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List of disasters in Canada by death toll

(Redirected from List of Canadian disasters by death toll)

This list of Canadian disasters by death toll includes major disasters (excluding acts of war) that occurred on Canadian soil or involved Canadian citizens, in a definable incident, where the loss of life was 10 or more.

200 or more deaths edit

Fatalities Year Article Type Location Comments
55,000+ 1918-1919 1918 influenza pandemic Pandemic Canada Fatalities are estimated
53,000+ 2020-present COVID-19 Pandemic Canada Ongoing
26,000+ 1981-present HIV/AIDS Pandemic Canada Ongoing
20,000+ 1847-1848 Canadian typhus Pandemic Canada Fatalities are estimated
7,000 1957-1958 Asian flu Pandemic Canada
6,000 1890-1891 Russian flu Pandemic Canada
4,000 1775[1] Newfoundland Hurricane of 1775 Hurricane Newfoundland
4,000 1968 Hong Kong flu Pandemic Canada
Unknown, likely several thousand 1700 1700 Cascadia earthquake Earthquake British Columbia coast True figures unknown. Many coastal First Nations villages (such as Kiix-in) were completely wiped out.[2][3][4]
2,000 ~1700[5] Tseax Cone eruption Volcanic eruption Northwestern British Columbia
2,000 1917 Halifax Explosion Explosion Halifax, Nova Scotia Estimate; 1,950 recorded names
1,012 1914 RMS Empress of Ireland Shipwreck St. Lawrence River, Quebec
676 2021 2021 Western North America heat wave Heat wave Alberta and British Columbia 610 excess deaths in BC and 66 excess deaths in Alberta during the week[6][7][8]
500+ 1953 Polio Epidemic Canada
562 1873 RMS Atlantic Shipwreck Mars Island, Nova Scotia
428 2009-2010 Swine flu Pandemic Canada out of 3 million Canadians infected
360 1758 Duke William Shipwreck Atlantic Ocean near the coast of France during the expulsion of the Acadians[9]
353 1918 SS Princess Sophia Shipwreck Near Juneau, Alaska en route from Vancouver and Victoria to northern BC and Alaska
340 1805 Aeneas Shipwreck Isle aux Morts, Newfoundland
300 1758[10] Violet Shipwreck Atlantic Ocean near the coast of England during the expulsion of the Acadians bound for France
316 1834 Sybelle Shipwreck St. Paul Island, Nova Scotia Emigrant ship wreck
300 1885[11][12] Great Labrador Gale of 1885 Hurricane Labrador coast
298 1875 SS Pacific Shipwreck near Cape Flattery out of Victoria, British Columbia
268 (Canadians) 1985 Air India Flight 182 Terrorism Atlantic Ocean near the coast of Ireland flight out of Montréal–Mirabel International Airport, bomb exploded off the coast of Ireland. 268 out of 329 total fatalities were Canadian.
256 1985 Arrow Air Flight 1285 Plane crash Gander, Newfoundland As of 2024, it is the deadliest aviation accident to occur on Canadian soil.[13]
253 1857 SS Montreal Shipwreck St. Lawrence River, Quebec Caught on fire near Quebec City[14]
250 1913 Great Lakes Storm of 1913 Blizzard/Storm Great Lakes, Ontario Estimate is for both Canadian and U.S. fatalities
238 1797 HMS Tribune Shipwreck Halifax Harbour, Nova Scotia
237 1863[15] SS Anglo Saxon Shipwreck Cape Race, Avalon Peninsula, Newfoundland Allan Line shipwreck
229 1998 Swissair Flight 111 Plane crash St. Margarets Bay, Nova Scotia
223-600 1873 Nova Scotia hurricane of 1873 Hurricane Nova Scotia The Monthly Weather Review, published by the American Meteorological Society, set the death toll at 223 but the New York Times set the toll at 600
223 1916 Matheson Fire Forest fire Black River-Matheson, Ontario Official estimate[16]
205 1860[17] SS Hungarian Shipwreck Cape Sable Island, Nova Scotia Allan Line passenger ship wrecked Cape Sable, NS
203 1942 USS Pollux (AKS-2) and USS Truxtun (DD-229) Shipwreck Placentia Bay, Newfoundland Wreck of the USS Pollux resulted in 93 fatalities and USS Truxtun 110; the USS Wilkes (DD-441) also grounded, but there were no fatalities.

