Maritime
This section lists peacetime shipping disasters only. For wartime shipping disasters, see List of battles and other violent events by death toll.
- 1,565–4,400 – MV Doña Paz (Tablas Strait, Philippines, 1987). Estimates of casualties vary because of overloading and unmanifested passengers; the official death toll was 1,565, with only 21 survivors; apparently the deadliest peacetime shipping disaster ever.
- 2,750–3,920 – SS Kiangya (off Shanghai, 1948). Estimates of casualties vary due to large number of stowaways on board.
- 1,863 – MV Joola (Senegal, 2002)
- 1,547 – SS Sultana (Mississippi River, 1865)
- 1,517 – RMS Titanic (North Atlantic, 1912)
- 1,159 – Toya Maru (Tsugaru Strait, 1954)
- 1,021 – SS General Slocum (New York, 1904)
- 1,018 – MS al-Salam Boccaccio 98 (Red Sea, 2006)
- 1,012 – RMS Empress of Ireland, (Saint Lawrence River, 1914)
- c.1,000 – SS Hong Moh (South China Sea, 1921)
- 894 – MV Bukoba (Lake Victoria, Tanzania, 1996)
- 852 – MS Estonia (Baltic Sea, 1994)
- 844 – SS Eastland (Chicago, 1915)
- 832 – MV Princess of Stars capsized by Typhoon Fengshen off Sibuyan Island, Philippines, June 21, 2008.
- 737 – SS Camorta (Irrawaddy Delta, 1902)
- 702 – Slavetradeship Leusden (Marowijne Suriname, January 18, 1738)
- c.640 – SS Princess Alice and SS Bywell Castle (River Thames, 1878)
- 627 – SS Norge (Rockall, 1904)
- 625 – 1947 Ramdas Ship Disaster, SS Ramdas (Bombay, 1947)
- 608 – Novorossiysk (Sevastopol, 1955)
- 600 – Shamia (Meghna River, southern Barisa, Bangladesh, May 1986)
- 587 – Ertuğrul (off Kushimoto, Japan, 1890)
- 580 – Indonesian passenger ship Tampomas 2 (caught fire and sank in Java Sea, January 1981)
- 570 – HMS Minotaur (off Texel, Netherlands, December 22, 1810)
- 558 – SS Principe de Asturias (off Brazil, 1916)
- 550 – Cahaya Bahari (off Sulawesi, Indonesia, 2000)
- 546 – RMS Atlantic (Nova Scotia, 1873)
- 528 – MV Nazreen 1 (Chandpur, Bangladesh, July 2003)
- 500 – Atlas Star (Dhaleswar River, Munshiganj, Bangladesh, 1986)
- 497 – Ebisu Maru (off Tokushima, Japan, 1946)
- 496 – Saint-Philibert (off Île de Noirmoutier, France, 1931)
- 464 – Salem Express (off Safaga, Egypt, 1991)
- 461 – MV Senopati Nusantara (off Mandalika Island, Indonesia, 2006)
- 438 – Baccha Singh (Manihari Ghat, Bihar, River Ganges, 6 August 1988)
- 423 – Admiral Nakhimov (Black Sea, 1986)
- 400 – Reina Regenta (off Gibraltar, March 11, 1895) / PS Lady Elgin (Chicago, 1860) / Cataraqui (King Island, Australia, 1865)
- 397 – Toyo Maru 10 (near Kurushima, Japan, 1945)
- 392 – SS Himera (off Athens, Greece, January 19, 1947)
- 361 – KM Bismas Raya 2 (off Merauke, Irian Jaya, Indonesia, October 1999)
- 358 – Drummond Castle, (off Ouessant, France, June 16, 1896) / HMS Victoria (near Tripoli, Lebanon, 1893)
- 357 – 10th of Ramadan (Lake Nasser, Egypt, 1983)
- 353 – SIEV-X (off Indonesia, 2001)
- 350 – Annie James (off Vatersay, Outer Hebrides, United Kingdom, 1853)
- 340 – MV Shalahuddin 2 (Meghna River, Bangladesh, 2002)
- 338 – Gurita (off Sabang, Aceh, Indonesia, January 1996)
- 325 – Harta Limba (off Kalimantan, Indonesia, 1999)
- 314 – Principessa Mafalda (off Porto Seguro, Bahia, Brazil, October 25, 1927)
- 308 – Namyong-Ho (Korean Strait, 1970)
- 304 – Japanese passenger boat Sekirei Maru capsized with crush by windy conditions (off northwestern Awaji Island, Japan, December 9, 1945.)
