List of disasters in New Zealand by death toll
This is a list of New Zealand disasters by death toll, listing major disasters (excluding acts of war) which occurred in New Zealand and its territories or involved a significant number of New Zealand citizens, in a specific incident, where the loss of life was 10 or more.
100 or more deaths
Deaths | Name | Type | Date | Location | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
257 | Air New Zealand Flight 901 | airliner accident | 28 Nov 1979 | Mount Erebus, Ross Island, Antarctica | Controlled flight into terrain |
256 | 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake | earthquake | 3 Feb 1931 | 20 km north of Napier | |
200+ | 1820s Southland tsunami | tsunami | 1820s | Orepuki beach | Possibly more than 200 killed |
189 | HMS Orpheus | shipwreck | 7 Feb 1863 | off Manukau Heads, near Auckland | |
185 | 2011 Christchurch earthquake | earthquake | 22 Feb 2011 | Christchurch | |
151 | Tangiwai disaster | train wreck/lahar | 24 Dec 1953 | Whangaehu River | |
135+ | 1st Little Waihi landslide | landslide | 1780 | Waihi Village | |
131 | SS Tararua | shipwreck | 29 Apr 1881 | off Waipapa Point | |
121 | SS Wairarapa | shipwreck | 29 Oct 1894 | off Great Barrier Island | |
108–153 | 1886 eruption of Mount Tarawera | volcanic eruption | 10 Jun 1886 | Mount Tarawera |
50 to 99 deaths
Clipper ship Fiery Star
Wreck of the General Grant
Burial of victims of the Brunner Mine disaster
Salvage operations on the wreck of TEV Wahine
Cape Terawhiti, where the City of Dunedin sank
The Al Noor Mosque, where the Christchurch mosque shootings began
Deaths | Name or description | Type | Date | Location | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
87 | Fiery Star | shipwreck | 11 May 1865 | 240 km off the Chatham Islands | |
75 | SS Penguin | shipwreck | 12 Feb 1909 | off Cape Terawhiti | |
68 | General Grant | shipwreck | May 1866 | Auckland Island | 10 castaways survived the wreck and were successfully rescued. |
65 | Brunner Mine disaster | mine explosion | 26 Mar 1896 | Brunner | |
65 | 2nd Little Waihi Landslide | landslide | 7 May 1846 | Waihi Village | Tribal leader Mananui Te Heuheu Tukino II and most of his family were killed in the landslide |
53 | TEV Wahine | shipwreck | 10 Apr 1968 | Barrett Reef, Wellington Harbour | |
52 | City of Dunedin | shipwreck | 20 May 1865 | off Cape Terawhiti | There are estimates of between 250 and 600 passengers perishing, but these reports were 20 or more years later |
51+ | Blizzard and Flood of 1863 | floods and blizzards | Jul 1863 – Aug 1863 | Central Otago goldfields | The actual death toll was probably higher because of the transient nature of the miners and the ruggedness of the country |
51 | Christchurch mosque shootings | terrorist attack | 15 Mar 2019 | Christchurch, New Zealand |
10 to 49 deaths
Ballantyne's fire seen from ChristChurch Cathedral
Kaitangata Mine disaster memorial
Hyde railway disaster memorial
Strongman Mine disaster memorial
Restored grave of Dundonald's mate, Auckland Islands
Octagon building fire
Remains of sulphur mine, White Island
Deaths | Name or description | Type | Date | Location | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
49 | Featherston Prisoner of war camp riot | riot | 25 Feb 1943 | Featherston, New Zealand | |
45 | SS Elingamite | shipwreck | 9 Nov 1902 | off West Island in the Three Kings Islands | |
43 | Ralph Mine disaster | mine explosion | 12 Sep 1914 | Huntly | methane and coal dust explosion |
41 | Ballantyne's store disaster | fire | 18 Nov 1947 | Christchurch | |
40+ | Great storm of 1868, flash floods and 12 shipwrecks | storm | 3 Feb 1868 | Predominantly eastern areas of New Zealand | Death toll likely understated as impact on many Maori unknown |
37 | Seacliff Lunatic Asylum | fire | 8 Dec 1942 | Seacliff | |
