List of disasters in Canada by death toll
List of Canadian disasters by death toll is a list of major disasters (excluding acts of war) which occurred in Canada or involved Canadian citizens, in a definable incident, where the loss of life was 10 or more.
200 or more deaths[]
| Disaster | Type | Location | Deaths | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spanish flu | Pandemic | Canada | 55,000 + | 1918 to 1919 | |
| COVID-19 | Pandemic | Canada | 26,700 | 2020 - Present | Ongoing |
| HIV/AIDS | Pandemic | Canada | 26,000 + | 1981 - Present | Ongoing |
| Canadian Typhus | Epidemic | Canada | 20,000 + | 1847 to 1848 | |
| Asian Flu | Pandemic | Canada | 7,000 | 1957 to 1958 | |
| Russian Flu | Pandemic | Canada | 6,000 | 1890 to 1891 | |
| Newfoundland Hurricane of 1775 | Hurricane | Newfoundland | 4,000 | 1775[1] | |
| Hong Kong Flu | Pandemic | Canada | 4,000 | 1968 | |
| 1700 Cascadia earthquake | Earthquake | British Columbia | likely several thousand | January 26, 1700 | True figures unknown. Many coastal First Nations villages (for example Kiix?in) were completely wiped out.[2][3][4] |
| Tseax Cone eruption | Volcano | British Columbia | 2,000 | ~1700[5] | |
| Halifax Explosion | Explosion | Nova Scotia | 2,000 | 1917 | estimate; 1,950 recorded names |
| RMS Empress of Ireland | Shipwreck | Quebec | 1,012 | 1914 | St. Lawrence River |
| 2021 Western North America heat wave | Heat wave | British Columbia and Alberta | 676 | 2021 | 610 excess deaths in BC and 66 excess deaths in Alberta during the week[6][7][8] |
| Polio | Epidemic | Canada | 500 + | 1953 | |
| RMS Atlantic | Shipwreck | Nova Scotia | 562 | 1873 | Marrs Head, Mosher Island, Meagher's Island |
| Swine flu | Pandemic | Canada | 428 | 2009 to 2010 | out of 3 million Canadians infected |
| Duke William | Shipwreck | Near English coast | 360 | December 13, 1758 | [9] during the Expulsion of the Acadians |
| SS Princess Sophia | Shipwreck | Near Juneau, Alaska | 353 | 1918 | |
| Aeneas | Shipwreck | Newfoundland | 340 | 1805 | Isle aux Morts |
| Violet | Shipwreck | England | 300 | December 13, 1758[10] | During the Expulsion of the Acadians, near English coast, bound for France |
| Shipwreck | Nova Scotia | 316 | September 11, 1834 | Emigrant ship wrecked St. Paul Island, Nova Scotia | |
| Hurricane | Newfoundland | 300 | October 10, 1885 [11][12] | ||
| SS Pacific | Shipwreck | British Columbia | 298 | 1875 | Cape Flattery out of Victoria, BC |
| Air India Flight 182 | Terrorism | Atlantic Ocean | 268 Canadians (out of 329 total fatalities) | 1985 | Flight out of Montréal Mirabel International Airport, bomb exploded off the coast of Ireland. |
| Arrow Air Flight 1285 | Aircrash | Newfoundland | 256 | 1985 | Gander, NL. Worst air crash on Canadian soil. |
| Shipwreck | Quebec | 253 | 1857 | Burned near Québec on 26 June 1857.[13] | |
| Great Lakes Storm of 1913 | Storm | Ontario | 250 | 1913 | Great Lakes Basin, estimate for Canada and U.S. fatalities |
| HMS Tribune | Shipwreck | Nova Scotia | 238 | 1797 | Wrecked at Halifax |
| SS Anglo Saxon | Shipwreck | Newfoundland | 237 | 1863[14] | Allan Line shipwreck; Cape Race, Avalon Peninsula, |
| Swissair Flight 111 | Aircrash | Nova Scotia | 229 | 1998 | St. Margarets Bay, Nova Scotia |
| Nova Scotia Hurricane of 1873 | Hurricane | Nova Scotia | 223 (disputed) | 1873 | 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 |
| Matheson Fire | Fire | Ontario | 223 | 1916 | [Official estimate][15] |
| SS Hungarian | Shipwreck | Nova Scotia | 205 | 1860[16] | Allan Line passenger ship wrecked Cape Sable, Nova Scotia |
