List of fires

This is a list of historic disastrous fires. Urban fires are the most numerous due to loss of life and property, but also included are lists of fires in individual structures, ships and other transportation, and mines. A few of the most important wildfires or forest fires are included, but this list is not the primary resource for the most severe wildfires, which is summarized in the List of forest fires.

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by expanding it with reliably sourced entries.

Not in history has a modern imperial city been so completely destroyed. San Francisco is gone.

Jack London after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire

Town and city fires

This is a list of some city conflagrations. Before the 20th century, fires were a major hazard to urban areas and the cause of massive amounts of damage to cities.

Antiquity through Middle Ages

• 587 BC – The destruction of the Temple and city of Jerusalem
• 64 – Great Fire of Rome
• 70 – The destruction of 2nd Temple in Jerusalem
• 406 – A great fire burns down much of Constantinople
• 532 – The Nika riots result in the destruction of much of Constantinople by fire
• 847 – Borgo, the area around Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome
• 1041 – Fire destroys most of the old city of Bremen including the cathedral
• 1132 – In June, there was a huge fire in Hangzhou in which 13,000 houses were destroyed
• 1135 – One of the two Great Medieval Fires of London. This blaze was so severe that it destroyed most of the city between St Paul's and St Clement Danes in Westminster
• 1137 – Great Fire in Hangzhou which destroyed 10,000 houses
• 1157 – First Fire of Lübeck destroys the city
• 1204 – Constantinople burned three times during the Fourth Crusade
• 1212 – One of the two Great Medieval Fires of London. Also known as the Great Fire of Suthwark, while trying to flee the city, up to 3,000 people died on London Bridge
• 1251 – Second Fire of Lübeck triggers the use of stone as a fire-safe building material
• 1253 – Great Fire of Utrecht, the Netherlands, lasts for 9 days and destroyed much of the city
• 1276 – Third Fire of Lübeck results in comprehensive fire safety system. Last fire in the city before bombing of WW II
• 1327 – Fire of Munich destroys 1/3 of the city, 30 deaths
• 1405 – Fire of Berne destroys 600 houses, over 100 deaths
• 1421 – First Great Fire of Amsterdam
• 1438 – Great Fire of Gouda, almost the entire city was destroyed
• 1452 – Second Great Fire of Amsterdam, three quarters of the city destroyed

16th century

• 1547 – Moscow fire which sparked a rebellion
• 1571 – Moscow fire occurred when the forces of the Crimean khan Devlet I Giray raided the city

17th century

• 1624 – Oslo (Norway) destroyed.
• 1653 – Great Fire of Marlborough, England, destroyed the Guildhall, St Mary’s Church, the County Armoury, and 224 dwellings
• 1654 – Delft Thunderclap, an explosion of a gunpowder storage facility killed between 100 and 200 people and destroyed the surrounding area of the city of Delft, the Netherlands.
• 1656 – Fire of Aachen destroys 4,664 houses, kills 17.
• 1657 – Great Fire of Meireki destroyed two-thirds of the Japanese capital Edo (modern-day Tokyo)

Great Fire of London, 1666.

• 1666 – Great Fire of London, which originated in a baker's shop on Pudding Lane and destroyed much of London.
• 1675 – Great Fire of Northampton, England. The blaze was caused by sparks from an open fire in St. Mary's Street near Northampton castle. In 6 hours it devastated the town centre, destroying about 600 buildings (three quarters of the town) including All Saints church. 11 people died and about 700 families were made homeless. (September 20)
• 1676 – Jamestown, Virginia. Burned by Nathaniel Bacon and his followers during Bacon's Rebellion to prevent Governor Berkley from using it as a base.
• 1677 – Fire of Rostock destroys 700 houses and accelerates city's economic decline at the end of the Hanseatic period
• 1678 – Hardegsen, a fire during the Christmas fair causes a conflagration that destroys most of the town centre. No injuries as people were in church.
• 1689 – Skopje, present-day capital of Macedonia, is burned
• 1692 – Two thirds of Usingen razed. Replaced by a new Baroque town centre
• 1694 – Great Fire of Warwick, England
• 1696 – St. John's, Newfoundland and 35 other settlements burned by French forces under Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville

18th century

• 1702 – Uppsala, Sweden, large parts of the city devastated and the cathedral and Uppsala Castle severely damaged
• 1702 – Bergen: 7/8 of the then Norway's biggest city destroyed during a storm.
• 1726 – Reutlingen, Germany, Free Imperial City, 80% of all residential houses and almost all public buildings destroyed, and making 1,200 families homeless
• 1728 – Copenhagen Fire of 1728, two-fifths of the city burned down during three days. 3,650 families became homeless
• 1734 – Montreal, New France
• 1752 – Fire destroys 18,000 houses in Moscow, May 5–6.
• 1754 – The Great Fire of Hindon swept through the village of Hindon, Wiltshire burning 144 houses and buildings to the ground.
• 1759 – The Great Stockholm Fire 1759 (Swedish Mariabranden) in Södermalm, Stockholm, Sweden, about 300 buildings destroyed.
• 1760 – Great Boston Fire of 1760, 349 buildings destroyed
• 1775 – Great Fire of Tartu, nearly 200 buildings destroyed
• 1776 – First Great Fire of New York City
• 1776 – Around 2/3 of Varaždin, the capital of Croatia at the time, destroyed in a fire of officially unknown origins.
• 1788 – Great New Orleans Fire (1788), Good Friday, March 21, 1788, 856 out of 1100 structures burned.
• 1788 – Great Fire of Tenmei—Kyoto, Japan, 150 killed, 37,000 houses burned, on March 6.
• 1794 – Second Great New Orleans Fire (1794), December 8, 1794. 212 structures destroyed.
• 1795 – Copenhagen fire of 1795

