Listed below are the worst disasters in Poland's history, listed by death toll. This list excludes warfare,

the Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...

and intentional acts of destruction, but may include accidents in which the military, Polish or foreign, was involved (e.g. Osiecznica bus disaster - a collision between a Polish bus and a Soviet Army's truck). Some of the disasters listed here occurred outside of current Polish borders (e.g. the Smolensk Tu-154 crash) or in times when Poland was not internationally recognized (e.g. during the

partitions of Poland The Partitions of Poland were three partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that took place toward the end of the 18th century and ended the existence of the state, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland and Lithuania for 12 ...

), but the predominant number of victims were either Poles or Polish citizens.

Over 100 confirmed deaths

LOT Polish Airlines Flight 5055 LOT Polish Airlines Flight 5055 was a scheduled international passenger flight from Warsaw, Poland, to New York City, United States. In the late-morning hours of 9 May 1987, the Ilyushin Il-62M operating the flight crashed in the Kabaty Woods nat ...

, 1987 (9 May),

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

, 183 killed * Kleofas coal mine disaster, 1896,

Katowice Katowice ( , , ; szl, Katowicy; german: Kattowitz, yi, קאַטעוויץ, Kattevitz) is the capital city of the Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland and the central city of the Upper Silesian metropolitan area. It is the 11th most popul ...

(then

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

), 104 killed * "Barbara-Wyzwolenie" coal mine disaster, 1954 (21 March),

Chorzów Chorzów ( ; ; german: link=no, Königshütte ; szl, Chorzōw) is a city in the Silesia region of southern Poland, near Katowice. Chorzów is one of the central cities of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union – a metropolis with a population ...

, 103 killed

40 to 99 confirmed deaths

* Smolensk Tu-154 crash, 2010 (10 April),

Smolensk Smolensk ( rus, Смоленск, p=smɐˈlʲensk, a=smolensk_ru.ogg) is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River, west-southwest of Moscow. First mentioned in 863, it is one of the oldest c ...

, (Russia), 96 killed, including Polish president

Lech Kaczyński Lech Aleksander Kaczyński (; 18 June 194910 April 2010) was a Polish politician who served as the city mayor of Warsaw from 2002 until 2005, and as President of Poland from 2005 until his death in 2010. Before his tenure as president, he prev ...

, his wife and other political and military officials. *

LOT Polish Airlines Flight 007 LOT Polish Airlines Flight 007 was an Ilyushin Il-62 that crashed near Okęcie Airport in Warsaw, Poland, on 14 March 1980, as the crew aborted a landing and attempted to go-around. All 87 crew and passengers died. It was caused by the disintegr ...

, 1980 (14 March),

, 87 killed * "Makoszowy" coal mine disaster, 1958 (28 August),

Zabrze Zabrze (; German: 1915–1945: ''Hindenburg O.S.'', full form: ''Hindenburg in Oberschlesien'', Silesian: ''Zŏbrze'', yi, זאַבזשע, Zabzhe) is an industrial city in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. The west district of the Sil ...

, 72 killed *

Otłoczyn railway accident The Otłoczyn railway accident ( pl, Katastrofa kolejowa pod Otłoczynem) was a train crash which occurred on 19 August 1980, near the village of Otłoczyn (Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, northern Poland). At 4:30 a.m., a freight train col ...

, 1980 (19 August), near

Brzoza Toruńska Brzoza may refer to the following places in Poland: * Brzoza, Lower Silesian Voivodeship (south-west Poland) * Brzoza, Bydgoszcz County in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship (north-central Poland) * Brzoza, Toruń County in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodes ...

, 67 killed *

Katowice Trade Hall roof collapse On 28 January 2006, the roof of one of the buildings at the Katowice International Fair (''Międzynarodowe Targi Katowickie'') collapsed in Chorzów / Katowice, Poland. At 16:15 GMT (17:15 local time), the central section of the roof of the ha ...

, 2006 (28 January),

, 65 killed * 1928 Poland Derecho, 1928, (4 July), 62 killed * Outdoor Cinema fire, 1955 (11 May),

Wielopole Skrzyńskie Wielopole Skrzyńskie is a village (town in 1348 - 1933) in Ropczyce-Sędziszów County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Wielopole Skrzyńskie. It lies in hist ...

