Below is a list of the deadliest firefighter disasters in the United States, in which more than five firefighters died. "Firefighter" is defined as a professional trained to fight fires. Hence the 1933 Griffith Park fire is excluded, as it killed 29 untrained civilians.
Rank | Event | Date | Firefighter Fatalities | Coordinates | Reference |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | September 11 attacks | September 11, 2001 | 340 | 40°42′46.8″N 74°0′48.6″W / 40.713000°N 74.013500°W | [1] |
2 | Great Fire of 1910 | August 22, 1910 | 78[N 1] | 47°25′34″N 116°6′13″W / 47.42611°N 116.10361°W | [1][3] |
3 | Texas City disaster | April 16, 1947 | 27 | 29°22′39″N 94°53′29″W / 29.37750°N 94.89139°W | [4][2] |
4 | Chicago Union Stock Yards fire (1910) | December 22, 1910 | 21 | 41°49′8.31″N 87°39′40.08″W / 41.8189750°N 87.6611333°W | [4][2] |
6 | McKee refinery fire | July 29, 1956 | 19 | 35°57′21.28″N 101°53′11.49″W / 35.9559111°N 101.8865250°W | [4][2] |
Yarnell Hill Fire | June 30, 2013 | 19 | 34°14′47.84″N 112°45′20.94″W / 34.2466222°N 112.7558167°W | [2] | |
8 | Blackwater fire of 1937 | August 21, 1937 | 15 | 44°24′43″N 109°44′30″W / 44.41194°N 109.74167°W | [5] |
Rattlesnake Fire | July 9, 1953 | 15 | 39°39′19.05″N 122°38′9.67″W / 39.6552917°N 122.6360194°W | [4][2] | |
10 | South Canyon Fire | July 6, 1994 | 14 | 39°34′26.48″N 107°25′36.82″W / 39.5740222°N 107.4268944°W | [4][2] |
11 | Strand Theatre fire (Brockton, Massachusetts) | March 10, 1941 | 13 | 42°4′58.40″N 71°1′9.58″W / 42.0828889°N 71.0193278°W | [4][2] |
Mann Gulch fire | August 4, 1949 | 13 | 46°52′46.56″N 111°54′17.64″W / 46.8796000°N 111.9049000°W | [4][2] | |
Friedlander Leather Remnants Factory fire | December 21, 1910 | 13 | 39°58′5.50″N 75°8′29.35″W / 39.9681944°N 75.1414861°W | [4] | |
Bowen-Merrill Bookstore Fire | March 17, 1890 | 13 | 39°46′02.7″N 86°09′32.0″W / 39.767417°N 86.158889°W | [6] | |
15 | Kingman explosion | July 5, 1973 | 12 | 35°12′54.10″N 114°1′48.95″W / 35.2150278°N 114.0302639°W | [4] |
23rd Street Fire | October 17, 1966 | 12 | 40°44′27.39″N 73°59′20.01″W / 40.7409417°N 73.9888917°W | [4] | |
Loop Fire Disaster | November 1, 1966 | 12 | 34°20′05″N 118°23′47″W / 34.33472°N 118.39639°W [N 2] | [7] | |
18 | Inaja Fire | November 25, 1956 | 11 | 33°5′54″N 116°39′50″W / 33.09833°N 116.66389°W | [8] |
W. T. Jennings Fire | April 25, 1854 | 11 | 40°42′44″N 74°00′29″W / 40.71233°N 74.008109°W | [9][10] | |
20 | West Fertilizer Company explosion | April 17, 2013 | 10 | 31°48′58″N 97°05′17″W / 31.816°N 97.088°W | [11] |
21 | Charleston Sofa Super Store fire | June 18, 2007 | 9 | 40°44′27.39″N 73°59′20.01″W / 40.7409417°N 73.9888917°W | [12] |
Hotel Vendome fire | June 17, 1972 | 9 | 42°21′4.55″N 71°4′43.09″W / 42.3512639°N 71.0786361°W | [4][2] | |
Collins Block Fire (Syracuse, New York) | February 3, 1939 | 9 | 43°3′4.79″N 76°9′12.92″W / 43.0513306°N 76.1535889°W | [13] | |
24 | Great Boston Fire of 1872 | November 9, 1872 | 8 | 42°21′13.75″N 71°3′30.80″W / 42.3538194°N 71.0585556°W | [1] |
1975 Philadelphia Gulf refinery fire | August 17, 1975 | 8 | 39°54′7″N 75°12′17″W / 39.90194°N 75.20472°W | [14] | |
Jackson Pyrotechnic Explosion (Chester, Pennsylvania) | February 17, 1882 | 8 | 39°50′46″N 75°21′24″W / 39.84611°N 75.35667°W | [15] | |
27 | Woolworth Fire- Charleston WV | March 4, 1949 | 7 | 38°20'.970"N 81°38'.139' W | |
28 | Waldbaum's supermarket fire | August 2, 1978 | 6 | 40°35′33.93″N 73°57′0.48″W / 40.5927583°N 73.9501333°W | [16] |
28 | Queens soap plant fire | October 26, 1962 | 6 | 40°43′39″N 73°55′24″W / 40.72740°N 73.92338°W | [17][18] |
28 | Kansas City ammonium nitrate explosion | November 29, 1988 | 6 | 39°50′47.98″N 94°34′22.49″W / 39.8466611°N 94.5729139°W | [19] |
28 | Worcester Cold Storage and Warehouse Co. fire (Worcester, Massachusetts) | December 3, 1999 | 6 | 42°15′36.23″N 71°47′34.17″W / 42.2600639°N 71.7928250°W | [4] |