| USS Pollux (AKS-2) and USS Truxtun (DD-229) | Shipwreck | Newfoundland | 203 | 1942 | 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, Placentia Bay, Newfoundland. |
100 to 199 deaths[]
- 190+ – Ruby shipwreck near the Azores, December 16, 1758 (Acadian deportees)[17]
- 189 – Hillcrest mine disaster, Hillcrest, Alberta, June 19, 1914
- 182+ – Victoria steamboat disaster, May 24, 1881, London, Ontario,[18]
- 174 – SS Southern Cross shipwreck, Newfoundland, March 31, 1914
- 173 – SS Florizel shipwreck, Cappahayden, Newfoundland and Labrador, February 23, 1918
- 173-192 – 1927 Nova Scotia hurricane, August 23–25, 1927 (approximate figure, most deaths occurred at sea)
- 160 – Miramichi Fire, New Brunswick, October 1825
- 150 – 1887 Nanaimo mine explosion, Nanaimo, British Columbia, May 3, 1887
- 136 – SS Valencia shipwreck, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, January 22, 1906
- 129 – John Franklin expedition – HMS Erebus (1826) and HMS Terror (1813) lost in Northwest Passage, 1845–1848
- 128 – Coal Creek mine disaster, Coal Creek, British Columbia, May 22, 1902
- 125 – First Springhill mining disaster, Springhill, Nova Scotia, February 21, 1891
- 118 – SS Noronic fire, Toronto, Ontario September 17, 1949
- 118 – Trans-Canada Air Lines Flight 831 aircrash, Sainte-Thérèse, Quebec, November 29, 1963
- 115 – HMS Acorn, shipwreck, Halifax, Nova Scotia, April 14, 1828
- 109 – Air Canada Flight 621, Brampton, Ontario, July 5, 1970
- 102 – HMS Feversham shipwreck, Scatarie Island, , Nova Scotia, October 7, 1711
10 to 99 deaths[]
Note: The list below does not include aeronautical disasters in Saskatchewan or deaths to First Nations Peoples, Settlers & Military personnel during the Rebellions of 1885 on The Prairies.
- 99 – St-Hilaire train disaster, Richelieu River, Beloeil, Quebec, June 29, 1864 [deadliest train disaster in Canada]
- 99 – Knights of Columbus Hostel fire, St John's, Newfoundland, December 12, 1942
- 84 – Ocean Ranger oil platform sinking, Grand Banks, February 15, 1982
- 81 – Hurricane Hazel, Toronto, October 1954 [only Canada fatalities are included in this figure]
- 78 – SS Newfoundland seal hunt disaster, Newfoundland, March 1914
- 77 – Laurier Palace Theatre Fire, Montreal, January 9, 1927
- 76 – Quebec Bridge first collapse, August 29, 1907
- 74 – Third Springhill mining disaster, Springhill, Nova Scotia, October 23, 1958
- 74 – The 2018 North American heat wave resulted in 74 deaths in Quebec[19]
- 73-200 – Great Porcupine Fire, Porcupine, Ontario, July 10, 1911
- 70 – Desjardins Canal disaster, railway bridge collapse, March 12, 1857
- 70 – Frank Slide, Turtle Mountain (Alberta), April 29, 1903
- 64 – Canadian Pacific Airlines Flight 402 (CP402) McDonnell Douglas DC-8-43 crashed on landing, Tokyo, Japan March 4, 1966
- 63 – Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, January 8, 2020 [Canadian Victims Only may exclude some holders of Iranian passports ]
- 62 – Rogers Pass avalanche, Rogers Pass, British Columbia, March 4, 1910
- 62 – Trans-Canada Air Lines Flight 810, Chilliwack, British Columbia, December 9, 1956
- 59 – Despatch shipwreck, Isle aux Morts, Newfoundland, July 12, 1828[20]
- 55 – Point Ellice Bridge Disaster, Victoria, British Columbia, May 26, 1896
- 55-58 – 1926 Nova Scotia hurricane, August 8, 1926 (approximate figure, most deaths occurred at sea)
- 54 – 2018 Eastern Canada heat wave[21]
- 52 – Great Western Railway passenger train collides with the tail end of gravel train at Baptiste Creek, Canada West. October 27, 1854