19th century

1800s

• 1805 – Detroit

1810s

• 1811 – Great fire of Podil in Kiev, Russian Empire. Over 2,000 buildings, 12 churches and 3 abbeys destroyed; about 30 deaths
• 1812 – Moscow, to deny shelter to Napoleon
• 1813 – Buffalo, New York burned during the War of 1812
• 1813 – Portsmouth, New Hampshire
• 1813 – York, Upper Canada burned during the War of 1812
• 1814 – Tirschenreuth. Town totally destroyed apart from the parish church and 3 neighbouring buildings.
• 1814 – Burning of Washington during the War of 1812
• 1817 – St. John's, Newfoundland

1820s

• 1820 – Ponce, Puerto Rico Spanish settlement almost completely destroyed on February 27.
• 1820 – Great Savannah Fire burned almost 500 structures, with damages of about $4 million.
• 1821 – Paramaribo (Suriname) over 400 houses destroyed
• 1821 – Fayetteville the Great Fire destroys 500 buildings in the city
• 1827 – Great Fire of Turku
• 1829 – Fire destroys hundreds of buildings in Augusta, Georgia

1830s

• 1835 – Second Great Fire of New York City
• 1838 – Charleston, South Carolina, over 1,000 buildings damaged

1840s

• 1842 – Hamburg fire, about a quarter of the inner city destroyed, 51 killed, and an estimated 20,000 homeless

Views of Pittsburgh the day after the 1845 Great Fire. Detail from William Coventry Wall print, "Great Conflagration at Pittsburgh".

• 1845 – Great New York City Fire of 1845, 345 buildings destroyed
• 1845 – Great Fire of Pittsburgh destroyed over 1000 buildings
• 1845 – La Playa (de Ponce), the city port of Ponce, Puerto Rico fire, wiped out most of the Ponce vecinity.
• 1846 – St. John's, Newfoundland
• 1847 – Great Fire of Bucharest
• 1848 – Fire in Medina, Ohio. Destroyed the entire business district
• 1849 – St. Louis Fire, first US firefighter killed in the line of duty
• 1849 – First Great Fire of Toronto

1850s

• 1850 – Kraków, Poland, 10% of the city area
• 1851 – San Francisco Fire of 1851, destroyed 2000 buildings, a great part of the city
• 1852 – Vaasa, Finland
• 1852 – Great Fire of 1852, Montreal, 10,000 of the city's 57,000 residents left homeless.
• 1854 – Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead: a spectacular explosion leads to the great fire of Newcastle and Gateshead, killing 53 and leveling substantial property in both towns.
• 1858 – Auckland, New Zealand: Large fire which destroyed 3 hotels, 20 shops, 17 houses, Police station, theatre, Post office and several other buildings in the central town. Auckland had a population, then, of 1500.

1860s

• 1862 – Troy, New York, 671 buildings destroyed
• 1864 – Great Fire of Brisbane in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia: Over four city blocks burned with over 50 houses razed and dozens of businesses; 0 deaths, 4 injured
• 1861–1865 – The American Civil War involved several major city fires:
  • 1864 – Atlanta, Georgia, burned after time given for evacuation of citizens by order of William Tecumseh Sherman
  • 1865 – Columbia, South Carolina, burned while being occupied by troops commanded by William Tecumseh Sherman
  • 1865 – Richmond, Virginia, burned by retreating Confederates.
• 1866 – Portland, Maine, Independence Day Fire, commercial district destroyed; 10,000 homeless
• 1868 – Auerbach in der Oberpfalz, Bavaria. Arson destroys 107 houses and 146 other buildings; 4 deaths.

1870s

• 1870 – Fire in Medina, Ohio, started in a wooden building with a barber shop and consumed all but two blocks of the business district, nearly wiping out the entire town.
• 1871 – Great Chicago Fire, destroyed the downtown on October 8 and died out the following night. About 250 dead.
• 1871 – Peshtigo, Wisconsin, several towns destroyed in a firestorm which did also reach Michigan, 1500–2500 dead, same day as Chicago Fire broke out.
• 1871 – Port Huron Fire of 1871 killed over 200 people in Port Huron, Michigan on October 8; one of the fires collectively called The Great Michigan Fire.
• 1871 – The Urbana fire destroyed the central Urbana, Illinois on October 9, while the Great Chicago Fire still raged.
• 1872 – Great Boston Fire of 1872, destroyed 776 buildings and killed at least 20 people.
• 1874 – Chicago Fire of 1874, July 14, was in some respects very similar to the 1871 fire, but was stopped by a new-built fire-proof wall. It destroyed 812 structures and killed 20 people.
• 1875 – Great Whiskey Fire, Dublin, 18 June, killed 13 people, and destroyed a malt house, a bonded warehouse, houses and a tannery in Mill Street and Chamber Street.
• 1876- Brooklyn theater fire
• 1877 - Paris, Texas Fire of 1877, First of three fires that destroyed much of the town.
• 1877 – Saint John, New Brunswick Fire destroyed 1600 buildings
• 1878 – The Great Fire of Hong Kong, destroyed 350 to 400 buildings across more than 10 acres (40,000 m²) of central Hong Kong.
• 1879 – Hakodate fire, Hakodate, Hokkaidō, Japan, 67 fatalities, 20,000 homeless.