- 300 – Steamer "Hsinwah" sinks off Waglan Island, Hongkong, China (January 15, 1929) / Brazilian river boat Sobral Santos capsized (Amazon River, Óbidos, Brazil, September 20, 1981) / Filipino motor vessel Dumagnete capsized off Zamboanga, Mindanao, Philippines, October 11, 1968.
- 297 – RMS Tayleur, (Lambay, Ireland, 1854)
- 292 – A Seohae, South Korean ferry, West Sea, overloaded with 362 people, capsized off Puan county October 10, 1993
- 289 – A boat of clandestine immigrants sank near Portopalo, Italy, 1996
- 288 – SS Heraklion (Souda, Crete, Greece, 1966)
- 280 – Chinese ferry Dashun caught fire and capsized in rough seas off Yellow Sea, Yantai, Shandong, China, November 24, 1999
- 280 – Nigerian passenger boat capsized at Ibaka, Akwa Ibom, Nigeria, April 1998 / Myanmarese passenger ferry U Hla Myist sank by colliding with Japanese vessel Bombei Maru at Yangon Bay, Myanmar, February 1973
- 279 – Filipino floating pagoda capsized in Bocaue river, northern Manila, Philippines, July 2, 1993
- 272 – Turkish ferry SS Üsküdar capsized and sank at Bay of İzmit, Kocaeli, Turkey, March 1, 1958 / Kenyan ferry MV Mtongwe sank at Mtongwe, Mombasa, Kenya, 1994
- 260 – USS Maine (Havana, Cuba, 1898) it is disputed whether this was accidental or an act of terrorism / Earl of Abergavenny (off Portland Bill, 1805) / Nuestra Señora de Atocha (Florida Keys, 1622)
- 259 – Portuguese passenger ship Save ran aground off Mozambique, July 8, 1961
- 254 – Vietnamese refugee boat capsized off Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia, November 22, 1978
- 250 – Powhattan (1854) sunk off New Jersey, April 16, 1854 / Great Lakes Storm of 1913 (Great Lakes Basin, 1913) / Russian liner "Ogoza" sank in the Black Sea, 1928 / Filipino ferry Dona Marylin capsized by Typhoon Ruby off Maripipi Island, Philippines, October, 1988 / Bangladeshi ferry MV Dinar gone down in strong whirlpool at Meghna River, Chandpul, Bangladesh, August 20, 1994 / Chinese steamer "Lee Cheong" sank in a storm off Swabue (December 21, 1929)
- 249 – Chang Tyong-Ho (Busan, South Korea, 1953)
- 240+ – MV Teratai Prima sinking (near Sulawesi, Indonesia, January 11, 2009)
- 230 – Brazilian double-decker boat Novo Amapá capsized (Amazon River, Pará, Brazil, 1981) / Bangladeshi ferry Rushi capsized by stormy condition at Padma River, Bangladesh, April 1980
- 226 – Ville du Havre (North Atlantic, 1873)
- 224 – Neva sunk off (King Island, Tasmania Australia) May 13, 1835
- 220 – Nigerian passenger boat capsized by stormy sea off Uyo, Akwa Ibom, Nigeria, January 24, 1996
- 215 – Myanmarese double-decker ferry sank during storm at Gyaing River, 1990
- 211 – SS Waratah, disappeared without trace off Durban, South Africa, July 1909
- 210 – Illegal African immigrants boat sank off Sfax, Tunisia, 2003
- 209 – Naval transport ship "Angamos" sank during a storm in the Bay of Arauco, Chile, July 7, 1928 / Seven Japanese fishing boats sank by Super typhoon Carmen (off Agrihan, 1965)
- 206 – Egyptian ferry boat Adel capsized at Upper Nile, Maghagha, Governorate, Egypt, May 1963
- 205 – HMS Iolaire (off Stornoway, 1919) / SS Hungarian Wrecked off Cape Sable, Shelburne County, Nova Scotia, Canada February 20, 1860
- 200 – Explosion on the Chinese passenger steamer "Pa Shi", 1931 / SS Victoria (London, Ontario, 1881) / Indonesian passenger ferry KMP Digul capsized in rough sea off Merakuke, Papua, Indonesia, July 2005. / Bangladeshi passenger ferry Haisal rammed by collide with cargo vessel at Dhaleswari river, Bangladesh, December 1988. / SS Xi'an passenger ferry fire in Hong Kong — 4 February 1947
- 193 – Herald of Free Enterprise (English Channel, 1987)
- 192 – Two illegal immigrants boats sank off Gulf of Aden, Yemen, 2007
- 189 – MV Maharaj (Buriganga River, Bangladesh, 2005) / HMS Orpheus, (Auckland, 1863)
- 185 – Batavia (off Australia, 1629) includes both drowned and murdered
- 182 – Congo ferry Dieu Merci capsized at Mai-Ndombe Lake, Bandunu, Democratic Republic of Congo, November 27, 2003.
