List of disasters in Great Britain and Ireland by death toll
The following list of disasters in Great Britain and Ireland is a list of major disasters (excluding acts of war[ a] ) which relate to the United Kingdom , Ireland or the Isle of Man , or to the states that preceded them, or that involved their citizens, in a definable incident or accident such as a shipwreck , where the loss of life was forty or more.
Over 1,000 fatalities
Deaths inItalics indicate an estimated figure
Event
Year
Notes
3,500,000
Black Death pandemic
1347–1350
See discussion of death toll estimates at the death toll section
1,000,000[ 1] to 1,500,000
Great Irish Famine
1845–1849
See discussion of death toll estimates at the death toll section
300,000 to 480,000 [ 2]
Great Irish Famine of 1740–41 (The Great Frost)
1740–1741
Some estimates indicate a death toll as high as 500,000 from starvation and disease.[ 3] [ 4]
250,000
1918 influenza pandemic
1918 (Sep–Nov)
An estimated 200,000 people died in England and Wales.[ 5] Although the official number of deaths in Scotland due to the pandemic is 17,575, a modern estimate of total pandemic mortality in Scotland is between 27,641 and 33,771.[ 6] About 20,000 died in Ireland.[ 7]
232,112[ 8] (estimate for UK only)
COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom and COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland
2020–2023
The COVID-19 pandemic caused a worldwide death toll of 6.9 million people.
200,000+ [ 9]
1557 influenza pandemic
1557–1561
From 1557 to 1559 the population contracted by 2%.
150,000+
Seven ill years
1695–1699
The last major famine to occur in Scotland. Marked by large-scale migration, especially to Ireland
125,000 [ 10]
1889–1890 flu pandemic
1889–1893
Influenza pandemic originating from St Petersburg , Russia .
100,000+
Sweating sickness (sudor anglicus )
1485 ff.
Mysterious disease which killed tens of thousands of people in each of its five outbreaks before disappearing.[ 11]
80,000 [ 12] [ 13]
Hong Kong flu pandemic
1968–1970
Influenza pandemic . Figure for UK deaths only.
78,319+
Third cholera pandemic
1848–1854
First cases in Edinburgh in October 1848. Major outbreaks across Britain, including the famous 1854 Broad Street cholera outbreak , where John Snow was able to identify contaminated water as being the source of the disease.[ 14] Estimate is for deaths in Great Britain only.
75,000+ [ 15]
Great Plague of London
1665–1666
The last major epidemic of the bubonic plague to occur in England.
65,000
Year Without a Summer
1816
Famine and typhoid fever in Ireland[ 16] and food riots in England and France, caused by the 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora affecting the weather.
60,000 [ 17]
1847–48 influenza pandemic
1847–1848
Worldwide influenza outbreak.
52,627 [ 18] [ b]
1870–1875 Europe smallpox epidemic
1870–1875
Mortality figure for England and Scotland only. The epidemic started during the Franco-Prussian War , and spread throughout Europe .
41,644+ [ 19]
1837–1840 smallpox epidemic
1837–1840
Especially severe smallpox epidemic.
40,000
1603 London plague epidemic
1603
Bubonic plague epidemic in London .[ 20] [ 21] [ 22]
40,000 [ 23]
1775–1776 England Influenza outbreak
1775–1776
Unusually deadly influenza epidemic .
35,417
1625 London plague epidemic
1625
Bubonic plague epidemic in London .[ 24]
33,000 [ 12]
Asian flu pandemic
1957–1958
Influenza pandemic which originated in Guizhou , China .
32,854
Second cholera pandemic
1831–1833
The disease arrived in Britain from Asia in October 1831. Major outbreaks in various cities. Cases tailed off after 1833.[ 14]
23,000 [ 25] [ c]
"Laki haze"
1783–1784 (Jun–Feb)
Eruption of a volcano in Iceland sent a huge toxic gas cloud across Britain, killing thousands.[ 25]
20,100+
1563 London plague
1563–1564
Bubonic plague epidemic in London .[ 26]
20,000
1235 famine
1235
London badly affected; many resort to eating tree bark for survival.[ 27]
19,900+
1592–93 London plague
1592–1593
Bubonic plague epidemic in London .[ 28]
17,000+ [ 29]
1257 Samalas eruption
1258
Crop failures and famines caused by the 1257 Samalas eruption in Indonesia affecting the weather; around 15,000 die in London.
15,785 to 16,447
HIV/AIDS pandemic
1979–present
Approximately 12,105 had died in the UK by 1996.[ 30] Between 1997 and 2012, 2,450 died of AIDS -related illness in England and Wales.[ 31] Between 2013 and 2018, approximately 832–1,494 died because of HIV/AIDS in the UK.[ 32] [ 33] [ 34] [ 35] [ 36] [ 37] [ d] About 398 died in Ireland by 2005.[ 38]
15,548+
Fourth cholera pandemic
1865–1873
Major outbreaks in 1865 and 1866. Smaller outbreaks in Scotland in 1873.[ 14]
12,000
Storegga Slide
6200 BC
Massive submarine landslides off the coast of Norway cause a huge tsunami to hit the eastern coast of Britain, killing 12,000 prehistoric Britons. This was one quarter of the entire population at the time.[ 39]
8,000
Great Storm of 1703
1703 (26 November)
Atlantic hurricane across southern England and the English Channel , deaths chiefly at sea, including 1083 in naval ships wrecked on Goodwin Sands [ 40]
7,600
Winter of 1894–95
1894–1895 (December–February)
An 8-week period of severe cold weather with a weekly death rate of around 950.[ 41]
6,500+ [ 42] [ 43]
1729 Influenza epidemic
1729 (September–December)
Influenza outbreak with very high mortality rates.
5,000+ [ 44]
1836–37 influenza pandemic
1836–1837
Influenza outbreak with high mortality rates.
5,000+
Great Famine (14th century)
1315–1317
4,000 to 12,000
Great Smog of London
1952 (December)
4,000
1911 United Kingdom heat wave
1911 (July–September)
Newspapers ran "deaths from heat" columns.[ 45]
3,500+
1782 Central Atlantic hurricane
1782 (16–17 Sep)
Loss of HMS Ramillies , HMS Centaur ; storeships Dutton and British Queen ; captured French prize ships Ville de Paris , Glorieux , Hector and Caton ; plus other merchantmen .