1880s

• 1881 – Thumb Fire in Michigan; 282 killed.
• 1886 – Great Vancouver Fire, Vancouver, British Columbia
• 1889 – Great Seattle Fire
• 1889 – Great Bakersfield Fire of 1889—destroyed 196 buildings and killed 1 person.
• 1889 – The First Great Lynn Conflagration—destroyed about 100 buildings, costing over $160 million in damage in today's dollars.

City of St. John's after the Great Fire of 1892

1890s

• 1892 – St. John's, Newfoundland
• 1894 – Great Hinckley Fire of Minnesota: A firestorm destroyed several towns; over 400 killed
• 1894 – Great Fire in Shanghai; over 1,000 buildings are destroyed
• 1896 - Paris, Texas Fire of 1896, Second of three fires that destroyed much of the town.
• 1897 – The Great Awesome Fire, Windsor, Nova Scotia Canada, destroyed 80% of the town
• 1898 – Great Fire of New Westminster, British Columbia
• 1899 – El Polvorin Fire in Ponce, Puerto Rico, occurred on January 25th. The fire started at the U.S. Munitions Depot on the lot currently occupied by the Ponce High School building and grounds. The heroes in that fire, believed to have saved the city from certain annihilation, are remembered to this day with monuments on their tombs as well as a monument in the main city square Plaza Las Delicias.

20th century

1900s

• 1900 – 1900 Hull–Ottawa fire, Canada. Starting in Hull, Quebec, the fire crossed the river to Ottawa, Ontario, and destroyed large areas of both cities.
• 1900 – Sandon, British Columbia, Canada, destroyed by fire
• 1901 – Great Fire of 1901, Jacksonville, Florida
• 1902 – The Great Confligration of 1902, Paterson, NJ
• 1903 – Iroquois Theater Fire, Chicago, Illinois. Fourth worst loss of life in U.S. history.
• 1904 – Great Baltimore Fire
• 1904 – General Slocum
• 1904 – Second Great Fire of Toronto
• 1904 – Ålesund Fire, 850 buildings destroyed; the fire started during a violent storm.
• 1906 – San Francisco earthquake and fire
• 1906 – Syzran Fire destroyed by fire, then rebuilt. 5500 buildings destroyed, 33 000 homeless in Syzran.
• 1908 – First Great Chelsea Fire on April 12. Nearly half the city of Chelsea, Massachusetts was destroyed.
• 1909 – Phoenix, British Columbia destroyed by fire, then rebuilt

1910s

• 1911 – Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, March 25, New York City, 146 deaths. Fourth largest industrial disaster in U.S. history.
• 1911 – Oscoda/AuSable, Michigan
• 1912 – Houston, Texas, 56 city blocks; Houston's largest fire
• 1912 – Maryland Agricultural College, now the University of Maryland.
• 1914 – Great Salem Fire of 1914, Massachusetts
• 1916 – Bergen, Norway. About 300 buildings razed.
• 1916 – Matheson Fire, Matheson, Ontario
• 1916 - Paris, Texas Fire of 1916. Largest of 3 historical fires that destroyed most of the central business district and a large residential section resulting in property loss of over $11 million.
• 1917 – The Halifax Explosion, largest man-made explosion before the atomic bomb
• 1917 – Great Atlanta fire of 1917, during which over 300 acres (1.2 km²) (73 blocks) destroyed
• 1917 – Great Thessaloniki Fire of 1917, Thessaloniki, Greece. Ca. 9,500 buildings destroyed.
• 1917 – Gyöngyös, Hungary fire in which a number of buildings were destroyed leaving around 8,000 homeless
• 1921 – Tulsa Race Riot, 35 city blocks; 1,256 residences were destroyed by arson

1920s

• 1922 – The Great Fire of Smyrna, Izmir, Turkey
• 1922 – Most of downtown Astoria, Oregon burns
• 1922 – The Great Fire of 1922 in the Timiskaming District, Ontario, Canada, killed 43 people and burnt down 18 townships.
• 1923 – 1923 Tokyo fire following the Great Kantō earthquake. About half the city was razed and over 100,000 died.
• 1923 – 1923 Berkeley Fire destroyed at least 640 structures
• 1925 – 1925 Decatur St. Fire, Atlanta, GA - 6 firefighters killed, 8 other seriously injured
• 1928 – Great Fall River fire of 1928, Massachusetts
• 1929 – Cleveland Clinic fire of 1929, fire resulted in 125 deaths.

1930s

• 1931 – Fire engulfed much of the twin cities of Napier and Hastings, New Zealand following an earthquake.
• 1931 – Downtown fire in Marshfield, Wisconsin, killed 6 on March 28
• 1931 – Half of downtown Lillooet, British Columbia, Canada, is destroyed by fire
• 1934 – On March 21, 1934 a fire was started in a house in the Japanese town of Hakodate, Hokkaido. Over two days, burning debris fanned by strong winds, set fire to the surrounding areas including a local court, department store, school and hospital. According to official documents, 2,166 people lost their lives, with 9,485 injured, 145,500 people made homeless, and 11,055 buildings lost.
• 1938 – 1938 Changsha Fire, 56,000 buildings burned by the Chinese army during the Second Sino-Japanese War to prevent the Japanese from getting resources from the city, 3,000 civilians killed on November 13.
• 1939 – Great Lagunillas Fire at Ciudad Ojeda, Venezuela on November 14.

