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Tristate Tornado
The 1925 Tri-State Tornado rode a straight-line path for 3.5 hours across 219 miles of Missouri, southern Illinois and Indiana, making it the longest single tornado track anywhere in the world. By the time it had finished its run it had obliterated whole towns, sent thousands to the hospital, and killed more than twice the number of people lost in the next deadliest tornado in U.S history. -
Sumatra, Indonesia
This earthquake hit the sea bed of the Indian Ocean on December 26, 2004 with a magnitude of 9.1 to 9.3 or over 32-Gigatons, and caused the Boxing Day Tsunami. This was the second highest seismic activity recorded with the longest duration of tremors. It had a death toll of 100,100 to 225,000 with over $7 billion worth of rescue and damage costs during the first 8.3 to 10 mph. -
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Scale–it brought sustained winds of 100–140 miles per hour–and stretched some 400 miles across. The storm itself did a great deal of damage, but its aftermath was catastrophic. Hundreds of thousands of people in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama were displaced from their homes, and experts estimate that Katrina caused more than $10 billion in damage. -
Poinsettia Fire: Carlsbad
The Poinsettia fire, which reached 400 acres Thursday, has been the most destructive to residential areas so far. An 18-unit condo complex, eight homes and at least two businesses have been destroyed. The city estimates the damage costs from this fire alone at $22.5 million, according to NBC San Diego. Fire crews announced Friday morning that the fire is fully contained. -
Lituya Bay, Alaska
This mass of rock plunged from an altitude of approximately 3000 feet down into the waters of Gilbert Inlet .. The wave hit with such power that it swept completely over the spur of land that separates Gilbert Inlet from the main body of Lituya Bay. The wave then contiuned down the entire length of Lituya Bay, over La Chaussee Spit and into the Gulf of Alaska. The force of the wave removed all trees and vegetation from elevations as high as 1720 feet above sea level.