3,200+ [ 46] [ 47]
The encephalitis lethargica pandemic of 1915–1926
1917–1924
Some victims were left in a statue-like condition, and many of those who survived never returned to their pre-existing "aliveness"; it is thought that the Spanish flu pandemic, which coincided with the encephalitis pandemic, contributed to the seriousness of the disease[ 48]
3,000+
Tainted blood scandal
1970s–1980s (deaths up to decades later)[ 49]
Importing and use of blood products known to be contaminated with HIV, Hepatitis B, C & E. People continue to die up to the present time.[ 50]
3,000
1212 Great Fire of London
1212 (10 July)
Source for fatalities is the Guinness Book of Records [ 51] but historical evidence unclear
3,000
1976 British Isles heat wave
1976 (23 June – 27 August)
At the time the hottest summer in central England in 250 years[ 52]
2,985
2022 European heatwave
2022 saw five distinct extreme heat periods between 16 June and 25 August
The summer of 2022 saw the highest ever recorded temperature in England at 40.3C
2,323 [ 53]
2006 European heat wave
2006 (26 June – 30 July)
2,234 [ 54]
2003 European heat wave
2003 (4–13 August)
2,200
1880 London coal smog
1880
[ 55]
2,000+
1540 European drought , 1540–1541 great heat and drought, 1540 also known as the 'Big Sun Year'
1540–1541
Heat and drought caused freshwater from the Thames to shrink to such an unprecedented extent that seawater flowed on the tide past London Bridge , polluting the water supply. The resulting dysentery and cholera killed 'thousands'.[ 56]
2,000
Bristol Channel floods
1607 (30 January)[ 57]
1,900+
Christmas Eve storm
1811 (24 December)
Wrecks HMS St George , Defence and Fancy off Thorsminde , Jutland ; and HMS Hero and the transport Archimedes off Texel , Netherlands
1,550+
Scilly naval disaster
1707 (22 October)
HMS Association , HMS Eagle , Romney and Firebrand
1,500+
Peasants' Revolt
1381 (30 May–November)
Peasants protest against poll taxes , serfdom and the socio-economic tensions generated by the Black Death pandemic. Some march on London demanding reform, and after initial successes are brutally suppressed.[ 58] [ 59]
1,500+
RMS Titanic
1912 (15 April)
Estimates vary but most official sources and historians put the death toll at upwards of 1500.
1,200
Strait of Gibraltar storm
1694 (1 March)[ 57]
Wrecks HMS Sussex and accompanying ships
1,198
RMS Lusitania
1915 (7 May)
Struck by torpedo on starboard side. Sank in the Celtic Sea within 18 minutes
1,012
RMS Empress of Ireland
1914 (29 May)
Canadian Pacific ship sank in Gulf of St. Lawrence , registered in UK with crew almost entirely from Merseyside
1,000+ [ 60]
Storm off Winterton Ness
1692
200 colliers wrecked off the Norfolk coast
1,000 [ 61]
1956 London smog
1956 (December)
1,000
1867 San Narciso hurricane
1867 (29 October)
Up to 50 UK vessels driven ashore on Saint Thomas, Danish West Indies , including RMS Rhone and RMS Wye (180 deaths between these)[ 62]
1,000
Great Hurricane of 1780 in the Caribbean
1780 (10 October)
Royal Navy ships lost included HMS Stirling Castle , HMS Laurel , HMS Andromeda , HMS Thunderer and HMS Phoenix
200–999 fatalities
Deaths inItalics indicate an estimated figure
Event
Year
Notes
908
2016 heat wave
2016 (September)
Included the hottest September day in the UK since 1911[ 53]
900+
Plymouth Sound storm
1691 (3 September)
Wrecks HMS Coronation [ 63] and HMS Harwich [ 64] killing 600 + 300 respectively
900
HMS Victory (1737)
1744 (3 October)
Wrecked on the Casquets in the Channel Islands
892
2019 European heatwaves
2019 (July–August)
Temperatures were as high as 38.7C in Cambridge , the highest temperature ever recorded in the UK at the time[ 65]
890+
Quebec Expedition disaster
1711 (22 August)
Seven transport ships and one storeship wrecked in thick fog on the Saint Lawrence River , Canada
863 [ 53]
2018 British Isles heat wave
2018 (22 June – 7 August)
843
HMS Vanguard explosion
1917 (9 July)
Magazine explosion in Scapa Flow
800
HMS Royal George capsizes
1782 (29 August)
At Spithead
780
1873 London smog
1873 (December)
The first in a series of major smog build-ups in London[ 66] [ 67]
779 [ 68]
1892 London smog
1892 (December)
Excess deaths from air pollution
778 [ 53]
2017 heat wave
2017 (June)
748+
Royal Charter Storm
1859 (26 October)
The Royal Charter and other ships wrecked in Lligwy Bay , Anglesey
738
HMS Bulwark explosion
1914 (26 November)
Magazine explosion off Sheerness
700 to 800 [ 69]
1948 London smog
1948 (26 November – 1 December)
Excess deaths from air pollution
699
HMS Ramillies [ 70]
1760 (15 February)
Ran aground off Bolt Head , Devon
690
HMS Queen Charlotte fire
1800 (17 March)
Exploded in the Tuscan Archipelago
646
SS Mendi
1917 (21 February)
Rammed by SS Darro off the Isle of Wight
640
Princess Alice disaster
1878 (3 September)
Collision with the Bywell Castle in the River Thames near Woolwich (Estimates vary, but most historians put the death toll as between 600 and 700)
635
SS Norge shipwreck
1904 (28 June)
Danish ship ran aground off Rockall
619
1995 Great Britain and Ireland heat wave
1995 (28 June – 22 August)
The hottest August on record in England and Wales since 1659[ 71]
612
Tramore storm
1816 (30 January)
Wrecks the ships Sea Horse ,[ 72] Boadicea and Lord Melville [ 73]
600+
an unidentified troop ship
1796 (23 January)
Shipwreck possibly one of Admiral Christian 's West Indies convoy wrecked on Loe Bar , Cornwall [ 74]
564
SS Utopia disaster
1891 (17 March)
British ship carrying (mostly) Italian migrants in collision with HMS Anson off Gibraltar [ 75]
546
SS Atlantic (1870)
1873 (1 April)
White Star liner struck rocks off Nova Scotia
540 to 760 [ 76]
2013 Great Britain and Ireland heat wave
2013 (July)
Estimate for UK deaths only
531+
1623–24 famine
1623–1624
East Lancashire badly affected;[ 77] said to be the last peace-time famine in England.
