Top 10 Worst Natural Calamities That Have Taken Place

Most natural calamities occur on a large-scale which is why they are terrifying. The following are the worst of the worst that have taken place over the years.

1. Typhoon Tip

This natural calamity took place in October, 1979 and took over 99 lives. On this day, the air pressure at sea level was as low as 870 mbars. It destroyed 8 ships and broke a massive freighter in half. This was the largest cyclone ever recorded.

2. The Limnic Eruption in Lake Nyos

Lake Nyos is about 682 feet deep and has a magma chamber which releases vast amounts of carbon dioxide into the water which soon turns into carbonic acid. The lake erupted in 1986 and a gigantic carbon dioxide cloud was released into the air. It entered several clusters of villages and killed bout 1,800 people.

3. Earthquake in Chile

This earthquake took place in 1960 in Chile and over 6,000 people lost their lives. Many others were saved because the authorities prepared them for the natural calamity. Unfortunately, about half of the houses in the country were thrown into the air.

4. The Heat Wave in Europe

Because Europe is not used to hot summers, heat wave in 2003 killed about 14,802 people. The harsh temperature triggered off a number of forest fires in Portugal because of which 2,000 people were killed. Germany saw over 250 deaths, 140 people died in Spain and over 1,400 in the Netherlands.

5. Massive Storm

This cyclone lasted for an entire day and it was massive enough to throw the weather off balance. Birmingham and West Virginia were covered with 16 inches and 3.5 feet of snow respectively. Over 250 people froze to death and trees fell all over the place because of extremely strong winds.

6. The Flood in China

This flood took placed in central China which is surrounded by three rivers, all of which flooded massively. This happened because the snowfall was particularly heavy that year and the water melted and became a part of the river. The spring saw heavy rains and 10 cyclones hit the battered region as well.

7. The Explosion in Tunguska

In 1908, a comet fell into the Tunguska River and exploded. It destroyed over 80 million trees and the explosion stretched across 772 miles. Even though nobody died, people were injured and houses were destroyed.

8. The Tornado in Bridge Creek F5

This tornado went on for 3 days and took 36 lives, about 8,000 houses were destroyed and vehicles fell apart. Thankfully, residents were told to hide under mattresses or in ditches which is why many lives were saved.

9. The Tambora Eruption

Mt. Tambora erupted in 1815 and rated pretty high on the Volcanic Explosivity Index. All the plants and trees were removed from the soil and washed away and about 92,000 lives were lost.

10. The Lituya Bay Megatsunami

This natural calamity caused waves to reach a height of 1,720 feet and according to studies, enough power was generated to completely destroy the strongest skyscrapers in the world. It removed all the grass and the soil and washed it into the ocean.