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Country |
Description |
Lives lost |
| 1987 |
Philippines |
Doña Paz – On 20 December 1987, the ferry bound for Manila with more than its capacity of unlisted passengers collided with the oil tanker MT Vector in the Tablas Strait, near Marinduque. The resulting fire and sinking left an estimated 4,386 dead which included all but 24 of Doña Paz’s passengers, and all but two of Vector’s 13-man crew.[1][2] |
4,386 |
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China |
Kiangya – The passenger steamship blew up and sank in the mouth of the Huangpu River 50 mi (80 km) south ofShanghai on 4 December 1948. The suspected cause of the explosion was Kiangya hitting a mine left behind by theImperial Japanese Navy in World War II. The exact death toll is unknown, however, it is thought that between 2,750 and 3,920 died with 700–1,000 survivors being picked up by other vessels. |
2,750–3,920 |
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Canada |
Mont-Blanc and the Halifax Explosion – On 6 December 1917, Halifax, Nova Scotia Canada, was devastated by the huge explosion of the fully laden French munitions ship Mont-Blanc. She collided with the Norwegian ship Imo in The Narrows part of Halifax Harbour. The Mont-Blanc ’s 40-man crew all escaped but minutes later she exploded. About 2,000 people on the shore and in Halifax were killed by the explosion, falling debris, fires or collapsing buildings, and over 9,000 were injured, particularly by flying glass.[3] It is still the largest accidental explosion of conventional weaponsto date.[4] |
2,000 {estimated} 1,950 known dead |
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Senegal |
Le Joola – On 26 September 2002, the overloaded ferry capsized in rough seas with an estimated death toll of 1,864.[5] |
1,864 |
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United States |
Sultana – On 26 April 1865 this Mississippi riverboat, steaming north with an excessive number of passengers on board, suffered a series of boiler explosions. An estimated 1,800 of her 2,427 passengers died in the ensuing fire or of drowning in the freezing river. |
1,800+ |
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China |
Tek Sing – The Chinese ship, called a junk, was bound for Batavia, Dutch East Indies. On 6 February 1822 she tried a shortcut through the Gaspar Strait between Belitung and Bangka Islands and grounded on a reef. The junk sank in about 30 metres (100 ft) of water, killing about 1,600 people.[6] |
1,600 |
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United Kingdom |
RMS Titanic – A passenger ocean liner and, at the time, the world’s largest ship. On 14 April 1912, on her maiden voyage, she struck an iceberg, buckling part of her hull and causing her to sink in the early hours of 15 April. 706 of her 2,223 passengers and crew survived.[7] Her loss was the catalyst for major reforms in shipping safety and is arguably the most famous maritime disaster, being the subject of countless media portrayals.[8] ‘ |
1,517 |
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England |
The Channel Storm – In November 1703 a great storm swept the English Channel, causing the loss of thirteen men-of-war and the deaths of an estimated 1500 seamen. |
1,500+ |
| 1991 |
Saudi Arabia |
Salem Express – On 17 December 1991, while on a voyage from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to Safaga, Egypt, with more than 1600 passengers, the ship struck a reef about 0130 hrs and sank within 10 minutes. Official toll is 470 lives lost, but local lore[citation needed] says many more and that the ship was overcrowded with unlisted passengers returning from pilgrimage to Mecca. The ship is a popular scuba dive site. Details |
1,400 |
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Great Britain |
The Scilly naval disaster of 1707 – On 22 October 1707, a Royal Navy fleet en route from Gibraltar to Portsmouth sailed through dangerous reefs west of the Isles of Scilly. Four ships (HMS Association, HMS Eagle, HMS Romney andHMS Firebrand) sank. The exact number of crew lost is unknown. Statements vary between 1,400[9] and over 2,000.[10]It was later determined that the main cause was the navigators’ inability to calculate their longitude accurately. |
1,400-2,000 |
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Japan |
Toya Maru – A Japanese passenger ferry that sank in Typhoon Marie in the Tsugaru Strait between the Japanese islands of Hokkaido and Honshu on 26 September 1954. It is said[by whom?] that 1,153 people aboard were lost but the exact number of fatalities remains unknown because some victims managed to board without tickets and others cancelled their passage just before sailing. |
1,153 |
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Great Britain |
HMS Victory – The 100-gun first-rate sank in a storm in the English Channel while returning to England on the night of 4 October 1744. With her were lost Admiral Sir John Balchen and her entire complement of around 1,150 men. |
1,150 |
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Egypt |
Al Salam Boccaccio 98 – On 3 February 2006, the Roll-on/roll-off passenger ferry Al Salam Boccaccio 98 sank in theRed Sea en route from Duba, Saudi Arabia, to Safaga in southern Egypt. The ship was carrying 1,312 passengers and 96 crew. 388 people survived.[11] |
1,020 |
| 1914 |
Canada |
RMS Empress of Ireland – On 29 May 1914 the passenger liner sank after colliding with the cargo ship Storstad on theSaint Lawrence River, killing 1,012 people. About 465 survived.[12] |
1,012 |
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United States |
General Slocum – The paddle steamer caught fire and sank in New York’s East River on 15 June 1904. More than 1,000 people were lost, making it New York City’s highest loss of life until the September 11 attacks.[13] |
1,000 |
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Japan |
Kiche Maru – Sank in a typhoon in the Pacific on 22 September 1912. It is estimated that more than 1,000 persons died.[14] |
1,000 |
| 1921 |
Singapore |
Hong Moh – On 3 March 1921, the ship struck the White Rocks on Lamock Island near Swatow (Shantou) on the southern coast of China. She broke in two and sank killing about 1,000 of the 1,100 people aboard. |
1,000 |
| 1996 |
Tanzania |
Bukoba – The overloaded ferry sank on 21 May 1996 on Lake Victoria. While the ship’s manifest showed 443 aboard, it is estimated that about 800 people died in the sinking. |
1,000 |
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