Archive category
Failures of designed systems, infrastructure, and organizational safeguards.
5 mapped events
2–6 September 1666
Pudding Lane and the medieval City of London, United Kingdom
A fire that began in a Pudding Lane bakery spread across the densely built City of London during dry, windy weather. Over four days it consumed most …
18–21 April 1906
San Francisco and the San Andreas Fault rupture zone, United States
At 5:12 a.m. on 18 April, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake ruptured hundreds of kilometers of the San Andreas Fault. Severe shaking damaged communities across northern California. In …
25 March 1911
The Asch Building, now NYU’s Brown Building, United States
Fire swept through the upper floors of the Triangle Waist Company near Washington Square, killing 146 workers. Many victims were young immigrant women. Inadequate exits, crowded work …
26 April 1986
Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant, Unit 4, Ukraine
During a low-power safety test, Unit 4 of the Chornobyl nuclear power plant became unstable and was destroyed by explosions and fire. Radioactive material spread across large …
11 March 2011
Pacific coast of Tōhoku, northeastern Honshu, Japan
A magnitude 9.1 megathrust earthquake off northeastern Honshu generated a tsunami that reached the coast within about 30 minutes. The water overtopped defenses, destroyed communities, and caused …
