Top Five Deadliest Volcano Eruptions in the World

5. Unzen, Japan

Year: 1792

Number of Deaths: 14,300

In 1792, about a month after lava stopped flowing from the volcano, a landslide from a nearby mountain, Mount Mayuyama, swept through the ancient Shimabara City and entered the sea, which caused a huge tsunami to hit nearby areas. A scar the shape of an amphitheater can still be seen from Mount Mayuyama.

4. Ruiz, Colombia

Year: 1985

Number of Deaths: 25,000

The summit of the volcano was only 310 miles from the equator, yet snow was covering it. There had been signs of increased activity in the volcano, as in recent months there were a few rumblings in the crater, but authorities told the inhabitants that it was safe to stay in the city. On Wednesday afternoon, ash came showering down from the volcano. People were told to evacuate, but they then abandoned the order after the volcano grew quiet. But that night, around 9 o’clock, a bigger eruption occured, which caused to snow on the summit to melt, bringing down debris and mud at up to 30 miles per hour, causing devastating damages to the towns below.

3. Mount Pelee, Martinique

Year: 1902

Number of Deaths: 29,000

Mount Pelee is a volcano that is located on the French Caribbean island of Martinique. Near the base of the volcano is the city St. Pierre. In January 1902, the vocano showed a sudden increase in fumarole activity, but nobody showed much concern. On April 23rd, there were small explosions at the summit of Mount Pelee. Over the next couple of days, St. Pierre shook with rock tremors, was enveloped in a thick cloud of sulfurous gas, and was showered in ash. After a couple of days, insects and snakes invaded the city after they ran away from their homes on the slopes of Mount Pelee, killing about 50 people and 200 animals. At the center of the summit, there is a crater lake called the Etang Sec. At this point, the water in the lake was almost at a boiling point.

2. Krakatau, Indonesia

Year: 1883

Number of Deaths: 36,400

Early in the morning of 20th of April in 1883, the captain of the warship Elizabeth saw a cloud of ash and dust that rose above the island of Krakatau. Over the next 2 months, people that passed by the island would see clouds of ash and pumice and hear explosive noises. People that lived on the coast of Java and Sumatra saw these explosions and were impressed. The explosions created an environment that was near-festive. They didn’t realize that these fascinating explosions lead to one of the largest explosions ever recorded. From Auguest 26th-27th, there was a series of huge explosions that ended with a sudden violent eruption. These eruption caused huge tsunamis and devastating flows that killed more than 36,000 people.

1. Tambora, Indonesia

Year: 1815

Number of Deaths: 92,000

Tambora is a volcano that is located on the Sumbawa Island. This volcano is a big stratovolcano that is mainly made up of nepheline-normative, leucite-bearing trachybasalt, and trachyandesite. This volcano was dormant for about 5,000 years before the 1815 eruption. During the six months before this eruption, there were many small eruption. This eruption is the largest volcano eruption ever recorded. An eruption occurred on April 5th, 1815, where ash fell and thunderlike sounds were heard. Another larger eruption occurred on the 10th-11th of that same month. This time, it started out with ”3 columns of fire” that rose to great heights and then dropped magma. Earthquakes were felt as far as 500 kilometers away.