100 to 199 deaths edit

Fatalities Year Article Type Location Comments
190+Lockerby, Earle (Spring 1998). "The Deportation of the Acadians from Ile St.-Jean, 1758". Acadiensis. XXVII (2): 45–94.</ref> 1758 Ruby Shipwreck Azores, Portugal during the expulsion of the Acadians
189 1914 Hillcrest mine disaster Explosion Hillcrest, Crowsnest Pass, Alberta Deadliest mining disaster in Canadian history
182+ 1881 Victoria steamboat disaster Shipwreck London, Ontario [18]
174 1914 SS Southern Cross Shipwreck Off the coast of Newfoundland
173 1918 SS Florizel Shipwreck Cappahayden, Newfoundland
173-192 1927 1927 Nova Scotia hurricane Hurricane Nova Scotia and surrounding area Approximate figure, most fatalities occurred at sea
160 1825 Miramichi fire Forest fire Northern New Brunswick, including the towns of Fredericton, Miramichi, and Doaktown
150 1887 Nanaimo mine explosion Explosion Nanaimo, British Columbia
136 1906 SS Valencia Shipwreck Cape Beale, Vancouver Island, British Columbia
129 1845-1848 Franklin's lost expedition Failed expedition King William Island area, Nunavut The final expedition of John Franklin, where the HMS Erebus and HMS Terror were lost in the Northwest Passage
128 1902 Coal Creek mine disaster Explosion Coal Creek, British Columbia
125 1891 First Springhill mining disaster Explosion Springhill, Nova Scotia
118 1949 SS Noronic Shipwreck Toronto, Ontario
118 1963 Trans-Canada Air Lines Flight 831 Plane crash Sainte-Thérèse, Quebec
115 1828 HMS Acorn Shipwreck Halifax, Nova Scotia
109 1970 Air Canada Flight 621 Plane crash Brampton, Ontario
102 1711 HMS Feversham Shipwreck Scatarie Island, Main-à-Dieu, Nova Scotia