1940s

• 1941 – The great fire of Santander, Spain. Destroyed the greater part of the medieval town centre.
• 1940–1945 – Air raids during World War II resulted in many major city fires:
  • 1940 – Bombing of Rotterdam, 14 May 1940, forcing the capitulation of the Dutch government. 800 killed, 24.000 houses destroyed, 80.000 homeless
  • 1940 – The Second Great Fire of London, one of the most destructive air raids of The Blitz. 1,500 killed.
  • 1942 – German air bombardment of Stalingrad, Soviet Union, resulting in firestorm; 955 fatalities (original Soviet estimate)
  • 1943 – Hamburg, 45,000 killed (largest in an air-raid on Germany)
  • 1943 – Kassel, 10,000 killed
  • 1944 – Braunschweig, 2,600 killed but 30,000 rescued
  • 1944 – Darmstadt, 12,000 killed
  • 1944 – Heilbronn, 6,500 killed
  • 1945 – Dresden, around 30,000 killed in firestorm during one of the most controversial Allied air-raids
  • 1945 – Pforzheim, a quarter of the town's population (17,000) killed
  • 1945 – Tokyo, causing the largest urban conflagration in history. Over 100,000 killed.
  • 1945 – Würzburg, 5,000 killed
  • 1945 – Kobe, 8,800 killed
  • 1945 – Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, large fires in each city
• 1946 – Bandung, a city in West Java, Indonesia, March 24, 1946, the city was burned by Indonesians to prevent the Dutch from retaking over the city, an event called "Bandung sea of flame".
• 1947 – Texas City Disaster, two ships explode, igniting chemical works, 460–600 killed
• 1948 – Fukui earthquake with fire, 46,000 buildings and houses lost on June 28
• 1949 – A fire burned for 18 hours in Chongqing's waterfront and banking district, on September 2, killed 2865 people and left more than 100,000 homeless. 7000 buildings were destroyed.

1950s

• 1953 – Shek Kip Mei fire, fire in a squatter area in Hong Kong, 58,000 homeless
• 1955 – The Freeman Pier Fire in Seaside Heights & Seaside Park, New Jersey, USA. At least 30 businesses lost, 50 residents evacuated, no major injuries
• 1956 – Franklin Street fire in New Haven, Connecticut, killed 15 on January 25

1960s

• 1961 – Bukit Ho Swee Fire, flames erupt in a squatter settlement in Singapore, making 16,000 homeless
• 1961 – Brentwood-Bel Air fire in Los Angeles, burned 6,090 acres (24.6 km²) and destroyed 484 homes near UCLA in Los Angeles
• 1964 – The Bellflower Street Conflagration destroyed 19 apartment buildings and damaged 11 in square-block conflagration in Boston
• 1966 – William Booth Memorial Home on 13 August. Australia's deadliest building fire in which 30 men were incinerated

1970s

• 1973 – Second Great Chelsea Fire on October 14. 18 city blocks destroyed: several businesses (mostly rag shops) and homes of one, two, and three story wood frame and metal clad construction.
• 1974 – Chelsea, Massachusetts on May 24. A fire at the American Barrel Company spread to several other businesses in a two block area.

1980s

• 1981 – Arson fire in Lynn, Massachusetts levels downtown factory area under redevelopment; no conviction; $80 million damage estimate
• 1983 – North Division Street explosion in Buffalo, New York kills 5 firefighters and 2 others and destroys millions in property.
• 1984 – Oil spill set fire to the shantytown of Vila Socó, Cubatão, São Paulo, Brazil; official death toll is 93 people although speculation is more than 200, on February 25
• 1985 – Isabela Island forest fire, Galápagos Island, Ecuador, 62,500 acres (253 km²) lost on March.
• 1985 – Osage Ave./MOVE Incident, Philadelphia, 65 houses destroyed.
• 1985 – Annanar forest fire, Portugal, 1,500 km² destroyed, killing 14.
• 1986 – Chu Ku Tsai village fire, Hong Kong, 2,000 homeless on Lunar New Year holiday.
• 1986 – Aberdeen Typhoon Shelter fire, Aberdeen, Hong Kong, 150 vessels destroyed, 1,700 homeless and 2 injured on December 25
• 1988 – Great Lashio Fire, Lashio, Myanmar, killed 134, 2000 buildings destroyed.
• 1988 – A fire in Lisbon, Portugal destroyed 7 blocks of houses (7,500 m²) on August 25

1990s

• 1991 – Kuwaiti oil fires following the Persian Gulf War
• 1991 – Oakland Hills firestorm kills 25 and destroys 3469 homes and apartments
• 1993 – A Tsunami hit with fire at Okushiri Island, Japan by 1993 quake, 645 houses lost, 202 killed on July.
• 1995 – Great Hanshin earthquake with fire, Kobe, Japan
• 1996 – 1996 Pat Sin Leng wildfire, Pat Sin Leng, Tai Po, Hong Kong; 5 (3 pupils and 2 teachers) killed on February 10

21st century

2000s

• 2002 – Lagos armoury explosion causes fire which killed at least 1,100 people
• 2002 – Edinburgh Cowgate fire
• 2002 – Rodeo-Chediski fire
• 2003 – Canberra bushfires fire that killed 4 and destroyed over 500 homes
• 2006 – Day Fire, Los Angeles and Ventura counties in California.
• 2007 – 2007 Greek forest fires, large fire in Greece
• 2008 – Camden Market Fire, which caused severe damage to one of North London's most famous shopping districts.
• 2009 – February Black Saturday Bushfires – Victoria, Australia, 173 deaths, refer to separate page
• 2009 – Kenyan oil spill ignition kills at least 111.