34 | SS Taiaroa | shipwreck | 11 Apr 1886 | Waiau Toa / Clarence River mouth | |
34 | Kaitangata Mine disaster | mine explosion | 21 Feb 1879 | Kaitangata | explosion of fire-damp (methane) |
34 | Dunedin | shipwreck (presumed) | 1890 | between Oamaru and London | |
30 | Marlborough | shipwreck (presumed) | 1890 | between Lyttelton and London | |
29 | Pike River Mine disaster | mine explosion | 19 Nov 2010 | northwest of Greymouth | large methane explosion |
29 | MV Kaitawa | shipwreck | 23 May 1966 | near Pandora Bank, Cape Reinga | |
26 | Barque Maria | shipwreck | 1851 | Cape Terawhiti | |
25+ | Storm of 1897 | floods and shipwreck | 16 Apr 1897 | North Island | flooding at Clive, boating accidents, and the wreck of the Zuleika near Cape Palliser. 25 confirmed deaths and 6 unconfirmed |
25 | MV Joyita | ghost ship | Oct 1955 | En route from Apia, Samoa to Tokelau | |
24 | Assaye | shipwreck (presumed) | 1890 | between London and Wellington; wreckage washed up at the Chatham Islands 7 months after the ship left London | |
23 | New Zealand National Airways Corporation Flight 441 | air accident | 3 Jul 1963 | Kaimai Ranges | |
22 | launch Ranui | shipwreck | 30 Dec 1950 | off Mount Maunganui, Bay of Plenty | |
22 | 2019 Whakaari/White Island eruption | volcanic eruption | 9 Dec 2019 | Whakaari/White Island | |
21 | Hyde railway disaster | rail accident | 4 Jun 1943 | near Hyde | |
21 | Kopuawhara flash flood of 1938 | flood | 19 Feb 1938 | Destroyed the Kopuawhara railway workers camp | |
21 | brigantine Sophia Pate | shipwreck | Aug 1841 | Kaipara Harbour | |
20+ | Tsunami from 1868 Arica earthquake | tsunami | 13 Aug 1868 | Chatham Islands | |
20 | RNZAF Douglas C-47 disappearance | air accident | 24 Sep 1945 | en route from Vanuatu | |
20 | schooner St. Vincent | shipwreck | 14 Feb 1869 | Palliser Bay | |
19 | Strongman Mine | mine explosion | 19 Jan 1967 | near Greymouth | |
18 | Canoe on Lake Rotorua | boating accident | 16 Apr 1870 | near Mokoia Island on Lake Rotorua | |
18 | Canoe on Motu River | boating accident | 4 Aug 1900 | Motu River – 25 miles from Opotiki | There were 16 children and 2 adults in the six person canoe |
18 | Clyde | shipwreck | 6 Nov 1884 | Horseshoe Bay, near Akaroa, Banks Peninsula | |
18 | Lastingham | shipwreck | 1 Sep 1884 | Cape Jackson, Cook Strait | |
18 | ketch Enterprise and steamer Tauranga | shipwreck | 23 Jul 1870 | between Cape Rodney and Sail Rock, Hauraki Gulf | Those lost — fourteen crew and four passengers — all came from the Tauranga. The crew of the Enterprise survived in the ship's longboat. |
17 | 1929 Murchison earthquake | earthquake | 17 Jun 1929 | Murchison | |
17 | Ongarue railway disaster | rail accident | 6 Jul 1923 | Ongarue | |
16 | Capitaine Bougainville | shipwreck | 3 Sep 1975 | Whananaki | |
16 | 1943 Liberator crash at Whenuapai | air accident | 2 Aug 1943 | Whenuapai | Those killed were mainly Japanese civilians who were being repatriated in a prisoner exchange. |
15 | Brynderwyns bus accident | road accident | 7 Feb 1963 | Brynderwyn Hills | |
15 | MV Holmglen | shipwreck | 24 Nov 1959 | near Timaru | |
15 | Lockheed Lodestar airliner crash | air accident | 18 Mar 1949 | near Waikanae | |
15 | Derry Castle | shipwreck | 20 Mar 1887 | Enderby Island, Auckland Islands | |
14 | Cave Creek disaster | structural failure | 28 Apr 1995 | Paparoa National Park | |
14 | Aramoana massacre | spree killing | 13 Nov 1990 | Aramoana, near Dunedin | |
14 | Two Hudson bombers lost off the New Zealand coast | air accident | 21 Aug 1944 | en route from Fiji | No. 4 Squadron RNZAF |
14 | Hutt River flood | floods | 17 Jan 1858 | Hutt Valley | |
13 | NAC Electra air crash | air accident | 23 Oct 1948 | on Mount Ruapehu | |
13 | SS Ventnor | shipwreck | 28 Oct 1902 | off Omapere, Hokianga | |