99 to 10 deaths edit

Fatalities Year Article Type Location Comments
99 1864 Beloeil train disaster Train wreck Beloeil, Quebec Deadliest train disaster in Canada
99 1942 Knights of Columbus Hostel fire Fire St. John's, Newfoundland
84 1982 Ocean Ranger Oil platform sinking Grand Banks, Newfoundland
81 (Canadian fatalities only) 1954 Hurricane Hazel Hurricane Ontario
78 1914 1914 Newfoundland Sealing Disaster Storm Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Newfoundland Fatalities from the SS Southern Cross are excluded
77 1927 Laurier Palace Theatre fire Fire Montreal, Quebec
76 1907 First Quebec Bridge collapse Bridge collapse Quebec City, Quebec
74 1958 Third Springhill mining disaster Coal mine bump Springhill, Nova Scotia
74 2018 2018 North American heat wave Heat wave Quebec and Ontario [19]
73-200 1911 Great Porcupine Fire Forest fire Porcupine, Ontario
70 1857 Desjardins Canal disaster Train wreck near Hamilton, Ontario
70 1903 Frank Slide Rockslide Frank, Crowsnest Pass, North-West Territories (Modern day Alberta)
64 1966 Canadian Pacific Airlines Flight 402 Plane crash Tokyo, Japan Crashed on landing at Haneda Airport in Tokyo with 8 survivors
63 (Canadian fatalities only) 2020 Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 Plane shootdown Tehran, Iran
62 1910 Rogers Pass avalanche Avalanche Rogers Pass, British Columbia
62 1956 Trans-Canada Air Lines Flight 810 Plane crash Chilliwack, British Columbia
60 1915 Britannia Mine Jane Camp landslide Landslide Britannia Beach, British Columbia
59 1828 Despatch Shipwreck Isle aux Morts, Newfoundland [20]
55 1896 Point Ellice Bridge disaster Tram accident Victoria, British Columbia
55-58 1926 1926 Nova Scotia hurricane Hurricane Nova Scotia Approximate number, most deaths occurred at sea.
54 2018 2018 Eastern Canada heat wave Heat wave Eastern Canada [21]
52 1854 Jeannette's Creek train wreck Train wreck Jeannettes Creek, Ontario
52-232 1900 1900 Galveston Hurricane Hurricane Eastern Canada
52 1965 Canadian Pacific Airlines Flight 21 Mass murder near 100 Mile House, British Columbia Crashed after a bomb exploded on board. The motive and perpetrator(s) remain unknown.
48 1979 Opémiska Community Hall fire Fire Chapais, Quebec
47 2013 Lac-Mégantic rail disaster Train wreck Lac-Mégantic, Quebec
44 1910 Spanish River derailment Train wreck Nairn, Ontario
44 1950 1950 Douglas C-54D disappearance Suspected plane crash Somewhere between Snag and Aishihik, Yukon Territory 42 US military personnel and 2 civilians. No trace of the plane has ever been found.
44 1997 1997 Les Éboulements bus accident Bus crash Les Éboulements, Quebec
43 1922 Great Fire of 1922 Wildfire Timiskaming District, Ontario
43 2003 2003 SARS outbreak Outbreak Toronto, Ontario Out of a total of 251 cases
42 1978 Pacific Western Airlines Flight 314 Plane crash Cranbrook, British Columbia
40+ 1815 HMS Penelope Shipwreck near Cap des Rosiers, Quebec Many survivors later froze to death.[22]
40 1889 Quebec rockslide Rockslide Quebec City, Quebec
40 1901 SS Islander Shipwreck Lynn Canal, Alaska Sunk by an iceberg south of Juneau
40 (Canadian fatalities only) 1912 Titanic Shipwreck near Newfoundland Canadian deaths only of 1,517 total"The Demographics of Titanic Passengers".</ref>
40 1978 Eastman bus crash Bus crash Eastman, Quebec
39 1928 Hollinger Mining Disaster Mine fire Timmins, Ontario
39 1942 Almonte train wreck Train wreck Almonte, Ontario
39 1956 Second Springhill mining disaster Explosion Springhill, Nova Scotia
38 1850 Commerce Shipwreck Port Maitland, Ontario
37 1867 Great Labrador Gale of 1867 Storm Labrador, Newfoundland
37+ 1869 1869 Saxby Gale Tropical cyclone Maritime provinces Most deaths occurred at sea
37 1951 1951 Canadian Pacific Air Douglas DC-10 disappearance Suspected plane crash Pacific Ocean near Yakutat, Alaska
37 1972 Blue Bird Café fire Arson Montreal, Quebec
37 1921 Britannia Beach flood Flood Britannia Beach, British Columbia
35 1959 1959 Escuminac hurricane Hurricane Gulf of St. Lawrence, New Brunswick
32 2014 L'Isle-Verte nursing home fire Fire L'Isle-Verte, Quebec
31 1882 Halifax Poor House fire Fire Halifax, Nova Scotia [23]
31 1947 Dugald train disaster Train wreck Dugald, Manitoba
31 1971 Saint-Jean-Vianney landslide Landslide Saint-Jean-Vianney, Quebec [24]
30 1930 John B. King explosion Explosion near Brockville, Ontario Lightning struck a drill boat containing dynamite
~30 1979 Eastern Canadian blizzard of March 1971 Blizzard Quebec
29 1929 1929 Grand Banks earthquake Earthquake and tsunami Burin Peninsula, Newfoundland Mainly affecting the town of Burin
