998	Unsuitable fuel hose in engine room bursts, spraying diesel which ignites, creating a fireball below deck.
Plane crash	Newman, Western Australia	4	January 26, 2001	Fuel starvation on Western Australia Police aircraft.
Peter Dupas	Melbourne, Victoria	3+		Serial killer
Sydney Hilton bombing	Sydney, New South Wales	3	February 13, 1978	Bomb explosion outside Sydney Hilton Hotel during the CHOGM.
Tropical Cyclone Winifred	south of Innisfail, Queensland	3	February, 1986	Category 3 cyclone in region from Cairns to Ingham
Cyclone Althea	Townsville, Queensland	3	December, 1971	Cyclone and storm surge
Katherine (and Daly River) flood	Katherine, Northern Territory	3	January, 1998	Flooding cause by ex-tropical cyclone Les
Severe storm	Hunter Valley, New South Wales, Sydney and central western regions	3	November, 2001
Rover	Broulee, New South Wales	unknown	October 13, 1841	Shipwreck. Death toll varies greatly between sources.

External references

Emergency Management Australia Disasters Database

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