13 | Tasmania | shipwreck | 1897 | Māhia Peninsula | |
12 | barque Dundonald | shipwreck | 7 Mar 1907 | Disappointment Island, Auckland Islands | |
12 | Barque Lizzie Bell | shipwreck | 24 Jul 1901 | Waimate, Taranaki | |
12 | Cafe Chantant fire, The Octagon, Dunedin | fire | 8 Sep 1879 | Dunedin | |
12 | ferry Pride of the Yarra and paddle steamer Favourite | collision | 6 Jul 1863 | Otago Harbour | |
12 | L'Alcmène | shipwreck | 3 Jun 1851 | Baylys Beach, Kaipara | A French navy corvette |
12 | Brigantine Rio Loge | shipwreck (presumed) | Jan 1909 | Last seen in Cook Strait on 14 January, en route from Kaipara to Dunedin | May have caused the wreck of the Penguin a month later. |
12 | Cyclone of 1936 | storm | 1 Feb 1936 | North Island and upper South Island | A tropical cyclone that originated near the Solomon Islands |
11 | 2012 Carterton hot air balloon crash | air accident | 7 Jan 2012 | near Carterton | |
11 | Glen Afton No. 1 mine | Coal mine fire | 24 Sep 1939 | Huntly | 11 miners, including the mine manager, died from carbon monoxide asphyxia |
11 | B17 bomber crash | air accident | 12 Jun 1942 | RNZAF Base Auckland at Whenuapai | |
10 | Aspiring Air Britten-Norman Islander, collided with terrain | air crash | 8 Aug 1989 | Upper Dart Valley | |
10 | Brig Australia | shipwreck | 23 May 1873 | off Cape Campbell | |
10 | Husky and Argo lost to storm in yacht race | shipwrecks | 21 Jan 1951 | between Wellington and Christchurch | |
10 | White Island sulphur mine | lahar following volcano crater wall collapse | 10 Sep 1914 | Whakaari/White Island | No bodies found. |
10 | Shamrock sailing boat | shipwreck | 1834 | Queen Charlotte Sound | Capsized and sank. Exact location unknown. |
NOTE: The exact number of deaths in some early New Zealand shipwrecks is not fully recorded. There may be several shipwrecks not listed here which claimed ten or more lives.
Pandemics and health crises
Deaths | Description | Date | Location | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
8,600 | 1918 flu pandemic | 1918 October–December | nationwide | |
1,950 | COVID-19 pandemic | 2020 February–ongoing | nationwide | |
713 | HIV/AIDS pandemic | 1983–ongoing | nationwide | As of December 2014. |
19 | 2009 swine flu pandemic | 2009 April–September | nationwide |
Significant incidents of New Zealanders being killed overseas
Confirmed Deaths | Name | Type | Date | Location | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
470 | Cospatrick | ship lost to fire | 17 Nov 1874 | 640 km south-west of the Cape of Good Hope, en route to Auckland | Only 3 people survived |
100 | The Trevelyan (immigrant ship en route from Glasgow) | storm | 3 Jun 1888 | Presumed foundered off the South African coast, en route to Port Chalmers, New Zealand | |
89 | Knowsley Hall | shipwreck (presumed) | 1879 | between London and Lyttelton | |
79 | Matoaka | shipwreck (presumed) | 1869 | between Lyttelton and London | |
15 | 1943 RNZAF Catalina crash | air accident | 5 Jun 1943 | south of Fiji | |
14 | Pan Am Flight 806 | air accident | 30 Jan 1974 | Pago Pago, American Samoa | Only New Zealand deaths listed |
12 | 1945 RNZAF Catalina crash | air accident | 27 Jan 1945 | off Beqa, Fiji | |
10 | Bere Ferrers rail accident, train hit NZ troops on tracks by platform | train accident | 24 Sep 1917 | Bere Ferrers, Devon, UK |
See also
- List of disasters in Antarctica by death toll
- List of disasters in Australia by death toll
- List of disasters in Canada by death toll
- List of disasters in Great Britain and Ireland by death toll
- List of earthquakes in New Zealand
- List of massacres in New Zealand
- List of natural disasters in New Zealand
- List of New Zealand-related topics
- List of rail accidents in New Zealand
- List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll (worldwide)