29 1975 SS Edmund Fitzgerald Shipwreck Northwest of Pancake Bay, Ontario in Lake Superior
28 1912 Regina Cyclone Tornado Regina, Saskatchewan
28 1965 LaSalle Heights disaster Explosion LaSalle, Quebec
28 (Canadian fatalities only) 1998 North American ice storm of 1998 Ice storm Ontario and Quebec
27 1931 SS Viking Explosion Horse Islands, Newfoundland
27 1958 Second Narrows Bridge collapse Bridge collapse Vancouver, British Columbia
27 1962 Canadian Pacific Air Lines Flight 301 Plane crash Honolulu, Hawaii
27 1987 Edmonton tornado Tornado Edmonton, Alberta
26+ 1804 HMS Speedy Shipwreck Presqu'ile Bay, Lake Ontario
26-28 1965 Granduc Mine avalanche Avalanche Stewart, British Columbia
26 1992 Westray Mine methane explosion Explosion Plymouth, Nova Scotia
24 1989 Air Ontario Flight 1363 Plane crash Dryden, Ontario
23 1949 Québec Airways DC-3 bomb sabotage Mass murder Saint-Joachim, Quebec Albert Guay, along with the assistance of two other people planted a bomb in a plan to kill his wife
23 1983 Air Canada Flight 797 Aircraft fire Cincinnati International Airport, Kentucky
23 1986 Hinton train collision Train wreck Hinton, Alberta
23 2005 Legionnaire's disease outbreak Epidemic Toronto, Ontario [25][26]
23 2020 2020 Nova Scotia attacks Mass shooting Portapique, Enfield, Wentworth, Debert, and Shubenacaide, Nova Scotia
22 1980 Swift Current Broncos bus crash Bus crash near Swift Current, Saskatchewan [27]
22 2008 2008 Canada listeriosis outbreak Outbreak Toronto, Ontario Out of 57 total cases
21 1950 Canoe River train crash Train wreck Valemount, British Columbia
21 1998 MV Flare Shipwreck Cabot Strait, Newfoundland
20 1927 Beauval Indian Residential School Fire Fire Beauval, Saskatchewan
19 1966 Dorion level crossing accident School bus crash Dorion, Quebec
18 (Canadian fatalities only) 2019 Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 Plane crash Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
17 1960 Lamont school bus crash School bus crash near the town of Lamont, Alberta [28]
17 1946[29] Windsor-Tecumseh tornado Tornado Windsor, Ontairo
17 2009 Cougar Helicopters Flight 91 Helicopter crash Off the coast of Newfoundland
16 1918 Protection Island mining disaster Elevator accident Protection Island, Nanaimo, British Columbia [30]
16 2018 Humboldt Broncos bus crash Bus crash Armley, Saskatchewan
16 2023 Carberry bus crash Bus crash Carberry, Manitoba
15 1898 Cornwall railway bridge collapse Bridge collapse Cornwall, Ontario
15 1956 Orleans air disaster Plane crash Orleans, Ontario
15 1956 Canadian Pacific Airlines Flight 307 Plane crash Cold Bay, Alaska
15 (Canadian fatalities only) 2004 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami Earthquake and tsunami Thailand, India, Sri Lanka Seven Canadians died in Thailand, and one each in India and Sri Lanka
15 1974 1974 Les Éboulements bus accident Bus crash Les Éboulements, Quebec
14 1985 Barrie tornado outbreak Tornado outbreak Barrie, Ontario
14 1989 École Polytechnique massacre Mass shooting Montreal, Quebec
13 1904 Sand Point train collision Train wreck Sand Point, Ontario
13 1916 Second Quebec Bridge collapse Bridge collapse Quebec City, Quebec
13 1981 MS Arctic Explorer Shipwreck near St. Anthony, Newfoundland
12 1954 Lake of Two Mountains boating accident Boat accident L'Île-Bizard, Quebec Twelve NCC (Negro Community Centre) children drown.
12 1970 M.F.V. Enterprise and MV Patrick Morris Shipwrecks off Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia The MV Patrick Morris was responding to the mayday call of the M.F.V. Enterprise when it sank as well.
12 1989 1989 Cormier-Village hayride accident Traffic collision Cormier-Village, New Brunswick
12 2000 Pine Lake tornado Tornado Pine Lake, Alberta A tornado hit an RV park in rural Alberta
12 2011 First Air Flight 6560 Plane crash Resolute Bay, Nunavut
11 1953 1953 Canadian Pacific Air Lines Karachi crash Plane crash Karachi, Pakistan [31]
11 2012 Collision between a van and an eighteen-wheeler Traffic collision between Stratford and Perth, Ontario Ten of the killed were Peruvian migrant workers*
11 1889 St. George bridge derailment Train wreck St. George, Ontario
11 1908 1908 Medicine Hat train collision Train wreck Dunmore, Alberta Collision between a locomotive and a passenger train
10 1960 Metropolitan Store explosion Explosion Windsor, Ontario [32]
10 1989 Rupert Hotel fire Fire Toronto, Ontario [33]
10 2018 Toronto van attack Terrorism Toronto, Ontario
10 2022 2022 Saskatchewan stabbings Stabbing Weldon, Saskatchewan
10 1919 Port Colborne explosion Explosion Port Colborne Ontario