, 58 killed *

1997 Central European flood The 1997 Central European flood or the 1997 Oder Flood of the Oder and Morava (river), Morava river basins in July 1997 affected Poland, the Czech Republic and Germany, taking the lives of 114 people and causing material damages estimated at $4.5 ...

, 1997 (July), western Poland, 56 killed * Górna Grupa mental hospital fire, 1980 (31 October - 1 November),

Górna Grupa Górna Grupa (Polish pronunciation: ; german: Karolina) is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Dragacz, within Świecie County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, in north-central Poland. It lies approximately south-west of Dragacz, n ...

, 55 killed *

MS Jan Heweliusz MS ''Jan Heweliusz'' was a Norwegian-built Polish ferry named after astronomer Johannes Hevelius ( pl, Jan Heweliusz) that served on the route Ystad–Świnoujście. It was built in Norway in 1977 and was owned by Polish Ocean Lines and operated ...

, 1993 (14 January),

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

(near

Rügen Rügen (; la, Rugia, ) is Germany's largest island. It is located off the Pomeranian coast in the Baltic Sea and belongs to the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The "gateway" to Rügen island is the Hanseatic city of Stralsund, where ...

Island), 55 killed *

LOT Polish Airlines Flight 165 LOT Polish Airlines Flight LO 165 was an Antonov An-24 aircraft, registration SP-LTF, operating a scheduled passenger flight from Warsaw Frederic Chopin Airport, Warsaw to John Paul II International Airport Kraków-Balice, Krakow Balice airport ...

, 1969 (2 April), Polica (near

Zawoja Zawoja is a village in southern Poland located close to Maków Podhalański. It is situated in Sucha County ( Lesser Poland Voivodeship). With neighbouring village of Skawica it constitutes a rural Zawoja Commune. It has 6,200 inhabitants (200 ...

), 53 killed * Rotunda PKO Bank explosion, 1979 (15 February),

, 49 killed

20 to 39 confirmed deaths

1978 Balkan Bulgarian Tupolev Tu-134 crash The 1978 Balkan Bulgarian Tupolev Tu-134 crash was an accident that occurred on 16 March 1978, when a Balkan Bulgarian Airlines Tupolev Tu-134 airliner on an international flight from Sofia Airport to Warsaw Airport crashed. All passengers and c ...

, 1978 (16 March), Gabare (

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

), 39 Poles killed (out of 73 total fatalities) * Czechowice-Dziedzice Refinery fire, 1971 (26–27 June),

Czechowice-Dziedzice Czechowice-Dziedzice (, szl, Czechowice-Dziydzice), previously known until 1958 as Czechowice, is a town in Bielsko County, Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland with 35,684 inhabitants as of December 2021. It lies on the northeastern edge of t ...

, 37 killed * 1962 LOT Vickers Viscount Warsaw crash, 1962 (19 December),

, 33 killed * PKS Gdańsk bus crash, 1994 (2 May),

Gdańsk Gdańsk ( , also ; ; csb, Gduńsk;Stefan Ramułt, ''Słownik języka pomorskiego, czyli kaszubskiego'', Kraków 1893, Gdańsk 2003, ISBN 83-87408-64-6. , Johann Georg Theodor Grässe, ''Orbis latinus oder Verzeichniss der lateinischen Benen ...

-Kokoszki, 32 killed * Wilczy Jar buses tragedy, 1978 (15 November), Wilczy Jar (n.

Żywiec Żywiec () (german: Saybusch) is a town in southern Poland with 31,194 inhabitants (2019). Between 1975 and 1998, it was located within the Bielsko-Biała Voivodeship, but has since become part of the Silesian Voivodeship.It is the capital of Ż ...

-Oczków), 30 killed * Warsaw Holy Cross Church Stampede, 1881 (25 December), Warsaw, 30 killed * Grenoble coach crash, 2007 (22 July),

Vizille Vizille (; frp, Veselye) is a commune in the Isère department in southeastern France. Population Sights Vizille is the home of the Musée de la Révolution française, a rich depository of archival and rare materials devoted to the French ...