531[ 78]
1953 North Sea storm and flood
1953 (31 Jan – 1 Feb)
Included the ferry MV Princess Victoria
520
HMS Namur
1749 (14 April)
Wrecked in a storm near Fort St. David , India
500
HMS Minotaur
1810 (22 December)
Wrecked on Haak Bank near Texel, Netherlands
500
"Black Monday "
1209 (Easter Monday )
Massacre of English settlers by Irish clans, near Ranelagh , Dublin
491
HMS York
1804 (Jan)
Struck the Inchcape rock and sank with the loss of her entire crew
481
HMS Captain
1870 (7 September)
Sank off Cape Finisterre , Spain , due to design flaws
480
SS City of Glasgow
1854 (March)
Disappeared after leaving Liverpool for Philadelphia
473
Cospatrick
1874 (18 November)
Caught fire in the South Atlantic
464
HMS Courageux
1796 (18 December)
Shipwrecked at Apes' Hill, Barbary Coast (now Monte Hacho , Ceuta , Africa)[ 79]
457 [ 80]
2009 swine flu pandemic
2009–2010
Global influenza pandemic , the second involving the influenza A virus subtype H1N1 after the Spanish flu
454
Vryheid
1802 (23 November)
Formerly Melville Castle , shipwrecked in a gale off the Kent coast between Hythe and Dymchurch ; 18 of 472 on board survived
450
HMS Birkenhead
1852 (25 February)
Shipwrecked near Cape Town
450
Royal Charter (ship)
1859 (26 October)
Wrecked off Dulas Bay, Anglesey
439
Senghenydd colliery disaster
1913 (14 October)
Gas explosion at the Universal Colliery, Senghenydd , Caerphilly , Glamorganshire, Britain's worst mining accident
431
HMS Otranto
1918 (6 October)
Shipwrecked off Islay . 351 United States troops and 80 crew perished
424
Pomona
1859 (30 April)
American ship carrying, mainly Irish, emigrants from Liverpool to New York, wrecked on a sandbank at Ballyconigar, off Wexford , Ireland
421
HMS Natal
1915 (30 December)
Magazine explosion. Precise number of deaths disputed; 421 is highest estimate
400+
Sinking of Rochdale and Prince of Wales
1807 (20 November)
Ships carrying troops leaving Dublin for the Napoleonic Wars
400+
HMS Invincible
1801 (16 March)
Sank off Norfolk while en route to the Battle of Copenhagen
400
HMS Winchester
1695 (1 September)
Shipwrecked on a reef off Key Largo , Florida
400
Cataraqui
1845 (4 August)
Shipwrecked off King Island (Tasmania)
384
Annie Jane
1853 (28 September)
Emigrant ship out of Liverpool, wrecked on Vatersay in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland
361
The Oaks explosion
1866 (12 December)
Colliery disaster, Barnsley , Yorkshire (383 claimed but not verified)[ 81]
380
Mary Rose
1545 (18 July)
Warship sank in action off Portsmouth
379
HMS Dasher (D37)
1943 (27 March)
Aircraft carrier: accidental fuel explosion in Firth of Clyde
374
Driver
1856 (February)
American clipper ship carrying migrants to the US out of Liverpool, disappeared while crossing the Atlantic Ocean
372
Arniston
1815 (30 May)
Wrecked at Waenhuiskrans , South Africa
369[ 82]
Queen
1814 (14 Jan)
Wrecked in Carrick Roads , Cornwall
360+
Elizabeth
1810 (27 December)
Chartered East Indiaman wrecked off Dunkirk
358
HMS Victoria
1893 (22 June)
Rammed by HMS Camperdown in the Mediterranean Sea
352
HMS Princess Irene
1915 (27 May)
Explosion while on the River Medway , Sheerness
349
HMS Sceptre
1799 (5 November)
Wrecked during a storm in Table Bay , near the Cape of Good Hope [ 83]
347
HMS Athenienne
1806 (20 October)
Wrecked off Tunisia ; 100 survivors crammed into the ship's launch
344
Pretoria Pit Disaster
1910 (21 December)
Underground explosion at the Hulton Bank Colliery, Westhoughton , Lancashire
340
Aeneas
1805 (23 October)
Troopship wrecked on the Îles aux Mortes along the Canadian coastline while carrying troops to Quebec
338
HMS Curaçao
1942 (2 October)
Light cruiser run down and cut in two by RMS Queen Mary north of Ireland
335
SS Schiller
1875 (7 May)
German liner wrecked off the Isles of Scilly
329
Air India Flight 182
1985 (23 June)
Act of terror: destroyed by a bomb, crashed into the Atlantic Ocean while in Irish airspace
317[ 84]
HMS Eurydice
1878 (22 March)
Sank off the Isle of Wight ; commemorated by Gerard Manley Hopkins in the poem "The Loss of the Eurydice"
316+
Sybelle
1834 (11 September)
Emigrant ship out of Cromarty wrecked off St. Paul Island (Nova Scotia) [ 85]
303[ 86]
Kapunda
1887 (20 January)
Emigrant ship out of London, collided with the barque Ada Melmore off Brazil
300 to 400 [ 61]
1962 London smog
1962 (December)
300
White Ship
1120 (25 November)
Shipwrecked off Barfleur , Normandy , taking the only legitimate son of King Henry I of England
300+
HMS Amphion
1796 (22 September)
Magazine explosion while at Plymouth, Devon
300
HMS London
1665 (7 March)
Accidental explosion while in the Thames Estuary
297
RMS Tayleur
1854 (21 January)
Shipwrecked off Lambay Island , Dublin Bay during its maiden voyage after its iron hull deflected its compass
293