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "The Deadliest Atlantic Tropical Cyclones, 1492-1996". www.nhc.noaa.gov.
  2. ^ Meissner, Dirk (18 January 2015), "Earth will rip open like a zipper, expert says, when overdue Vancouver Island quake strikes", Toronto Star, retrieved 19 January 2015
  3. ^ "Prepare for next tsunami, says chief". Raven's Eye, Vol. 8, No. 9, 2009.
  4. ^ "Haida Gwaii Quake Brings Home the Importance of Quileute Relocation Legislation" Archived 2016-08-23 at the Wayback Machine. Indian Country Today Media Network, November 6, 2012.
  5. ^ D. Higgins, Michael (2008). "The Cascadia megathrust earthquake of 1700 may have rejuvenated an isolated basalt volcano in western Canada: Age and petrographic evidence". Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research. 179 (1–2): 149. doi:10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2008.10.016. ISSN 0377-0273.
  6. ^ "Number of deaths recorded during B.C.'s heat wave up to 808, coroners say". CTV British Columbia. 2021-07-16. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
  7. ^ Potestio, Michael (2021-07-21). "Estimate on number of suspected heat-related deaths rises to 808". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
  8. ^ Johnson, Lisa (2021-07-06). "Alberta saw spike in reported deaths during heatwave, causes still under investigation". Edmonton Journal. Retrieved 2021-07-07.
  9. ^ Letter from Captain William Nichols dated December 16, 1758 says 360 passengers aboard the Duke William: London Magazine XXVII, p. 655.
  10. ^ Letter from Captain William Nichols dated December 16, 1758 says 300 passengers aboard the Violet: London Magazine XXVII, p. 655.
  11. ^ "THE GALE OFF LABRADOR; FURTHER DETAILS OF ITS DESTRUCTIVE WORK.SUFFERINGS OF THE SHIPWRECKED CREWS--OVER 75 LIVES LOST AND 80 VESSELSWRECKED--HEROIC DEEDS". New York Times. 1885-11-08.
  12. ^ Coastal Flooding: Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage Archived 2007-06-29 at the Wayback Machine
  13. ^ Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident McDonnell Douglas DC-8-63CF N950JW Gander Airport, NL (YQX)". aviation-safety.net. Retrieved 2022-04-23.
  14. ^ Marine Disasters
  15. ^ Anglo Saxon wreck 1863 Archived 2008-05-17 at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ Heritage Foundation of Canada Archived 2012-07-17 at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ On the Rocks: Shipwrecks of Nova Scotia - Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, Halifax, Nova Scotia Archived 2007-07-13 at the Wayback Machine
  18. ^ ""THE "VICTORIA" BOAT DISASTER 1881" - London - Ontario Provincial Plaques on Waymarking.com". www.waymarking.com.
  19. ^ Hauen, Jack (5 July 2018). "Highlighting differences with Quebec, Ontario coroner announces investigations of three heat-related deaths". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  20. ^ Brief History of the Workington brig Despatch / Dispatch Archived 2012-02-04 at the Wayback Machine
  21. ^ "50 people now dead due to sweltering Quebec heat wave". Global News. Retrieved 2018-07-06.
  22. ^ "The Marine List". Lloyd's List (4987). 11 July 1815.
  23. ^ Markan, Zak (3 January 2017). "Neglect, corruption and the history behind Halifax's deadliest fire". CBC News. Retrieved 2 May 2024.
  24. ^ "CBC News Indepth: Forces of nature - Flooding".
  25. ^ Alamenciak, Tim (July 24, 2013). "Toronto sees spike in legionnaires' disease cases". Toronto Star. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
  26. ^ "People's Daily Online -- Legionnaires' disease claims another life in Toronto". english.people.com.cn.
  27. ^ "Canada's worst bus crash". Montreal Gazette. April 17, 2009. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
  28. ^ Pruden, Jana. "Survivors recall 'The Tragedy'". www.edmontonjournal.com. Archived from the original on 2010-12-28. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
  29. ^ 1946 Windsor–Tecumseh, Ontario tornado
  30. ^ Lindsay, AScT, Shari (2004), Coal Mine Underground Workings Atlas, Nanaimo, BC: Pacific Spatial Systems[permanent dead link]
  31. ^ Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident de Havilland DH-106 Comet 1A CF-CUN Karachi-Mauripur RAF Station". aviation-safety.net.
  32. ^ Windsor Fire and Rescue Services History Archived 2012-03-02 at the Wayback Machine
  33. ^ "The horror of the Rupert Hotel fire still lingers". Spacing.ca. December 24, 2014.

External links edit

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