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Eruption of Mt. Tambora
Date: April 5 - 17, 1815
Location: Sumbawa Island, Indonesia
Casualties: est. 71,000 dead
Environmental Impact: Those who survived the eruption and the following tsunami fell victim to the toxins and ash that the eruption released into the atmosphere. Any crops or vegetation that weren't incinerated were smothered by the ash and rubble. The gasses that were released caused the precipitation in the region to be highly acidic, killing any surviving crops. -
Mt. Tambora, Cont.
Economic Impact: The lack of food caused a food shortage that became critical during the winter, when food amounts were already at a low.
Classification: 7 (super colossal) -
Yangtze River Flood
Date: August 18, 1931
Location: Southern China
Casualties: 3.7 million dead, 500,000 driven from their homes
Environmental Impact: The sprawling rice fields in the area were flooded. The river is polluted.
Economic Impact: Major cities depended on the rice that was lost. Without it, several thousand people starved. Also, as a result of the polluted water, many are infected with typhoid and disentery.
Classification: River Flood -
Bingham Canyon Landslide
Date: 10 April 2013
Location: Bingham Canyon Mine, Utah
Casualties: None. All miners evacuated the day before.
Environmental Impact: The landslide triggered 16 small earthquakes in the area.
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Bingham Mine Landslide
Economic Impact: This landslide is one of the most expensive disasters in American history, exceeding the cost of the Thistle Landslide in 1983, which caused $200 million in direct damage. Along with no casualties, scientists were able to "disect" the rich soil and sediment that had been revealed by the landslide.
Classification: Both small avalanches that caused the landslide were classified as having magnitudes of 5.1 and 4.9, respectively.