Northfleet
1873 (22 January)
Rammed at night by a Spanish steamboat while anchored off Dungeness
290
Albion Colliery explosion
1894 (23 June)
Firedamp explosion at Cilfynydd in South Wales[ 87] [ 88]
285
Gordon Riots
1780 (2–13 June)
Rioters shot by troops
281
HMS Atalanta
1880 (31 January)
HMS Eurydice 's sister ship, disappeared after leaving Bermuda bound for Falmouth, Cornwall
276
VOC Hollandia
1743 (13 June)
Shipwrecked off Annet, Isles of Scilly
270
Great Sheffield Flood
1864 (11 March)
Caused by collapse of Dale Dike Reservoir during its first filling
270[ 89]
Pan Am Flight 103
1988 (21 December)
Blown apart at 31,000 ft over Lockerbie , Scotland, by terrorist bomb in hold
268
Abercarn colliery disaster
1878 (11 September)
Mining disaster at Abercarn , Monmouthshire [citation needed ]
266
Gresford Disaster
1934 (22 September)
Mining accident near Wrexham , North Wales
260
Earl of Abergavenny
1805 (5 February)
East Indiaman shipwrecked off Portland Bill
253
HMS Saldanha
1811 (4 December)
Shipwrecked during gale off Lough Swilly , Donegal , Ireland
250+
Night of the Big Wind
1839 (6–7 January)
A severe windstorm sweeps across Ireland causing flooding and other damage
250+
RMS Royal Adelaide
1850 (30 March)
Irish paddle steamer shipwrecked on Tongue Sands off Margate , Kent[ 90]
247
East Indiaman Doddington
1755 (17 July)
Shipwrecked in Algoa Bay , South Africa
246
HMS Avenger
1847 (20 December)
Wrecked off the Galite Islands , Tunisia
241
Exmouth
1847 (28 April)
Shipwrecked off Islay [ 91]
240
HMS Lutine
1799 (9 October)
Shipwrecked off Vlieland
238[ 92]
MV Dara
1961 (8 April)
British-India Steam Navigation Company passenger liner evacuated in the Persian Gulf off Dubai following explosion and fire
237
SS Anglo Saxon
1863 (27 April)
Canadian ship wrecked in dense fog off Cape Race , Newfoundland , Canada on passage from Liverpool
228
HMS Tribune
1797 (16 November)
Wrecked during a storm off Halifax, Nova Scotia , Canada
226
Quintinshill rail crash
1915 (22 May)
Three-train collision in Dumfries and Galloway , Scotland, Britain's worst railway accident[ 93]
224
Neva
1835 (13 May)
Convict ship out of Cork wrecked on reefs off King Island , Tasmania
220
SS London
1866 (11 January)
Sank during gale in the Bay of Biscay [ 94]
220
Great Blizzard of 1891
1891 (9–13 March)
Strong winds and snow across southern England lead to deaths on land and at sea[ 95]
220
Hartley Colliery disaster
1862 (16 January)
Caused by steam engine metal fatigue , in Northumberland
215
Lady of the Lake
1833 (11 May)
Struck iceberg in the North Atlantic and sank
212
Sovereign
1814 (18 October)
Wrecked off St. Paul Island (Nova Scotia)
210
SS Rinaldo
1878 (18 December)
Collision with French steamship Byzantin (which sustains most casualties) in the Dardanelles [ 62]
208
Harpooner
1816 (10 November)
Military transport ship shipwrecked off Newfoundland
207
Blantyre mining disaster
1877 (22 October)
Gas explosion in a Scottish colliery
205
SS Hungarian
1860 (20 February)
A Canadian Allan Line Royal Mail Steamer out of Liverpool and Queenstown (Cobh) wrecked off Cape Sable Island (Nova Scotia) [ 96]
201
HMY Iolaire
1919 (1 January)
Admiralty yacht returning soldiers to the Isle of Lewis after World War I sank off Holm near Stornoway in the Outer Hebrides [ 97]
100–199 fatalities
Deaths inItalics indicate an estimated figure
Event
Year
Notes
193
MS Herald of Free Enterprise
1987 (6 March)
Ferry capsized off Zeebrugge in under one minute after its RORO bow doors were left open. Unlawful killing verdict.
192
Transport ship Dispatch and Brig-of-War HMS Primrose
1809 (22 January)
Both ships sank after hitting The Manacles .[ 98]
191
SS City of Boston (Inman Line )
1870 (after 28 January)
Ship out of New York City and Halifax, Nova Scotia , bound for Liverpool disappeared in the Atlantic Ocean , possibly struck an iceberg
189
Lundhill Colliery explosion
1857 (19 February)
Colliery disaster, Wombwell , Yorkshire .
189
Wood Pit Colliery explosion
1878 (7 June)
Colliery disaster, Haydock , Lancashire . The total fatalities, which included one man and all of his five sons, may have been 204 or more.[ 99]
189
HMS Orpheus
1863 (7 February)
Sank off Auckland due to outdated nautical charts and shortcuts.
189
Eyemouth Disaster
1881 (14 October)
Local fishing fleet sank during a European windstorm that struck the southeast coast of Scotland . [1]
186
Exeter Theatre Royal fire
1887 (5 September)
Fire at the Theatre Royal, Exeter caused by gas lights.
186
PS Pacific
1856 (after 23 January)
American ship lost at sea out of Liverpool [sister ship of SS Arctic ]
183
Victoria Hall disaster
1883 (16 June)
Crowd crush at Sunderland after a children's Variety show to get prizes and gifts resulted in compressive asphyxia and trampling.
