#e <t>explosion<d>1917 Dec 6<n>Halifax explosion<c>Halifax<info>The accidental explosion of ships loaded with ammunition in the Halifax harbour was the largest man-made explosion prior to Hiroshima. More than 2,000 people died and 9,000 were injured.
#e <t>plague<d>1918 Aug<e>1919<n>Spanish Flu<info>This epidemic killed 20 million people.
#e <t>weather<t>disaster<d>1925 Mar 18<n>695 die in tornados<c>Midwest<info>695 die in tornados in Missouri, Illinois and Indiana
#e <t>crash<d>1977 Mar 27<n>Tenerife crash<c>Canary Islands<info>This was the worst airline disaster in history. 583 people were killed.
#e <t>disaster<d>1984<n>Bhopal poisoning<c>Bhopal<info>2,000 people were killed and 20,000 injured when 40 tons of methyl isocyanate accidentally leaked from a Union Carbide factory in Bhopal.
#e <t>explosion<d>1986 Apr 26<n>Chernobyl accident<c>Ukraine<info>The Chernobyl nuclear power plant was the site of the world's worst nuclear-reactor disaster when the plant's No. 4 reactor exploded. The accident occurred while an experiment was being conducted with the graphite-moderated reactor running but its emergency water-cooling system turned off. A series of miscalculations permitted neutron buildup in one area of the core, where the nuclear reaction suddenly went out of control. The power surge shattered the fuel. This and a second, steam-induced explosion blew the lid off the reactor, whose containment structure was not designed for such pressures. A third, chemical explosion followed, and scattered fragments caused further local fires. The disaster killed 31 persons and hospitalised about 500 others. People living within 30 km of the site were evacuated. The force of the explosion and fire carried much of the radioactivity away from the site to relatively high altitudes. The heaviest fallout descended on the western Soviet Union and portions of Europe.<ref>Grolier
#e <t>disaster<d>1989<n>Exxon Valdez runs aground<c>Alaska<info>The tanker Exxon Valdez runs aground in Prince William Sound, spilling 11 million gallons of crude oil. It is the worst oil spill in U.S. history.
#e <t>crash<d>1996 Jul<n>TWA crash<c>New York<info>230 died when TWA's 747 crashed into the Atlantic off New York.
#e <t>crash<d>1998 Sep 2<n>Swissair 111<c>Halifax<info>Swissair flight 111 crashed off Peggy's Cove, near Halifax, killing all aboard the MD-11 aircraft.