2010s

• 2010 – 2010 Dhaka fire kills 117 people in the Nimtali area of Old Dhaka, Bangladesh.
• 2011 – Devastating fire in Manila, Philippines leaves about 8,000 people homeless and 9 injured in a Makati City squatter community.
• 2012 – Hurricane Sandy: A six-alarm fire caused by hurricane damage destroyed 121 homes in Breezy Point, Queens, New York.
• 2013 – Yarnell Hill Fire: Over 13 square miles, destroyed over 100 homes, and 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots were killed in action.
• 2013 – Lac-Mégantic derailment: Over 30 buildings in the town centre were destroyed in a train derailment, explosion and fire which caused 46 confirmed deaths. The fire made the event the deadliest train accident in Canada's history since 1864.
• 2013 – Boardwalk fire in Seaside Heights & Seaside Park, New Jersey, U.S.A. At least 19 buildings destroyed, 30 businesses lost, no major injuries
• 2014 – Valparaíso wildfire in Chile – wildfire destroying several areas of Valparaíso, Chile killing at least 13 people.
• 2014 – Lahore supermarket fire in Pakistan – in Anarkali Bazaar, Lahore. The fire killed at least 13 people.

Building or structure fires

Antiquity through Middle Ages

• 586 BCE – First Temple in Jerusalem burned by Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Babylonians
• 480 BCE – Acropolis of Athens burnt during the second Persian invasion of Greece
• 356 BCE – Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, arson by Herostratus
• 330 BCE – Persepolis destroyed by fire after its capture by Alexander the Great
• 70 – Second Temple in Jerusalem burned by Roman Empire troops under general Titus
• Library of Alexandria destroyed by fire. Evidence is scant for all four fires, but the library was eventually destroyed.
  • 48 BCE – Library of Alexandria accidentally burned during siege by Julius Caesar
  • 272 – Library of Alexandria possibly burned during occupation of Alexandria
  • 391 – Library of Alexandria possibly burned by order of Roman Emperor Theodosius I
  • 642 – later sources attribute burning to Caliph Omar during the Muslim conquest of Egypt
• 1190 – Fire at Clifford's Tower, York, England, kills at least 150 Jews

16th century

• 1561 – Fire of Valladolid (21 September) destroys a tenth of the city, including 440 houses.
• 1568 – The Great Fire of Ferrol which reduced to rubble the old medieval town
• 1577 – Fire in the Doge's Palace, Venice, destroyed major works by Bellini, Titian and Tintoretto

17th century

• 1608 – First settlement in Jamestown burns
• 1613 – Globe Theatre in London. During performance, cannon misfire caught the thatched roof on fire and the Theatre burned down.
• 1652 – Town hall of Amsterdam burnt down. Treasures and important historical charters were destroyed.
• 1671 – Much of the monastery of the Escorial outside Madrid burned in a fire lasting 15 days, destroying large numbers of artworks, books and manuscripts.
• 1697 – The medieval "Tre Kronor" Royal Castle in Stockholm burned down and was eventually replaced by the present palace.
• 1698 – The Tudor and Stuart Palace of Whitehall, London burned, except for Inigo Jones's Banqueting House. The ruins were demolished.

18th century

• 1727 – Fire during puppet show in barn at Burwell, Cambridgeshire, England, killed 78 (including 51 children)
• 1731 – Coudenbourg Royal Palace, Brussels, destroyed and never rebuilt.
• 1734 – The Royal Palace of the Alcazar, Madrid, burned on Christmas Eve. Eventually replaced by the present royal palace.
• c.1750–1755 – Wii Lax K'abit and Lax Ksiluux, two villages of the Nisga'a people on the Tseax River were destroyed by volcanic eruption
• 1772 – Hôtel-Dieu de Paris fire in Paris, France
• 1794 – Christiansborg Palace, Copenhagen

19th century

• 1808 – Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher, Jerusalem. Fire caused the dome of the Rotunda to collapse and smashing the Edicule's exterior decoration.
• 1808 – First Royal Opera House fire in London, England
• 1809 – St. James's Palace, London. Much of the south and east portions of the palace were destroyed and not rebuilt.
• 1811 – Richmond Theatre fire, Richmond, Virginia. 72 dead.
• 1814 – The White House and United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. burned by the British
• 1822 – Grue Church fire, Norway, 113–117 dead.
• 1823 – Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, Rome

J. M. W. Turner watched the Palace of Westminster fire in 1834 and painted several canvases depicting it, including The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons (1835)