- 52-232 – 1900 Galveston hurricane, September 12–14, 1900 (approximate figure, most deaths occurred at sea)
- 52 – Canadian Pacific Airlines Flight 21 Douglas DC-6B crashed near Dog Creek, British Columbia when a bomb blew its tail section away, July 8, 1965
- 48 – Opémiska Community Hall fire, Chapais, Quebec, December 31, 1979
- 47 – Lac-Mégantic rail disaster, Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, July 6, 2013
- 44 – Spanish River derailment, Northern Ontario, January 21, 1910
- 44 – US Military DC-4 crash, 42 US military personnel and 2 civilians, presumably somewhere in Yukon or British Columbia, January 26, 1950
- 44 – 1997 Les Éboulements bus accident, Quebec, October 13, 1997
- 43 – Great Fire of 1922, Timiskaming District, Ontario, October 4–5, 1922
- 43 – SARS outbreak, Toronto, Ontario, February - September 2003 (out of 251 total cases)
- 42 – Pacific Western Airlines Flight 314, Cranbrook/Canadian Rockies International Airport, February 11, 1978
- 40+ – HMS Penelope, April 30, 1815, near Cap des Rosiers (many survivors later froze to death)[22]
- 40 – Québec rockslide, Cap Diamant, September 19, 1889
- 40 – SS Islander (Canadian Pacific Steam Navigation Company), sunk by iceberg, Lynn Canal south of Juneau, Alaska, August 15, 1901
- 40 – Titanic, sank April 15, 1912 -- Canadian deaths only of 1,517 total.[23]
- 40 – Eastman bus accident, Eastman, Quebec, August 4, 1978
- 39 – Hollinger Mining Disaster, Timmins, Ontario, February 10, 1928
- 39 – Almonte train wreck, December 27, 1942
- 39 – Second Springhill mining disaster, Springhill, Nova Scotia, November 1, 1956
- 37 – Great Labrador Gale of 1867, October 9, 1867
- 37+ – 1869 Saxby Gale, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, October 4–5, 1869 (most deaths occurred at sea)
- 37 – Canadian Pacific Airlines Douglas C-54 A-10-DC disappeared en route without trace out of Vancouver, British Columbia for Anchorage, Alaska, July 21, 1951
- 37 – Blue Bird Café fire, Montreal, September 1, 1972
- 35 – 1959 Escuminac Hurricane, Gulf of St. Lawrence, June 19, 1959
- 32 – L'Isle-Verte nursing home fire, L'Isle-Verte, Quebec, January 23, 2014
- 31 – Halifax Poor House Fire, November 7, 1882
- 31 – Dugald train disaster, Dugald, Manitoba, September 1, 1947
- 31 – Saint-Jean-Vianney, Quebec mudslide, May 4, 1971[24]
- 30 – John B. King Explosion, near Brockville, Ontario, June 26, 1930, lightning struck a drill boat containing dynamite
- 30 – Quebec blizzard, March 3–5, 1971 (conservative estimate, all in Quebec)
- 29 – 1929 Grand Banks earthquake and tsunami, Burin Peninsula, November 18, 1929
- 29 – SS Edmund Fitzgerald, Lake Superior November 10, 1975, went down with all hands
- 28 – Regina Cyclone, Regina, Saskatchewan, June 30, 1912
- 28 – LaSalle Heights Disaster, LaSalle, Quebec, March 1, 1965
- 28 – North American ice storm of 1998, January 1998 [Canada fatalities only]
- 27 – SS Viking, explosion, Horse Islands (Newfoundland and Labrador), March 15, 1931
- 27 – Ironworkers Memorial Second Narrows Crossing bridge collapse, Vancouver, June 17, 1958
- 27 – Canadian Pacific Air Lines Flight 301 Bristol Britannia crashed in Honolulu, Hawaii, July 22, 1962
- 27 – Edmonton Tornado, Edmonton, Alberta, July 31, 1987
- 26+ – HMS Speedy shipwreck in snowstorm, Lake Ontario, October 8, 1804
- 26 – Granduc Mine avalanche, Stewart, British Columbia, February 18, 1965 (some references say 28 were killed)
- 26 – Westray Mine methane explosion, Plymouth, Nova Scotia, May 9, 1992
- 24 – Air Ontario Flight 1363, near Dryden, Ontario, March 10, 1989