179
SS Cambria
1870 (19 October)
Shipwrecked at Inishtrahull
178
United Kingdom BSE outbreak
1996–2001
Variant Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease outbreak in the UK. Known colloquially as "mad cow disease", victims contracted the disease through eating infected beef.[ 100] [ 101]
178
First Ferndale Colliery disaster
1867 (8 November)
Mining disaster in the Rhondda Valley , Glamorganshire , caused by gas accumulation and miners tampering with safety lamps
178
Ocean Monarch
1848 (24 August)
Shipwreck and fire off Great Orme , Llandudno caused by steerage passengers' smoking materials
178
Clifton Hall Colliery explosion
1885 (18 June)
Explosion of firedamp gas in a colliery at Salford
176
Turkish Airlines Flight 981
1974 (3 March)
Crashed in the Ermenonville Forest , France due to cargo door design flaw.[ 102] The flight was headed to London Heathrow and most of the passengers were British
176
Llannerch, Cwmnantddu
1890 (6 February)
Colliery gas explosion near Pontypool , Monmouthshire after the mine refused safety lamps by its MD two months earlier
173
Bethnal Green tube station panic
1943 (3 March)
Crowd crush caused by British anti-aircraft battery salvo
172
HMS Serpent
1890 (9 November)
Royal Navy torpedo cruiser launched in 1887 shipwrecked off Camariñas , Galicia
168
Burns Pit Disaster
1909 (16 February)
Mining disaster at Stanley, County Durham
167
Piper Alpha
1988 (6 July)
Oil platform gas leak , explosion and fire 30m above cold seas in the North Sea
164
Seaham Colliery accident
1880 (8 September)
Mining accident at Seaham , County Durham
163 [ 103]
The John Bodkin Adams murders
1946–1956
Though controversially acquitted in court of the murder of a patient in 1957, Doctor John Bodkin Adams is widely suspected to have murdered around 163 of his patients over 10 years[ 104]
157
Deutschland
1875 (6 December)
Shipwrecked during a blizzard on Kentish Knock sandbank, Thames Estuary . Tugboat rescue delayed until the next day, most died of hypothermia
155
Minnie Pit disaster
1918 (12 January)
Mining disaster at Podmore Hall , Halmer End , Staffordshire
150
Clifford's Tower fire massacre
1190 (16 March)
Massacre of Jews in York by a mob
146
Risca Blackvein Disaster
1860 (1 December)
Coal mining disaster at Risca , Monmouthshire caused by a gas explosion
146
Dan-Air Flight 1008
1980 (25 April)
Air traffic control instructed the plane to fly an unpublished holding pattern , which led the plane into the dangerously high terrain of Mount Esperanza, Tenerife
146
Aberfan disaster
1966 (21 October)
Coal-waste spoil tip collapsed onto a junior school , Glamorganshire
143
Swaithe Main Colliery disaster
1875 (6 December)
Mining disaster at Worsbrough , Yorkshire
141
SS Berlin
1907 (21 February)
Great Eastern Railway steamship out of Harwich wrecked off Hook of Holland
140
HMS Condor
1901 (3 December)
Ship lost with all hands in a gale off Vancouver Island
140
2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami
2004 (26 December)
UK victims only; see Countries affected by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
139
George III
1835 (12 April)
Convict ship wrecked in D'Entrecasteaux Channel , Tasmania
139
Combs Pit disaster
1893 (4 July)
Mining disaster at Thornhill , Yorkshire
137
National Shell Filling Factory explosion
1918 (1 July)
Munitions explosion at Chilwell in Nottinghamshire . Eight tons of TNT exploded
136
Wellington Pit disaster
1910 (11 May)
Coal mining disaster at Whitehaven , Cumberland
135
Fifth cholera pandemic
1893
The last outbreak of cholera in Britain took place in 1893[ 14]
135
Alexander
1815 (27 March)
Ship out of Bombay wrecked near Portland within sight of shore. The ship was caught in a gale and ran aground at night
133
Amphitrite
1833 (31 August)
Convict ship from Woolwich to Australia wrecked off Boulogne
133
MV Princess Victoria
1953 (31 January)
Early roll-on/roll-off ferry disaster in the North Channel during a storm.
131
Lincoln typhoid fever epidemic
1904 (November) – 1905 (April)
130
Rothsay Castle
1831 (18 August)
Paddle steamer from Liverpool shipwrecked in the Menai Strait under the command of a drunken captain.
129
John Franklin's Northwest Passage expedition
1845–1848
HMS Erebus and HMS Terror caught in pack ice ; the crews endured botulism , lead poisoning and cannibalism before starvation.
128
TSMS Lakonia
1963 (22 December)
Caught fire and sank off Madeira . Resulted in 98 (mainly British) passenger deaths, plus 33 crew fatalities.
128
HMS Gladiator
1908 (25 April)
Shipwrecked in a collision with an American steamship during a snowstorm, Isle of Wight .
125
HMS Primrose
1809 (22 January)
Shipwrecked on The Manacles , Cornwall .
125
SS Hilda
1905 (18 November)
London & South Western Railway steamship wrecked in snow squalls off Saint-Malo .
124
BOAC Flight 911
1966 (5 March)
Aircraft broke up in flight near Mount Fuji , Japan. A significant percentage of the fatalities were American and Japanese citizens.
124
SS Daphne
1883 (3 July)
Capsized during her ship naming and launching , River Clyde , Glasgow .
123
Ocean Queen
1856 (February)
Clipper ship out of London disappeared in the Atlantic Ocean .
121
Dunbar
1857 (20 August)
Clipper out of Plymouth wrecked at Sydney Cove , Australia.
120
New Risca pit explosion
1880 (5 July)
Coal mining disaster, Risca , Monmouthshire .
120+
Bibighar Massacre
1857 (15 July)
Massacre of European women and children at Cawnpore (Kanpur ), India during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.
119
National Colliery explosion
1905 (11 July)
Coal mine explosion at Wattstown , Rhondda Valley , Glamorganshire .
118
British European Airways Flight 548
1972 (18 June)
Crashed into a field at Staines . Possible heart attack suffered by the pilot after takeoff.
114
Cymmer Colliery explosion
1856 (15 July)
Coal mine explosion at Cymmer , Porth , Glamorganshire .
112
Parc Slip Colliery gas explosion
1892 (26 August)
Gas explosion due to a damaged Davy lamp , Tondu , Glamorganshire
112
SS Stella
1899 (30 March)
London & South Western Railway steamship wrecked on a granite reef in fog at full speed, sinking in 8 minutes, at the Casquets , Channel Islands .
112
Harrow and Wealdstone rail crash
1952 (8 October)
Three trains collided in patchy fog in morning rush hour. Death toll second only to Quintinshill rail crash.[ 105]
112
Dan-Air Flight 1903
1970 (3 July)
De Havilland Comet crashed into a mountain in Catalonia , Spain
111
Caledonian Airways Flight 153
1962 (4 March)
Crashed after take-off from Douala , Cameroon
110 [ 106]
RMS Amazon (1851)
1852 (4 January)
Steam engine of a wooden mail paddle steamer caught fire in the Bay of Biscay
109
Faversham gunpowder mill explosion
1916 (2 April)
108
Invicta International Airlines Flight 435
1973 (10 April)
Crashed into a forested, snowy hillside near Hochwald, Switzerland
106
SS Mohegan
1898 (14 October)
Shipwrecked off The Manacles , Cornwall
104
William Pit disaster
1947 (15 August)
Coal mining disaster at Whitehaven , Cumberland [ 107]
104
HMS Brazen
1800 (26 January)
Shipwrecked off Newhaven, Sussex .