• 1834 – Palace of Westminster, home to Parliament of the United Kingdom
• 1836 – First U.S. Patent Office fire in Blodget's Hotel
• 1837 – The Winter Palace, St. Petersburg, Russia destroyed except for The Hermitage
• 1841 – Mayagüez, Puerto Rico January 30
• 1842 – Hamburg Great Fire
• 1844 – Separate fires at St. Michael's & St. Augustine's Roman Catholic Churches during the Philadelphia Nativist Riot, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• 1845 – Theatre fire in Canton, China killed 1670
• 1863 – Church of the Company Fire in Santiago, Chile; killed over 2500
• 1864 – Boijmans Museum, Rotterdam, destroyed 198 Dutch old master paintings
• 1856 – Second Royal Opera House fire in London, England
• 1871 – Fires deliberately set during the Paris Commune in May destroyed the Royal Palace of the Tuileries, the Louvre Library, the Palais de Justice, the Hôtel de Ville, the Gare de Lyon, and the Palais d'Orsay.
• 1871 – Fires occur throughout the Great Lakes region of the United States, including the Great Chicago Fire, the Peshtigo Fire, and the Great Michigan Fire
• 1875 – Precious Blood Church in Holyoke Massachusetts burned and killed 78 people
• 1876 – Brooklyn Theater Fire, killed 273 – 300 in Brooklyn, New York
• 1877 – Great Fire of Saint John, New Brunswick
• 1877 – Second U.S. Patent Office fire in Washington, D.C.
• 1877 – Saint-Stephen Cathedral, Metz
• 1878 – The Eldkvarn flour mill in Stockholm.
• 1878 – The Washburn "A" Mill flour mill explosion and fire in Minneapolis, Minnesota
• 1881 – Ring Theater Fire, killed 850 in Vienna
• 1884 – Christiansborg Palace, Copenhagen
• 1886 – Great Vancouver Fire
• 1887 – Paris Opéra Fire on May 25 killed 200
• 1887 – Theatre Royal, Exeter Fire, England on September 5 killed 186
• 1893 – World's Columbian Exposition cold storage warehouse fire in Chicago, Illinois killed 18 on July 10
• 1893 – Merrill House fire in Beaver, Pennsylvania, killed 7 on November 21
• 1893 – Edison, Moore & Company dry goods store fire in Detroit, Michigan, killed 7 on November 23
• 1895 – The Rotunda, University of Virginia, in Charlottesville, Virginia
• 1897 – Fire at the Bazar de la Charité, Paris on May 4 killed 126, mostly women
• 1897 – Cold storage fire on fairgrounds in Chicago, Illinois, killed 17 firefighters on July 10
• 1897 – Fire in Dawson City occurred on November 25, 1897
• 1899 – Windsor Hotel East 47th Street/5th Avenue Manhattan, New York—at least 33 and 45 people killed (estimates vary)

20th century

1900s

• 1900 – Hoboken Docks Fire, New Jersey, on June 30 killed 326
• 1903 – Colney Hatch Lunatic Asylum fire, London, killed 51 on January 27
• 1903 – Iroquois Theater Fire, Chicago, at least 600 died
• 1904 – January fire in the Turin National University Library, Italy, resulted in serious damage to the Manuscripts Department
• 1905 – Watson Street Lodging House fire in Glasgow killed 39 on 19 November
• 1906 – Much of the commercial area of Arrowhead, British Columbia, Canada, was destroyed by fire.
• 1906 – 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire
• 1906 – The most destructive fire in the history of Dundee, Scotland, destroyed the area around a bonded warehouse of whisky, causing £450,000 worth of damage.
• 1907 – Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan, a fire that broke out in the evening of August 25 burned for six hours, destroying an estimated 60–70% of the city, leaving 60,000+ homeless and causing at least 8,000,000 yen in property damages including destroying many of the city's historical buildings
• 1908 – Rhoads Theater Fire, Boyertown, Pennsylvania, killed 170
• 1908 – Parker Building, New York City, January 10
• 1908 – Collinwood School Fire, in Collinwood, Ohio (soon absorbed by Cleveland) killed 175 on March 4
• 1909 – Flores Theater fire, Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico, on February 15, killed 250

1910s

• 1910 – L. Fish Furniture Company fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 12 on March 25
• 1910 – Drake-Morrison Paper Box Company building fire in Newark, New Jersey, killed 6 on November 26
• 1910 – Friedlander Leather Remnants factory fire, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 13 firemen and 1 policeman lost their lives in two separate collapses, December 21–22
• 1910 – Ököritófülpös, Hungary, fire in a barn during a dancing party killed 312 people
• 1910 – Nelson-Morris & Company stockyards fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 21 firefighters on December 22
• 1911 – Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, New York City
• 1912 – Equitable Life Assurance Building, New York City, January 9
• 1912 – University of Maryland, College Park, majority of campus buildings destroyed on November 29
• 1912 – St. John's Orphanage fire in San Antonio, Texas, killed 8 on October 30
• 1913 – Dewey Hotel fire in Omaha, Nebraska, killed 20 on February 28
• 1913 – Binghamton Factory Fire, New York, killed 31 on July 22
• 1914 – Hotel fire in Kelliher, Minnesota, killed 5 on February 4
• 1914 – Missouri Athletic Club fire in St. Louis, Missouri, killed 30 on March 9
• 1915 – St. Johns School Fire, Peabody, Massachusetts, October 28
• 1916 – Great Fire of East Nashville, Tennessee, destroyed over 500 houses and left over 2,500 people homeless, on March 22
• 1916 – Centre Block of the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa, the capital of Canada
• 1917 – Barnaul, Russia, conflagration with 34 victims and 60 quarters destroyed
• 1918 – Norman State Hospital Fire, Norman, Oklahoma
• 1918 – Happy Valley Racecourse fire, Happy Valley, Hong Kong, over 600 killed on February 26
• 1918 – Kent County Juvenile Home fire in Grand Rapids, Michigan, killed 5 on July 24
• 1919 – Mayagüez Theater Fire, San Juan, Puerto Rico, killed 150 on June 19