(

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

), 27 killed * Julianka rail crash, 1976 (3 November), Julianka (n.

Częstochowa Częstochowa ( , ; german: Tschenstochau, Czenstochau; la, Czanstochova) is a city in southern Poland on the Warta River with 214,342 inhabitants, making it the thirteenth-largest city in Poland. It is situated in the Silesian Voivodeship (admin ...

), 25 killed * Osieck rail crash, 1981 (4 June),

Osieck Osieck is a village in Otwock County, Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Osieck. It lies approximately south-east of Otwock and south-east of Warsaw Warsaw ( ...

, 25 killed * MS Busko Zdrój, 1985 (8 February),

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...

, 24 killed * Kamień Pomorski homeless hostel fire, 2009 (13 April),

Kamień Pomorski Kamień Pomorski (; csb, Kamiéń; german: Cammin or ''Kammin'') is a town in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship of north-western Poland, on the Baltic coast. It is the seat of an urban-rural gmina (administrative district) in Kamień County which ...

, 23 killed * Halemba coal mine disaster, 2006, 2006 (22 November),

Ruda Śląska Ruda Śląska (formerly ) is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. It is a district in the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union, a metropolis with a population of two million. It is in the Silesian Highlands, on the Kłodnica River (t ...

, 23 killed * MS Maria Konopnicka fire in Stocznia Gdańska, 1961 (13 December), 23 killed *

Wojska Polskiego 39 Street gas explosion Wojska is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Tworóg, within Tarnowskie Góry County, Silesian Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It lies approximately south-west of Tworóg, west of Tarnowskie Góry, and north-west of the regiona ...

, 1995 (17 April),

, 22 killed *

Mirosławiec air accident Mirosławiec (german: Märkisch Friedland; csb, Frédlądk) is a town in Wałcz County, West Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland, with 4,837 inhabitants (2007). The 12th Air Base of the Polish Air Force is located north of the town. Mirosławiec i ...

crash, 2008 (23 January),

Mirosławiec Mirosławiec (german: Märkisch Friedland; csb, Frédlądk) is a town in Wałcz County, West Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland, with 4,837 inhabitants (2007). The 12th Air Base of the Polish Air Force is located north of the town. Mirosławiec i ...

, 20 killed * MS Kudowa Zdrój, 1983 (20 January), Mediterranean, 20 killed * Wujek-Śląsk coal mine disaster, 18 September 2009,

– a methane explosion killed 12 in the coal mine and a further 8 would die in hospital

15 to 19 confirmed deaths

* Balaton coach crash, 2002 (1 July), n.

Balaton Lake Balaton is a lake in Hungary, the largest lake in Central Europe Balaton may also refer to: * 2242 Balaton, a main-belt asteroid * Balaton (car), a Hungarian microcar * Balaton (village), in Heves county, Hungary * Balaton, Minnesota, a city ...

(Hungary), 19 killed * Halemba coal mine disaster, 1990 (10 January),

, 19 killed * Biały Jar avalanche, 1968 (20 March), valley on

Sněžka Sněžka or Śnieżka (in Czech and Polish respectively; german: Schneekoppe, sk, Snežka) is a mountain on the border between the Czech Republic and Poland, the most prominent point of the Silesian Ridge in the Giant Mountains. At , its summit ...

mountain (n.

Karpacz Karpacz (German: ''Krummhübel'') is a spa town and ski resort in Jelenia Góra County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, south-western Poland, and one of the most important centres for mountain hiking and skiing, including ski jumping. Its population ...

), 19 killed * Nowe Miasto nad Pilica bus crash, 2010 (12 October), Nowe Miasto nad Pilica, 18 killed * "Mysłowice" coal mine disaster, 1987 (4 February),

Mysłowice Mysłowice ( szl, Myslowicy; german: Myslowitz) is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. The population of the city is 74,085. It is located in the south district of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union in the Silesian Highlan ...

, 18 killed * B406/6 trawler explosion in Stocznia Gdańska, 1980 (18 June),

, 18 killed *

Motława Motława (; csb, Mòtława) is a river in Pomerelia, Eastern Pomerania in Poland. The source is in Szpęgawskie Lake, northeast from the town of Starogard Gdański. It goes through Rokickie Lake to Martwa Wisła, a branch of the Vistula. The to ...