102
Pelican
1793 (20 March)
Sank in the River Mersey .
102
HMS Feversham
1711 (7 October)
Shipwrecked off Scatarie Island , Louisbourg, Nova Scotia .
102
Wallsend Colliery explosion
1835 (18 June)
Colliery explosion, Wallsend , Northumberland .[ 108]
101
Naval Steam Colliery explosion
1880 (10 December)
Colliery explosion, Tonypandy , Rhondda Valley . 4 bodies unidentified.[ 109]
100+
HMS Lizard
1748 (27 February)
Wrecked on the Seven Stones reef .[ 110]
100 to 240 [ 111] [ 112] [ 113]
Windscale fire
1957 (10 October) (deaths up to decades later)
One of the world's worst nuclear accidents .[ 111] Radioactive material released, causing many local cancer deaths in the long term.[ 114] Number of deaths disputed.[ 114]
100
"Battle" of May Island
1918 (31 January – 1 February)
Two Royal Navy submarines sunk after collisions during naval exercise
100
Moray Firth fishing disaster
1848 (19 August)
Open hulled fishing fleet storm disaster
100
HMS Confiance
1822 (21 September)
36-gun, 393 ton brig sloop was wrecked between Mizen Head and Three Castles Head, at the south-westernmost point of Ireland
100 [ 115]
Avalanche
1877 (11 September)
Ship out of London for Wellington , New Zealand , collided with American Forest Queen off Isle of Portland , English Channel , both sinking, with a further 20+ casualties from the Forest Queen
Fewer than 100 fatalities
Deaths Italics indicate an estimated figure
Event
Year
Notes
99
Meikle Ferry disaster
1809 (16 August)
Over-laden ferryboat sank in Dornoch Firth , Scotland
99
HMS Thetis submarine disaster
1939 (1 June)
Flooded through torpedo tube during pre-war sea trials , Liverpool Bay , salvaged but sunk by depth charges with all hands in 1943
98
Edmond
1850 (19 November)
A chartered passenger sailing vessel sunk at Edmond Point in Kilkee , County Clare with 216 on board
98
Britannia Airways Flight 105
1966 (1 September)
Britannia Airways Bristol Britannia G-ANBB from Luton Airport , aircrash at Ljubljana
97
Hillsborough Stadium Disaster
1989 (15 April)
97 people died after being crushed against perimeter fencing after thousands of people tried to enter the stadium through a narrow tunnel
95
Haswell Colliery explosion
1844 (28 September)
County Durham
95
"Fatal Vespers "
1623 (26 October)
Floor collapse at house in Blackfriars, London , being used as a chapel
94
Carlingford Lough disaster
1916 (3 November)
SS Connemara and a coalship SS Retriever collided and sank, Carlingford Lough , County Down
93
St Scholastica Day riot , Oxford
1355 (10–12 February)
A "town and gown " dispute over beer escalates over three days
92
Felling mine disaster , County Durham
1812 (25 May)
Firedamp explosion, ushers in safety lamps by George Stephenson and Humphry Davy
91
Carrick-on-Suir disaster
1799 (9 February)
Barge capsize under bridge, in Ireland[ 116]
91
Cadeby Main pit disaster
1912 (9 July)
Two underground coal mine explosions at Cadeby, South Yorkshire
90
Lewisham rail crash
1957 (4 December)
Railway signals missed in the rush hour fog
88
Armagh rail disaster
1889 (12 June)
10 runaway railway passenger cars on a Sunday School day trip
88
1967 Air Ferry DC-4 accident ,
1967 (3 June)
Douglas C-54 G-APYK, from Kent International Airport , Mont Canigou , France
87
Morfa Mine , Port Talbot
1890 (10 March)
Glamorganshire, Colliery gas explosion
86
SS Egypt
1922 (20 May)
Shipwreck, off Ushant , Brittany
85
Rohilla
1914 (30 October)
Ran aground off Whitby , with a survivor of the sinking of the RMS Titanic two years earlier rescued again
84
British Eagle
1964 (29 February)
International Airlines aircrash Bristol Britannia G-AOVO from Heathrow Airport , Innsbruck , Austria,
84
Paisley canal disaster
1810 (10 November)
Canal pleasure boat capsize, Paisley , Scotland
83
East Side pit , Senghenydd
1901 (24 May)
Glamorganshire, Colliery gas explosion, precursor to the 1913 disaster
81
Mardy Colliery , Rhondda Valley
1885 (23 December)
Glamorganshire, mining disaster
81
Easington Colliery
1951 (29 May)
County Durham, coal mine explosion,
81
Holmfirth Flood
1852 (5 February)
Bilberry Reservoir collapsed, Holme Valley , West Yorkshire
80+
PS Queen Victoria
1853 (15 February)
Wrecked below a lighthouse in a night-time snowstorm, off Howth Head , Dublin
80
Llandow air disaster
1950 (12 March)
Fairflight Avro Tudor G-AKBY, Sigginstone , Glamorganshire, with returning Welsh Rugby Union supporters on board (highest confirmed death toll of any civil aviation disaster up to that date)
80
Creswell Colliery
1950 (26 September)
Mining accident caused by smoke inhalation, Creswell, Derbyshire
79
Great Yarmouth Suspension bridge
1846 (2 May)
Collapse above a river, killing children watching a clown
79
British Admiral out of Liverpool wrecked off Tasmania
1874 (23 May)
79
HMS Glatton
1918 (16 September)
Wrecked by accidental explosion, Dover harbour
79
Markham Colliery disaster
1938 (10 May)
Underground explosion Derbyshire
78
Burwell, Cambridgeshire Barn fire
1727 (8 September)
Occurred during a puppet show with the doors nailed shut
77
Ocean Home
1856 (5 September)
American ship sinks after collision with Cherubim off Lizard Point, Cornwall
77
Diglake Colliery Disaster
1895 (14 January)
Inrush of water into Diglake Colliery, North Staffordshire
76
Third plague pandemic
1896–1926
Series of outbreaks across Britain and Ireland as part of a pandemic , with Glasgow and Suffolk being particularly badly affected (the last death of plague in Britain occurred in 1926)[ 117] [ 118]
76
Maypole Colliery disaster
1908 (18 August)
Underground explosion at Abram, Lancashire
75
Tay Bridge disaster
1879 (28 December)
Cast iron bridge collapse with a train crossing during an evening storm, Dundee
75
HMS Affray
1951 (17 April)
Mysterious submarine disaster in English Channel
75
STV Royston Grange
1972 (11 May)
A Houlder Line cargo liner , destroyed by fire after a collision with Liberian-registered tanker Tien Chee in the Rio de la Plata
74
SS Naronic
1893 (19 February)
Lost at sea, possibly due to iceberg strike off Nova Scotia, out of Liverpool, with no Wireless Telegraph to make a distress call
73
Udston mining disaster
1887 (28 May)
Hamilton , Scotland, firedamp explosion
73
Silvertown explosion
1917 (19 January)
Explosion in a TNT factory in West Ham [2]
72
Stockport Air Disaster
1967 (4 June)
British Midland Airways Argonaut G-ALHG, an unrecognised flaw in the fuel system made the plane returning from Majorca uncontrollable.