- 180 – Somali refugee boat capsized off Gulf of Aden, Yemen, March 31, 1998
- 177 – Russian cruise ship Alexander Suvorov crashed into a railroad bridge at Volga River, Ulyanovsk, southwestern Russia, June 5, 1983.
- 171 – Chinese sightseeing boat sank at Songhua River, Harbin, Heilongjiang, China, August 1985
- 170 – Staffordshire (Cape Sable, 1853)
- 168 – Shiun Maru (Takamatsu, Japan, 1955)
- 167 – Japanese ferry Nankai Maru capsized off southern Awaji Island, Japan, January 26, 1958 / Dona Cassandra sank by typhoon Orchid (off Mindanao, 1983)
- 165 – Tamil refugees boat capsized off Nanchchikuddah, Sri Lanka, February 20, 1997
- 161 – Romanian passenger boat Mogosoaia sank by collide with Bulgarian barge Pita Karamonchev at Danube River, Galaţi, Romania, September 10, 1989
- 158 – Scandinavian Star (Skagerrak, 1990) / Sierra Leone boat Amunafa capsized off coast Bailor, Sierra Leone, August 3, 2007
- 150 – Peruvian ferry La Chachita capsized at Marañón River, central Peru, May 7, 1991. / Overloaded motorized canoe capsized off Tasso, Sierra Leone, March 25, 1999. / A pontoon ferry sink by overturned on Shire River, Malawi, May 23, 1965. / Colombian excursion ship Vencedor capsized off Buenaventura, Valle del Cauca, Colombia, September 1961.
- 148 – Méduse (off Senegal, 1816)
- 147 – Chinese passenger ferry Red Star 312 capsized at Shanshui, Guangdong, China on March 2, 1983
- 140 – SS Koombana (off Port Hedland, Western Australia, 1912) / Danish passenger ship Kjoebenhavn capsized after striking mine off coast of Jutland, Denmark, June 1948. / Italian ferry Moby Prince collide with oil tanker, dense fog off Livorno, Tuscany, Italy, 1991. / Two African immigrants boat sank off Seferihisar, Turkey, 2007. / Filipino ferry MV Cebu City capsized and collision with freighter Kota Suria off Manila Bay, Philippines, December 2, 1994.
- 136 - SS Valencia wrecked off the coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, in late January 1906. / Finnish steamer SS Kuru capsized in autumnal storms at Lake Näsijärvi, near city of Tampere, September 7, 1929
- 134 – SS Morro Castle (off Asbury Park, New Jersey, 1934) / Peruvian passenger boat Adresito capsized at Amazon River, Iquitos, Loreto Maynas, Peru, March 6, 1990. / RMS Quetta struck a rock in the Adophus Channel of Cape York, Queensland on 28 February 1890.
- 131 – Chinese passenger boat Rong Jian capsized at Hejiang River, Rongshan, Sichuan, China, June 2000. / Tararua (off Waipapa Point, New Zealand, 1881)
- 130 – SS Hankow fire (Hong Kong, 14 October 1906) / Princess Victoria (Scotland, 1953)/ Nigerian ferry Olodiama collided with a tugboat off Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria, September 1997 / Thai ferry boat Sathit collided with chemical tanker at Gulf of Thailand, Si Racha, Thailand, March 1992
- 129 – USS Thresher (N. Atlantic, 1963)
- 128 – Ferry SS Berlin struck the pier near Hook of Holland (the Netherlands), February 21, 1907. / HMS Gladiator (Isle of Wight, 1908) / Greek cruise ship Lakonia sunk after fire on board off Madeira, Portugal, December 28, 1962.
- 125 – SS Bokhara (Formosa, 1892)
- 124 – SS Yongala (Townsville, Australia, 1911) / Djibouti ferry Al Baraqua 2 capsized off Tadjoura, Djibouti, April 6, 2006
- 122+ – Russian river cruise ship Bulgaria capsized on the Kuybyshev Reservoir of the Volga River in Tatarstan, Russia, July 10, 2011
- 120 – Ghanan motorboat capsized at Lake Volta, Jasikan, Ghana, April 10, 2006.
- 118 – Kursk (Barents Sea, 2000)
- 117 – Kinka Maru (Onagawa, northeastern Miyagi, Japan, 1946)
- 113 – Japanese wooden passenger boat Kitagawa Maru 5 capsized at Onomichi, Japan, April 1957.
- 105 – Iranian motor vessel Viaqtar capsized off Abu Dhabi, UAE, on March 14, 1970.