, 1975 (1 August),

, 18 killed * M/v "Nysa", 1965 (10 January),

, 18 killed *

Polish Air Force The Polish Air Force ( pl, Siły Powietrzne, , Air Forces) is the aerial warfare branch of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as ''Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej'' (). In 2014 it consisted of roughly 16,425 mil ...

An-24 The Antonov An-24 (Russian/Ukrainian: Антонов Ан-24) ( NATO reporting name: Coke) is a 44-seat twin turboprop transport/passenger aircraft designed in 1957 in the Soviet Union by the Antonov Design Bureau and manufactured by Kyiv, Irk ...

crash, 1973 (28 February),

Szczecin Szczecin (, , german: Stettin ; sv, Stettin ; Latin: ''Sedinum'' or ''Stetinum'') is the capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the German border, it is a major s ...

airport 18 killed * Struga 12 street gas explosion, 1976 (1 February),

, 17 killed *

Szczekociny rail crash The Szczekociny rail crash occurred on 3 March 2012 when two passenger trains collided head-on near the town of Szczekociny, Silesian Voivodeship, Poland. Sixteen people died in the incident and 58 were injured. An investigative report showed t ...

, 2012 (3 March),

Szczekociny Szczekociny () is a town on the Pilica river, in Silesian Voivodeship, in southern Poland, with 3,612 inhabitants (2019). Even though Szczekociny administratively belongs to the Silesian Voivodeship, it is part of historic region of Lesser Polan ...

, killed 16 *

Ursus rail crash Ursus rail crash (''Polish:'' ''Katastrofa kolejowa w Ursusie'') was a major accident, which occurred at 6:20 a.m. on 20 August 1990 near the Warszawa Ursus railway station on the western part of Polish capital in which 16 people died and 4 ...

, 1990 (20 August),

Ursus Ursus is Latin for bear. It may also refer to: Animals * ''Ursus'' (mammal), a genus of bears People * Ursus of Aosta, 6th-century evangelist * Ursus of Auxerre, 6th-century bishop * Ursus of Solothurn, 3rd-century martyr * Ursus (''praefectus ...

(n.

), 16 killed * Radkowice rail crash, 1973 (27 August), Radkowice, 16 killed * Osiecznica bus crash, 1978 (22 January), n. Osiecznica, 15 killed * Wyszaka streetcar crash, 1967 (7 December), Szczecin, 15 killed

10 to 14 confirmed deaths

* Brandenburg coach crash, 2010, (26 September),

Schönefeld Schönefeld (meaning ''beautiful field'') is a suburban municipality in the Dahme-Spreewald district, Brandenburg, Germany. It borders the southeastern districts of Berlin. The municipal area encompasses the old Berlin Schönefeld Airport (SXF) a ...

(Germany), 14 killed * "Kaskada" restaurant fire, 1981 (27 April),

, 14 killed * MS Czubatka, 1955 (10 May),

, 14 killed * Krosno Odrzańskie tornado, 1886 (13 May),

Krosno Odrzańskie Krosno Odrzańskie (german: Crossen an der Oder) is a city on the east bank of Oder River, at the confluence with the Bóbr. The town in Western Poland with 11,319 inhabitants (2019) is the capital of Krosno County. It is assigned to the Lubusz ...

, 13 killed * Izbicko level crossing accident, 1960, (6 January),

Izbicko Izbicko (German: Stubendorf) is a village in Strzelce County, Opole Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Izbicko, which has been bilingual in Polish and German since 2006. It li ...

, 13 killed * Storm in Mazury, 2007 (21 August),

Mazury Masuria (, german: Masuren, Masurian: ''Mazurÿ'') is a ethnographic and geographic region in northern and northeastern Poland, known for its 2,000 lakes. Masuria occupies much of the Masurian Lake District. Administratively, it is part of the ...