72
Grenfell Tower fire
2017 (14 June)
Residential tower block in North Kensington , London[ 119]
71
Glen Cinema Disaster
1929 (31 December)
Paisley , Scotland[ 120]
70+
1900 English beer poisoning
1900
6,000 people poisoned by consuming arsenic -tainted beer, with Manchester being the worst affected area[ 121]
70
Great Gale of 1871
1871 (10 February)
Bridlington 100 shipwrecks, incl. Royal National Lifeboat Harbinger , plus other losses at sea, estimated total of 70 marine fatalities
70
RAF Fauld
1944 (27 November)
Munitions explosion during World War II, Staffordshire [ 122]
69
HMS M1
1925 (12 November)
Submarine wreck in collision with Swedish surface vessel off Plymouth
69[ 123]
Trimdon Grange colliery disaster
1882 (16 February)
Underground explosion in County Durham
67
September 11, 2001 attacks
2001 (11 September)
[UK victims only]
66
BEA Comet G-ARCO bombing
1967 (12 October)
Off Rhodes [all nationalities] [3]
66
Ibrox disaster
1971 (2 January)
Compressive asphyxia spectator crush on stairway at Ibrox Park football stadium, Glasgow
65
Theatre Royal, Dunlop Street, Glasgow
1849 (17 February)
Panic ensuing from a false fire alarm
65
Cherokee class brig-sloop HMS Jasper
1817 (20 January)
Wrecked in hurricane-force winds on either Rame Head , Cornwall or Bear's Head, Mount Batten , Devon[ 124]
64
Middle Duffryn Mine
1852 (14 May)
Colliery explosion near Aberdare , Glamorganshire[ 125]
64
Masbrough boat disaster
1841 (5 July)
John and William overturns on launch near Rotherham [ 126]
64
HMS Truculent
1950 (12 January)
Submarine collision on the surface, Thames Estuary , survivors died of hypothermia on mid-winter mudbanks
63
British Airways Flight 576
1976 (10 September)
Mid-air collision with Inex-Adria Aviopromet Flight 550 above Zagreb , caused by ATC error[ 127]
63
Peckfield Colliery Disaster
1896 (30 April)
Micklefield , Yorkshire
63
Victoria coal pit, Nitshill near Glasgow
1851 (15 March)
Explosion[ 128]
63
Great Western Mine
1893 (11 April)
Rhondda Valley Colliery mining disaster, South Wales
63
BEA Flight 706 aircrash
1971 (2 October)
A Vickers Vanguard G-APEC flight 706, Aarsele , Belgium
63
Mauricewood Colliery disaster
1889 (5 September)
Underground fire, Penicuik , Scotland[ 129]
63
Dinas Rhondda
1879 (13 January )
Colliery gas explosion at Llantrisant , Rhondda Valley, Glamorganshire[ 130]
62
PS Comet II
1825 (21 October)
Sank in collision off Gourock , Scotland
61
SS Thames
1841 (4 January)
Steamship shipwrecked in a night-time storm, Isles of Scilly
61
Freckleton Air Disaster
1944 (23 August)
A USAAF Consolidated B-24 Liberator heavy bomber crashed into a village school in a storm, Freckleton , Lancashire , (3 aircrew, 58 ground fatalities)
60+
Harwich ferry disaster
1807 (18 April)
A 'grossly overladen' coastal vessel capsizes while transporting soldiers and their families
60
Dalhousie
1853(October )
"Blackwall frigate " sank off Beachy Head
60
HMS M2 British M class submarine
1932 (26 January)
Floods through her Parnall Peto seaplane hangar doors, Lyme Bay
58
Wharncliffe Woodmoor Colliery
1936 (6 August)
Underground explosion caused by an electrical fault
58
Garland of Topsham
1649 (30 January)
A vessel carrying Charles I 's possessions wrecked on Godrevy Island , Cornwall[ 131]
57
Tylorstown
1896 (27 January)
Rhondda Valley Colliery mining disaster, South Wales
57
Sneyd Colliery Disaster
1942 (1 January)
Burslem , Staffordshire
57
HMS K5
1921 (24 January)
A submarine sank in deep water, 120 miles south-west of the Isles of Scilly during sea trials
56
Bradford City stadium fire
1985 (11 May)
Bradford City A.F.C. 's Valley Parade stadium caught fire after a discarded cigarette set fire to rubbish underneath the wooden stands
56
7 July 2005 London bombings
2005 (7 July)
By suicide bombers on public transport
55
Manchester air disaster
1985 (22 August)
Flight 28M, a Boeing 737-236 engine fire before takeoff on a holiday flight to Corfu
53
Second Ferndale Colliery disaster
1869 (10 June)
Explosion in Rhondda Valley, Glamorganshire
53
Great fire of Newcastle and Gateshead
1854 (6 October)
Firestorm and explosion
52
Lletty Shenkin Colliery, Cwmbach
1849 (10 August)
Underground explosion, Aberdare , South Wales[ 132]
52
Yellow fever outbreak, HMS Firebrand
1861 (July)
West Indies [ 133]
52
Loch Ard
1878 (1 June)
A clipper out of Gravesend, Kent , wrecked off Loch Ard Gorge , just off the Shipwreck Coast of Victoria, Australia in thick fog
52
HMS Wasp
1884 (22 September)
Wrecked on Tory Island , County Donegal
52
Marine Colliery
1927 (1 March)
Gwm near Ebbw Vale , Monmouthshire , coal mine disaster
51
Colney Hatch Lunatic Asylum fire, London
1903 (27 January)
In an early psychiatric hospital holding up to 3,500 patients
51
Marchioness disaster , River Thames
1989 (20 August)
A pleasure boat rammed by a dredger under a bridge
51
St Hilda Colliery, South Shields, coal pit explosion
1839 (28 June)
[ 134]
50+
Winter of 1962–63
1962–63
One of the coldest winters on record in the United Kingdom. The river Thames froze solid[ 135]
50
Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 aircrash
1969 (5 January)
Crashed into a house, Boeing 727 YA-FAR, Gatwick
50
Summerland fire disaster
1973 (2 August)
Douglas, Isle of Man , a fire in a leisure centre
50
Whiddy Island disaster
1979 (8 January)
Explosion of oil tanker Betelguese in Bantry Bay , Ireland
49?