- 104 - Yugoslav river boat Niš, capsized on the Danube River near Belgrade, Serbia, September 9, 1952.
- 102 – SS Gothenburg. (Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, 24 February 1875).
- 100 – Brazilian cruise boat Bateau Mouche capsized at Copacabana beach, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, January 1, 1989.
- 99 – USS Scorpion (near Azores, 1968)
- 92 – Japanese passenger boat Koun Maru sank by rough sea off Misumi, Amakusa, western Kyūshū, Japan, October 1, 1933.
- 89 – SS Admella wrecked off South Australia, Australia, August 6, 1859
- 85 – Illegal African immigrants boat sank Mareg, Puntland, Yemen, 2003
- 84 – Paisley Canal Disaster, canal pleasure boat capsized, Paisley 10 November 1810
- 82 – STV Royston Grange (off Montevideo, Uruguay, 1972)
- 81 – MS Express Samina (near Paros, Greece, 2000) / Turkish submarine TCG Dumlupınar collided with the Swedish freighter Naboland and sunk at Dardanelles Turkey, April 4, 1953
- 80 – Pamir (1957) / Hong Kong ferry Fatshan plunged by torrential typhoon Rose, August 17, 1971.
- 78 – Greek tanker Spyros exploded at Jurong shipyard, Singapore, October 12, 1978
- 78 – MV George Prince ferry sank after colliding with the Norwegian tanker SS Frosta on the Mississippi River, October 20, 1976
- 70 – Ming 361 (2003)
- 61 - Turkish fishing boat carrying illegal migrants sank after hitting rocks (2012)
- 58 – Bahrain wooden plesure boat al-Dana capsized off Gulf of Bahrain, 2006
- 57 – Danish passenger boat Turisten Killing 57 pass. after fire on board on Haderslev Dam, July 8, 1959
- 54 – MS Jan Heweliusz (Baltic Sea, 1993)
- 53 – Finnish torpedo boat S2, in autumnal storms at Outoori, near Pori, 1925 / TEV Wahine (Wellington, NZ, 1968)
- 51 – SS Andrea Doria (off Nantucket, Massachusetts 1956) / Marchioness disaster ( River Thames, London 1989). 131 people on board leisure craft for a birthday party when accidentally rammed and sunk by Thames dredger "Bowbelle".
- 48 – Brazilian river boat Comandante Sales capsized at Solimoes River, on the outskirts of Manacapura, Amazonas, Brazil, May 4, 2008.
- 46 – PCC-772 Cheonan Pohang class corvette (Baengnyeong-do island, South Korea, March 26, 2010)
- 45 – SS Elingamite (Three Kings Islands, NZ, 1902)
- 44 – British bulk carrier Derbyshire capsized by structural failure and Typhoon Orchid off Ryukyu Island, September 9, 1980
- 42 – Masbate, Philippines (including 11 children) crowded Don Dexter Cathlyn, inter-island ferry was hit by a squall and overturned; 76 of 119 passengers were rescued, but 10 were still missing, on November 4, 2008.
- 39 – Lamma IV, collision by Sea Smooth (Hong Kong, October 1, 2012)
- 36 – FV Gaul (Barents Sea, 1974) / Ellan Vannin (Liverpool, United Kingdom en route from the Isle of Man), December 1909
- 35 – HMS Pandora (Torres Strait, 1791)
- 32 – River Dee Ferry Boat Disaster (Aberdeen, United Kingdom, 1876) / Costa Concordia (cruise ship capsized off the coast of Isola del Giglio, Italy, 13 January 2012)
- 31 – SS Carnatic (Red Sea, 1869)
- 29 – SS Edmund Fitzgerald (Lake Superior, 1975)
- 28 – Soviet submarine K-19 (to fire, 24 February 1972)
- 23 - Pajtás passenger boat (Hungary, Lake Balaton, 30 May 1954, capsized by design flaws, when all passengers gathered on one side of the ship to watch a sailing competition to start)
- 22 – Shek Kong Vietnamese refugee detention centre fire (Hong Kong, 3 February 1992)
- 20 – Ethan Allen (Lake George (New York), 2 October 2005)
- 18 - Migrant boat sank off Lesbos, Greece (2012)
- 17 – 1979 Fastnet race (Fastnet Rock, 1979)
- 16 – MS Sleipner (Norway, 1999)
- 14 - Danish passenger ship SS Agda sank after striking mine near by the coast of Horsens, Denmark, January 15, 1944
- 13 – Essex (South Pacific, 1819)
- 6 – Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race (Bass Strait, 1998)
Read more about this topic: List Of Accidents And Disasters By Death Toll