(north-eastern Poland), 12 killed * Jeżewo coach crash, 2005 (30 September), Sikory-Wojciechowięta (n. Stare Jeżewo), 12 killed *

Reptowo rail crash Reptowo is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Dąbrowa Chełmińska, within Bydgoszcz County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, in north-central Poland. It lies west of Dąbrowa Chełmińska, east of Bydgoszcz, and north-west of ...

, 1997 (5 May), Reptowo (n.

), 12 killed * Bydgoszcz rail crash, 1972 (3 June), Śliesin (n.

Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz ( , , ; german: Bromberg) is a city in northern Poland, straddling the meeting of the River Vistula with its left-bank tributary, the Brda. With a city population of 339,053 as of December 2021 and an urban agglomeration with more ...

), 12 killed * MS Cyranka, 1956 (4 October),

, 12 killed * ČSM-north coal mine disaster, 2018 (20 December),

Stonava Stonava ( pl, , german: Steinau) is a municipality and village in Karviná District in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,800 inhabitants. The municipality has a significant Polish minority. Etymology The name is ...

(n.

Karviná Karviná (; pl, Karwina, , german: Karwin) is a city in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 50,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Olza River in the historical region of Cieszyn Silesia. Karviná is known as an industri ...

Czechia The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The Cz ...

, 12 killed * Psie Pole rail crash, 1977 (9 July), Mirków (n.

Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...

), 11 killed (unofficial - 32 killed) * "Jas-Mos" coal mine disaster, 2002 (10 February), 10 killed *

Ministry of Interior MSWiA helicopter crash Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian mi ...

, 1991 (10 January), n.

Cisna Cisna ( uk, Тісна, ''Tisna'') is the main village of the Gmina Cisna in the Lesko County, in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship (province) of south-eastern Poland. It lies in the Solinka valley in between the Bieszczady mountains. History Th ...

, 10 killed * Drogomil level crossing accident, 1988 (4 June), Drogomil (n.

Bytom Odrzański Bytom Odrzański (german: Beuthen an der Oder) is a town on the Oder river in western Poland, in Nowa Sól County of Lubusz Voivodeship. As of December 2021, the town has a population of 4,191. History Archaeological findings from the Stone Age ...

), 10 killed * Piła rail crash, 1988 (19 May),

Piła Piła (german: Schneidemühl) is a city in northwestern Poland and the capital of Piła County, situated in the Greater Poland Voivodeship. Its population as of 2021 was 71,846, making it the third-largest city in the voivodeship after Poznań ...

, 10 killed * MS Brda, 1975 (10 January),

Hanstholm Hanstholm is a small town and a former island, now elevated area in Thisted municipality of Region Nordjylland, located in northern Denmark. The population of the town is 2,104 (1 January 2022).

(

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

), 10 killed * "Rokitnica" coal mine disaster, 1971 (23 March),

, 10 killed *

Agricultural University building collapse Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating Plant, plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of Sedentism, sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of Domestication, domesticated species created food ...

, 1966 (22 March),

, 10 killed

Fewer than 10 confirmed deaths

Bratoszewice level crossing collision Bratoszewice is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Stryków, within Zgierz County, Łódź Voivodeship, in central Poland. It lies approximately north-east of Stryków, north-east of Zgierz, and north-east of the regional capital ...

, 30 July 2012, 9 killed * 1983 Łódź gas explosion, 7 December 1983, 8 killed *

2017 Świebodzice tenement collapse Seventeen or 17 may refer to: *17 (number), the natural number following 16 and preceding 18 * one of the years 17 BC, AD 17, 1917, 2017 Literature Magazines *Seventeen (American magazine), ''Seventeen'' (American magazine), an American magazi ...

, 8 April 2017, 6 killed * 2019 Koszalin Escape Room Fire, 4 January, 2019, 5 killed *

2008 Poland tornado outbreak A tornado outbreak struck southern and central Poland on 15 August 2008. Overall, it killed four people. Tornadoes affected Opole Voivodeship, Silesian Voivodeship and Łódź Voivodeship. The European Storm Forecast Experiment issued a Level 3 whi ...

, 15-16 August 2008, 4 killed * 2020 Warsaw bus crash 25 June 2020, 1 killed

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Disasters in Poland By Death Toll Disasters in Poland

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

Lists of events in Poland