SS Nile
1854 (30 November)
All the crew and passengers died when she hit The Stones reef off Godrevy Head , Cornwall ; leading to building of the lighthouse [ 136]
49
Booth's clothing factory fire , Huddersfield
1941 (31 October)
Fire at a major clothing factory in Huddersfield, West Riding of Yorkshire [ 137]
49
HMS Punjabi collision with the battleship HMS King George V
1942 (1 May)
Sinking 469 miles north-west of Shetland .
49
Hither Green rail crash
1967 (5 November )
In London, a broken rail caused derailment of an express train
48
Stardust fire
1981 (14 February)
A nightclub fire in Artane, Dublin , 841 people had attended a disco there, of whom 48 died and 214 were injured as a result of the fire
48
A British Eagle International Airlines Vickers Viscount
1968 (9 August)
En route from London to Innsbruck , Austria, breaks up in mid-air over Bavaria
47[ 138]
Burns' Day Storm
1990 (25 January)
Violent storm that started on Burns' day and affected north-western Europe, hurricane -force winds in some areas
47
Emma
1828 (29 February)
Capsizes after launching, Mersey and Irwell Navigation , Manchester[ 139]
47
Gethin Pit disaster
1862 (19 February)
First of two underground colliery explosions at Abercanaid, near Merthyr Tydfil . South Wales
47
R101 airship crash
1930 (5 October)
Beauvais , France
47
SS Samtampa
1947( 23 April)
Wrecked off Sker Point in the Bristol Channel (death toll includes 8 crew of Mumbles lifeboat )
47
Auchengeich coal mining disaster
1959 (18 September)
Auchinloch , Lanarkshire , Scotland
47
Kegworth Air Disaster
1989 (8 January)
British Midland Flight 92, Leicestershire , the pilot shut down the wrong engine (just missed the M1 Motorway )
47
1973 Nantes mid-air collision
1973 (5 March)
[British victims only] Two aircraft heading to Heathrow Airport collided due to ATC error.[ 140]
46
Wreck of Confederate States of America blockade runner PS Lelia
1865 (14 January)
(39 fatalities) and lifeboat crew (7 fatalities) in Liverpool Bay
45
Bentley Coal mine disaster
1931 (20 November)
Bentley, South Yorkshire
45
Six Bells Colliery Disaster
1960 (28 June)
Aberbeeg , Monmouthshire
45
Aquila Airways Short Solent flying boat crash
1957 (15 November)
Isle of Wight
45
Sumburgh disaster
1986 (6 November)
A Brent oilfield CH-47 Chinook helicopter crashed at sea
45
PS Nimrod
1860 (28 February)
An Irish steamer sank off St David's Head
45
Cleggan Bay Disaster
1927 (27 October)
A strong gale killed 45 fishermen off the coast of County Galway
44
R38 (ZR-2) airship crash
1921 (24 August)
River Humber , near Hull
44
MV Derbyshire
1980 (9 September)
Bibby Line bulk carrier sank during Typhoon Orchid , south of Japan (by tonnage the largest UK-flagged ship loss)
43
Croydon typhoid outbreak of 1937
1937 (October–December)
Outbreak originating from a polluted chalk water well ; 341 cases[ 141]
43
Bourne End rail crash
1945 (30 September)
Derailment taking crossover at speed near Hemel Hempstead , Hertfordshire ; driver had worked for 26 consecutive days
43
Moorgate tube crash
1975 (28 February)
London Underground train runs at speed into dead-end tunnel in the morning rush hour
41
Little Baldon air crash
1965 (6 July)
Handley Page Hastings aircraft crashed at Little Baldon , Oxfordshire , during parachute training flight from RAF Abingdon , caused by metal fatigue
40
Garden Pit Disaster
1844 (14 February)
40 men and boys are crushed or drowned when water from the River Cleddau broke through the roof of their coalmine at Landshipping, Pembrokeshire , Wales[ 142]
40
Regent's Park skating disaster
1867 (15 January)
Ice covering the boating lake collapsed and 200 people plunged in[ 143]
40
Low Moor Explosion
1916 (21 August)
Explosion at a picric acid plant producing explosives for the war effort in the First World War[ 144]
See also
Notes
^ Military and civilian casualties from conflicts in which the United Kingdom was involved are listed at United Kingdom casualties of war .
^ Assuming the population of England as 21,361,235 (1871 census) and of Scotland as 3,360,018 (1871 census).
^ Estimate of mortality in Britain.
^ While the annual government statistics in these years all record the number of people who died whilst being infected with HIV, only the two most recent reports (2018 and 2019) specify the number of these deaths that are assumed to be attributable to "AIDS-defining illnesses". However, the most recent report (2019) specifies that 22% to 47% of deaths of those living with a HIV infection can be assumed to have been as a result of an AIDS-defining illness, and, using these figures, it can be estimated that approximately 832–1494 have died from AIDS-defining illness between 2013 and 2018.
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