List of disasters in Australia by death toll
This is a list of disasters in Australia sorted by death toll.
| Contents |
100 or more
- 400 - Cyclone Mahina - estimate of more than 400 killed in Bathurst Bay, Queensland (1899).
- 400 - Cataraqui shipwrecked off King Island, Tasmania (1845).
50 to 99
- 83 - Granville train disaster - derailment followed by bridge collapse (1977).
- 82 - HMAS Voyager - sunk after collision (1964).
- 75 - Ash Wednesday fires - bushfires in Victoria and South Australia (1983).
- 74 - HMAS Melbourne collides with USS Frank E. Evans in the South China Sea. 74 US sailors died.
- 71 - Black Friday - bushfires in Victoria (1939).
- 65 - Cyclone Tracy destroyed city of Darwin (1974).
- 62 - 1967 Tasmanian fires - several bushfires in Southern Tasmania on 7 February (1967).
10 to 50
- 44 - Sunshine train disaster - rear end collision (1908).
- 35 - Port Arthur Massacre - massacre in Tasmania leaving 35 people dead and 37 injured (1996).
- 35 - West Gate Bridge - 35 construction workers died due to a collapse during construction (1970).
- 32 - Kempsey Bus Crash - Two tourist coaches collide head-on (1989) [1]
- 29 - TAA Fokker Friendship disaster June, 1960 - crashed into sea
- 26 - Port Hedland plane crash - 26 people (21 passengers and five crew) died near Port Hedland, Western Australia (December, 1968).
- 24 - Ansett-ANA Viscount disaster Mt Isa - Longreach - crash
- 21 - Grafton Bus Crash - A head-on collision between a tourist coach and a truck (1989)[2]
- 18 - Thredbo landslide in Thredbo, New South Wales (1997).
- 18 - Blackhawk helicopter crash - army helicopters collide near Townsville - June, 1998
- 16 - Camp Mountain train disaster - a crowded picnic train derails on bend at Camp Mountain, Queensland, Queensland (May 5, 1947)
- 15 - Lockhart River plane crash - 15 people (13 passengers and two crew) died on May 7 near Lockhart River, Queensland (2005).
- 14 - Cyclone Ada - Whitsunday Islands, Queensland January (1970).
- 13 - 1989 Newcastle earthquake in Newcastle, New South Wales.
- 12 - Tasman Bridge disaster - The bulk ore carrier Lake Illawarra collides with the bridge, causing a section to fall onto the vessel. 7 crewmen die as the ship sinks. 5 people perish as their cars plummet off the edge. (1975)
10 or less
- 9 - Violet Town railway disaster - head on collision after driver dies at controls, (1962).
- 8 - Queen Street Massacre - massacre in Melbourne resulting in 8 dead and 5 injured (1987).
- 8 - Snowtown murders - serial killings in Snowtown, South Australia, resulting in 8 dead (1999).
- 7 - Truro murders - serial killings in Truro, South Australia, resulting in 7 dead (1977).
- 7 - Milperra Bikie Massacre - massacre in Milperra, New South Wales resulting in 7 dead ((1984)).
- 7 - Hoddle Street Massacre - massacre in Melbourne resulting in 7 dead and 19 injured (1987).
- 7 - Nyngan and Charleville Flood - More than a million square kilometres of flooding across Queensland and New South Wales took 7 lives (1990).
- 7 - Strathfield Massacre - massacre in Sydney resulting in 7 dead and 6 injured (1991).
- 7 - Glenbrook train disaster - collision after "Stop and Proceed", (1999).
- 7 - Waterfall train disaster - excessive speed after driver died at the controls (2003).
- 6 - 1998 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race - 5 boats sank and 6 people drowned (1998).
- 6 - Spotswood Sewer Disaster - The drilling of an underground sewer in Melbourne went too close to the Yarra River (1895) [3]
- 5 - Sydenham Rail Disaster - wrong side failure causes rear end collision of two trains (1953).