- 24 – 9/11, September 11, 2001 [Canada fatalities only]
- 23 – DC-3 bomb sabotage, Saint-Joachim, Quebec, September 9, 1949 See Albert Guay
- 23 – Air Canada Flight 797, aircraft fire, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, June 2, 1983
- 23 – Hinton train collision, Hinton, Alberta, February 8, 1986
- 23 – Legionnaire's disease outbreak, Toronto, 2005[25][26]
- 23 – 2020 Nova Scotia attacks, Portapique NS, April 18–19 2020
- 22 – Bus crash Swift Current, Saskatchewan, May 28, 1980[27]
- 22 – 2008 Canada listeriosis outbreak, 2008 (out of 57 total cases)
- 21 – Canoe River train crash, Valemount, British Columbia, November 21, 1950
- 21 – MV Flare bulk carrier shipwreck, Cabot Strait, January 16, 1998
- 20 – Beauval Indian Residential School fire, Beauval, Saskatchewan, September 20, 1927
- 19 – Dorion level crossing accident, Dorion, Quebec, October 7, 1966
- 18 – Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, March 10, 2019 [Canadian victims only]
- 17 – Windsor and Tecumseh, Ontario, tornado, Windsor, Ontario June 17, 1946[28]
- 17 – Cougar Helicopters Flight 91, off Newfoundland, March 12, 2009
- 16 – Protection Island mining disaster, elevator cable break[29]
- 16 – Humboldt Broncos bus crash, April 6, 2018
- 15 – Ottawa & New York Railway Bridge (south channel crossing) bridge collapse, Cornwall, Ontario, September 6, 1898
- 15 – Orléans air disaster, Orléans, Ontario, May 15, 1956
- 15 – Douglas DC-6B aircrash, near Cold Bay, Alaska, August 29, 1956
- 15 – 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami [Canadian victims only]
- 15 – Les Éboulements bus accident, Quebec, June 1, 1974
- 14 – "Barrie" tornado outbreak, May 31, 1985
- 14 – École Polytechnique massacre, shooting rampage, December 6, 1989
- 13 – Sand Point, Ontario, head-on train collision, February 9, 1904
- 13 – Quebec Bridge second collapse, September 11, 1913
- 13 – MS Arctic Explorer shipwreck, off , July 3, 1981
- 12 - Boating tragedy Lake of Two Mountains, Ile Bizard Quebec. 12 NCC (Negro Community Centre) children drown. July 13 1954.
- 12 – M.F.V. Enterprise and MV Patrick Morris sinking (the latter was responding to a mayday call from the former), northeast of Cape Breton Island, April 20, 1970
- 12 – Cormier-Village Hayride Accident, Cormier-Village, New Brunswick, Oct 1989
- 12 – Pine Lake tornado in Alberta, July 14, 2000
- 12 – First Air Flight 6560 a Boeing 737 crashes near Resolute Bay, Nunavut, August 20, 2011
- 11 – Canadian Pacific Airlines De Havilland DH-106 Comet 1A CF-CUN "Empress of Hawaii", crashed on takeoff from Karachi, Pakistan, March 3, 1953 (first passenger jetliner involved in a fatal accident)[30]
- 11 – Collision between a van and an eighteen-wheeler, between Stratford and Perth, Ontario, February 6, 2012. (Ten of the killed were Peruvian migrant workers)[31]
- 10 – , Windsor, Ontario, October 25, 1960[32]
- 10 – Rupert Hotel Fire, Toronto, December 23, 1989 [33]
- 10 – Toronto van attack, Toronto, April 23, 2018
See also[]
- List of Canada-related topics
- List of disasters in Antarctica by death toll
- List of disasters in Australia by death toll
- List of disasters in Canada (by date)
- List of disasters in Croatia by death toll
- List of disasters in Great Britain and Ireland by death toll
- List of disasters in New Zealand by death toll
- List of disasters in Poland by death toll
- List of disasters in the United States by death toll
- List of wars and disasters by death toll (worldwide)
- Volcanism in Canada
References[]
- ^ "The Deadliest Atlantic Tropical Cyclones, 1492-1996". www.nhc.noaa.gov.