1920s

• 1920 – The Burning of Cork, Ireland, a fire set by the British Auxiliaries in revenge after an ambush by the IRA, destroyed much of the old city centre of Cork
• 1921 – Palace-Colonial Hotel fire in Hoboken, New Jersey, killed 10 on January 31
• 1921 – Rialto Theatre fire in New Haven, Connecticut, killed 9 on November 29
• 1922 – Public Records Office fire during civil unrest at the Four Courts complex, Dublin, Ireland, destroyed much of seven centuries of official Irish public records
• 1923 – Davies Hotel fire in Homestead, Pennsylvania, killed 5 on January 22
• 1923 – Manhattan State Hospital fire in New York City, New York, killed 25 on February 18
• 1923 – Cleveland School Fire, Camden, South Carolina, killed 77 on May 16
• 1923 – Petrograd Opera House fire in St. Petersburg, Russia, killed scores on May 31
• 1924 – Curran Hall fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 9 firefighters on April 18
• 1924 – Babbs Switch Schoolhouse Fire, Oklahoma, killed 36 on December 24
• 1925 – Madame Tussauds wax museum in London
• 1925 – Catholic mission dormitory fire at Nez Perce Indian reservation in Idaho, killed 6 on October 3
• 1926 – Lafayette Hotel fire in Allentown, Pennsylvania, killed 13 on January 23
• 1926 – Twilight Inn hotel fire in Tannersville, New York, killed 22 on July 14
• 1926 – Dromcolliher cinema fire in County Limerick, Ireland, killed 48 on September 5
• 1927 – Laurier Palace Theatre Fire, Montreal, killed 77 children on January 9
• 1927 – Buckingham Hotel arson fire in St. Louis, Missouri, killed 7 on December 5
• 1928 – Teatro de Novedades theater fire killed 68 or maybe 110, in Madrid, Spain, on 22 September
• 1928 – Penitentiary fire in Junction City, Ohio, killed 17 on October 8
• 1928 – Eagle Hotel fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 5 on October 23
• 1929 – Kirkwood Hotel fire in Des Moines, Iowa, killed 5 on April 6
• 1929 – Elmhirst Hotel fire in Amarillo, Texas, killed 5 on May 11
• 1929 – Cleveland Clinic fire of 1929, Cleveland, Ohio, killed 123 on May 15
• 1929 – Gillingham Fair fire disaster, Kent, England, killed 15 when firefighting demonstration went wrong on July 11
• 1929 – Glen Cinema disaster, Paisley, Scotland, killed 71 on December 31
• 1929 – Fire at the Study Club nightclub in Detroit, Michigan, killed 22 on September 20

1930s

• 1930 – Jinhae Primary School fire, Jinhae, Gyeongsangnamdo, South Korea, killed 104 on March 10
• 1930 – 1930 Costești wooden church fire in Argeș County, Romania, killed 118 on April 18
• 1930 – Ohio Penitentiary fire, Columbus, Ohio, killed 322 on April 21
• 1931 – Prison camp fire in Kenansville, North Carolina, killed 11 convicts on March 7
• 1931 – Glaspalast, Munich, fire on July 6
• 1931 – Fire at the Little Sisters of the Poor's Home for the Aged in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, killed 42 and injured more than 200

Firemen struggle to extinguish the Reichstag fire on 27 February 1933

• 1933 – Ridgecliff sanitarium fire in Wickliffe, Ohio, kills 9 on February 3
• 1933 – Millard Hotel fire in Omaha, Nebraska, killed 8 firefighters on February 8
• 1933 – Reichstag fire in Berlin, caused by arson
• 1934 – Federal Transient Bureau building fire in Lynchburg, Virginia, killed 22 on March 24
• 1934 – Kerns Hotel fire in Lansing, Michigan, killed 34, including seven Michigan legislators on December 11.
• 1934 – The Great Hakodate fire kills at least 2,166 people in southern Hokkaido, Japan
• 1935 – Club Rendezvous fire in Morton Grove, Illinois, killed 6 on March 24
• 1935 – Berlin Fair Fire also damaged the Berlin Radio Tower
• 1937 – South Tomita Primary School fire, Shirahama, Wakayama, Japan, killed 81 on 20 December
• 1937 – Antoung Movie Theater fire, China, killed 658 on February 13
• 1938 – College of the Sacred Heart fire in St. Hyacinthe, Quebec, killed 46 on January 18
• 1938 – Terminal Hotel Fire in Atlanta, Georgia, killed 35 on May 16
• 1938 – Nouvelles Galeries department store fire, Marseille, France, killed 73 on October 28
• 1939 – Queen Hotel fire in Halifax, Nova Scotia, killed 28 on March 2

