Over 400 Fatalities
| Year | Type | Fatalities | Damage (US$) | Article | Location | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | Tropical cyclone | 6,000-12,000 | Galveston Hurricane of 1900 | Texas | Fatalities estimated - remains deadliest natural disaster in North American history. | |
| 1906 | Earthquake and Fire (urban conflagration) | 3,000-6,000 | 1906 San Francisco Earthquake | San Francisco, California | Conflagration followed quake; fatalities estimated | |
| 1928 | Tropical cyclone | 3,000+ | $800,000,000 (2005) |
1928 Okeechobee Hurricane | Florida
Puerto Rico |
4,078+ believed dead total. 2500+ in Florida, 500+ in Puerto Rico. |
| 2001 | Terrorism | 2,973 | $1,000,000,000 (2001) |
September 11 attacks | New York City, New York
Arlington, Virginia and Shanksville, Pennsylvania |
2,973 victims and 19 hijackers. |
| 1941 | Military strike | 2,459 | Attack on Pearl Harbor | Pearl Harbor, Hawaii | 2,459 U.S. victims and 64 Japanese. | |
| 1889 | Accident - Dam burst | 2,209 | Johnstown Flood | Pennsylvania | Much rain, deforestation; dam failed | |
| 1893 | Tropical cyclone | 2,000 | 1893 Cheniere Caminada Hurricane | Louisiana | Fatalities estimated | |
| 2005 | Tropical cyclone | 1,836 | $84,000,000,000 (2006) |
Hurricane Katrina | Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Ohio | Costliest natural disaster in U.S. history. |
| 1865 | Accident - Shipwreck | 1,700 | Sultana | Memphis, Tennessee | Steamboat sank due to boiler explosion; fatalities estimated | |
| 1980 | Heat wave | 1,700 | 1980 United States heat wave | Central and southern states | Official death toll, may have been higher | |
| 1912 | Accident - Shipwreck | 1,490-1,522 | RMS Titanic | Near Newfoundland
and Nova Scotia, Canada. |
En Route to New York City from Cork, Ireland. | |
| 1871 | Fire (rural) | 1,200-2,500 | Peshtigo Fire | Peshtigo, Wisconsin
Upper Peninsula of Michigan |
Fatalities estimated; most deaths in single fire in U.S. history | |
| 1904 | Accident - Shipwreck | 1,021 | PS General Slocum | East River near New York City | Steamship sank due to fire on board | |
| 1893 | Tropical cyclone | 1,000-2,000 | 1893 Sea Islands Hurricane | Georgia,
South Carolina |
Fatalities estimated | |
| 1945 | Direct action (military)
Shark attack Drowning Hypothermia Exposure |
879 | USS Indianapolis (CA-35) | Near Guam | ||
| 1915 | Accident - Shipwreck | 845 | S.S. Eastland | Chicago, Illinois | ||
| 1995 | Heat wave | 739 | Chicago Heat Wave of 1995 | Chicago, Illinois | ||
| 1925 | Tornado | 695-747 | $1,650,000,000 (2005) |
Tri-State Tornado | Missouri, Illinois and Indiana (Kentucky, Tennessee) | Lower number for single 3-state tornado; higher for 5-state outbreak |
| 1903 | Fire (building) | 602 | Iroquois Theatre Fire | Chicago, Illinois | ||
| 1919 | Tropical cyclone | 600 | 1919 Florida Keys Hurricane | Florida
Texas |
||
| 1928 | Accident - Dam failure | 600 | St. Francis Dam | Santa Clarita, California | ||
| 1938 | Tropical cyclone | 600 | Great New England Hurricane | |||
| 1947 | Accident - Explosion | 581 | Texas City Disaster | Texas City, Texas | Ammonium nitrate onboard ship | |
| 1871 | Fire | 500 (estimated) | Great Michigan Fire | Michigan | ||
| 1942 | Fire (building) | 492 | Cocoanut Grove fire | Boston, Massachusetts | Nightclub | |
| 1927 | Exploitation, Silicosis | 476-1,000+ | Hawks Nest Tunnel Disaster | Gauley Bridge, West Virginia | 178 admitted deaths, 476 with congressional inquiry, 1,000+ by epidemiologists. | |
| 1918 | Fire (rural) | 453 | $7,300,000 | 1918 Cloquet Fire | Minnesota | |
| 1936 | Tornado outbreak | 436+ | 1936 Tupelo–Gainesville tornado outbreak | Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee | Two tornadoes in Tupelo, Mississippi and Gainesville, Georgia killed 233 and 203 people respectively | |
| 1913 | Flood | 428 | 1913 (Ohio) Statewide Flood | Ohio | ||
| 1935 | Tropical cyclone | 423 | Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 | Florida |
Read more about this topic: List Of United States Disasters By Death Toll