- ^ 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
- ^ "Prepare for next tsunami, says chief". Raven's Eye, Vol. 8, No. 9, 2009.
- ^ "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.
- ^ 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: 149. doi:10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2008.10.016. ISSN 0377-0273.
- ^ "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.
- ^ Potestio, Michael (2021-07-21). "Estimate on number of suspected heat-related deaths rises to 808". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2021-07-22.
- ^ Johnson, Lisa (2021-07-06). "Alberta saw spike in reported deaths during heatwave, causes still under investigation". Edmonton Journal. Retrieved 2021-07-07.
- ^ Letter from Captain William Nichols dated December 16, 1758 says 360 passengers aboard the Duke William: London Magazine XXVII, p. 655.
- ^ Letter from Captain William Nichols dated December 16, 1758 says 300 passengers aboard the Violet: London Magazine XXVII, p. 655.
- ^ "THE GALE OFF LABRADOR; FURTHER DETAILS OF ITS DESTRUCTIVE WORK.SUFFERINGS OF THE SHIPWRECKED CREWS--OVER 75 LIVES LOST AND 80 VESSELSWRECKED--HEROIC DEEDS".
- ^ Coastal Flooding: Newfoundland and Labrador Heritage Archived 2007-06-29 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Marine Disasters
- ^ Anglo Saxon wreck 1863 Archived 2008-05-17 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Heritage Foundation of Canada Archived 2012-07-17 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ On the Rocks: Shipwrecks of Nova Scotia - Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, Halifax, Nova Scotia Archived 2007-07-13 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Lockerby, Earle (Spring 1998). "The Deportation of the Acadians from Ile St.-Jean, 1758". Acadiensis. XXVII (2): 45–94.
- ^ ""THE "VICTORIA" BOAT DISASTER 1881" - London - Ontario Provincial Plaques on Waymarking.com". www.waymarking.com.
- ^ 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.
- ^ Brief History of the Workington brig Despatch / Dispatch Archived 2012-02-04 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "50 people now dead due to sweltering Quebec heat wave". Global News. Retrieved 2018-07-06.
- ^ "The Marine List". Lloyd's List (4987). 11 July 1815.
- ^ "The Demographics of Titanic Passengers".
- ^ "CBC News Indepth: Forces of nature - Flooding".
- ^ Alamenciak, Tim (July 24, 2013). "Toronto sees spike in legionnaires' disease cases". Toronto Star. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
- ^ english@peopledaily.com.cn. "People's Daily Online -- Legionnaires' disease claims another life in Toronto". english.people.com.cn.
- ^ "Canada's worst bus crash". Montreal Gazette. April 17, 2009. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
- ^ 1946 Windsor–Tecumseh, Ontario tornado
- ^ Lindsay, AScT, Shari (2004), Coal Mine Underground Workings Atlas, Box 233, Nanaimo, BC V9R 5K9: Pacific Spatial SystemsCS1 maint: location (link)[permanent dead link]
- ^ Ranter, Harro. "ASN Aircraft accident de Havilland DH-106 Comet 1A CF-CUN Karachi-Mauripur RAF Station". aviation-safety.net.
- ^ "Ontario crash kills 11, including migrant workers". CBC News. 2012-02-07.
- ^ Windsor Fire and Rescue Services History Archived 2012-03-02 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Rupert Hotel Fire Historical Plaque". torontohistory.org.
External links[]
- Canadian Disasters: an historical survey by Robert L. Jones
- SOS! Canadian Disasters, a virtual museum exhibition at Library and Archives Canada
- Maritime Museum of the Atlantic: Marine Heritage Database
Categories:
- Lists by death toll
- Canada history-related lists
- Shipwrecks of Canada
- Transport disasters in Canada
- Natural disasters in Canada
- Maritime incidents in Canada
- Deaths in Canada
- Lists of disasters in Canada