| Event | Method | Duration of Disaster | Losses | Estimated Amount Destroyed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, c. 1950 bc | Brimstone, fire | Instantaneous | Entire population, save for Lot, his two daughters, and his wife (soon turned into pillar of salt) | 100 percent |
| Mongol Sack of Baghdad, 1258 | Rapine, fire, pillaging | 7 days | The royal library, known as the House of Wisdom; 800,000–1 million casualties | 90 percent |
| Great Lisbon Earthquake, 1755 | Earthquake (approximately 8.7 on Richter scale), attendant tsunami and fires | 5 days | Royal Palace, Opera House, Cathedral; 60,000–91,000 casualties | 85 percent |
| Operation Meetinghouse Bombing of Tokyo, March 1945 | 1,667 tons of bombs dropped by 279 U.S. B‑29 bombers | 1 night | 286,358 buildings and homes; approximately 125,000 casualties | 22 percent |
| Flooding of New Orleans, 2005 | Hurricane Katrina, incompetent response | 1 week | Fats Domino’s house, Lower Ninth Ward, $26.5 billion worth of insured property; 1,500 casualties | 80 percent (submerged) |