1940s

• 1940 – Marlborough Hotel fire in Minneapolis, Minnesota, killed 20 on January 4.
• 1940 – Rhythm Night Club Fire, Natchez, Mississippi, killed 209 on April 23
• 1940 – Mission school dormitory fire in Little, Kentucky, killed 10, including 9 girl students on October 8
• 1941 – Santander city, Spain. 0 Killed but the city collapsed on February 16 Incendio de Santander de 1941
• 1941 – Booth's clothing factory fire in Huddersfield, England, killed 49 on October 31
• 1942 – Knights of Columbus Hostel fire in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, kills 99 on December 12
• 1942 – Cocoanut Grove fire in Boston, Massachusetts, kills 492
• 1942 – Seacliff Lunatic Asylum, Seacliff, New Zealand, killed 37 female patients on 8 December
• 1943 – Lake Forest Park Sanitarium fire in Seattle, Washington, kills 32 on February 1
• 1943 – Cavan Orphanage Fire, Ireland, kills 36 on 23 February
• 1943 – Biblioteca Nacional in Lima, Peru. In May, a fire completely destroyed the National Library, with the loss of 100,000 volumes as well as 40,000 manuscripts.
• 1943 – Gulf Hotel fire in Houston, Texas, kills 55
• 1943 – Hoteiza Theater Fire in Kucchan, Hokkaidō, Japan, killed 205 on March 6
• 1944 – Union Hotel fire in Oroville, California, killed 15 on May 12
• 1944 – Hartford Circus Fire in Hartford, Connecticut, killed 168 on July 6
• 1945 – General Clark Hotel fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 14 on January 16
• 1945 – Boarding home/nursery fire in Auburn, Maine, killed 17, including 16 babies on January 31
• 1945 – The Empire State Building in New York City is set on fire by a B-25 Mitchell bomber that crashed into the building, killing 14 on July 28
• 1945 – Niles Street Convalescent Hospital fire in Hartford, Connecticut, killed 21 on December 24
• 1946 – Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, hangar fire, killed 10 on January 28
• 1946 – LaSalle Hotel Fire in Chicago kills 61 on June 5
• 1946 – Hotel Canfield fire in Dubuque, Iowa, killed 19 on June 19
• 1946 – Winecoff Hotel fire in Atlanta, Georgia, killed 119 on December 7
• 1947 – Karlslust dance hall fire in Berlin, killed 80–88 on February 8
• 1947 – Le Select Cinema fire in Rueil-Malmaison, France, killed 87 on August 30
• 1947 – Ballantyne's department store fire, Christchurch, New Zealand, killed 41 on 18 November
• 1947 – Hotel fire in Orange, Texas, kills 7 on December 26
• 1948 – Fire at Highland Hospital in Asheville, North Carolina, killed 9, including Zelda Fitzgerald
• 1948 – Wing On godown fire, Hong Kong, 176 killed and 69 injured
• 1949 – Grand View Hotel fire in Ripon, Wisconsin, killed 6 on February 1
• 1949 – St. Anthony's Hospital Fire in Effingham, Illinois, killed 70 on April 5

1950s

• 1950 – Mercy Hospital fire, Davenport, Iowa, killed 41 on January 7
• 1950 – Montana Hotel fire in Eureka, Montana, killed 5 on February 5
• 1950 – Jail fire in Spray, North Carolina, killed 6
• 1950 – Sandia Base stockade fire in Albuquerque, New Mexico, killed 14 on March 18
• 1950 – Kinkaku-ji fire by arsonist in Kyoto, Japan, on July 2
• 1950 – Convalescent home fire in Amarillo, Texas, killed 10 on December 22
• 1951 – Convalescent home fire in Hoquiam, Washington, killed 21 on January 30
• 1951 – al-Duniya Theater fire in Kano, present day of Nigeria on May 13, killing 100.
• 1952 – 3 Story Tenement fire in Minneapolis, MN killed 7 on Jan 29
• 1952 – St. George Hotel fire in Los Angeles, California, killed 6 on March 25
• 1952 – Nursing home fire in Hillsboro, Missouri, killed 20 on October 31
• 1953 – Ticonderoga Inn fire in Ticonderoga, New York, killed 5 on March 18
• 1953 – Chestnut Hotel fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 7 on March 20
• 1953 – Littlefield Nursing Home Fire in Largo, Florida, killed 32 on March 29
• 1953 – Haber Screw Company building fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 32 on April 17
• 1953 – Hotel fire in Texarkana, Texas, killed 7 on August 3
• 1953 – Reliance Hotel fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 7, including 6 firefighters on December 17
• 1954 – Shimer Convalescent Home fire near Watervliet, Michigan, killed 8 on February 19
• 1954 – Northwood Hotel fire in Crookston, Minnesota, killed 8 on March 27
• 1954 – Cleveland Hill School fire in Cheektowaga, New York, killed 15 on March 31
• 1954 – Larkin Warehouse Fire in Buffalo, New York. Only fire in Buffalo to go to a General Alarm (Entire department responds)
• 1954 – Charles Berg Laboratories, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Storage tank explosion and ensuing release of toxic fumes kills 10 fireman. October 28.
• 1955 – Barton Hotel fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 29 on February 12
• 1955 – Elderly home for Catholic church fire in Yokohama, Japan killed 100 on February 16
• 1955 – Johnson Hotel fire in Laramie, Wyoming, killed 7 on March 15
• 1955 – Green Mill Hotel fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 12 on April 28
• 1955 – Comfort Hotel fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 9 on May 6
• 1955 – Cinema fire in Wielopole Skrzyńskie, Poland killed 58 and wounded 20 on May 11
• 1956 – Arundel Park Auditorium fire in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, killed 10 on January 29
• 1956 – McKee refinery fire killed 19 firefighters on July 29
• 1956 – Reagan Nursing Home fire in Puxico, Missouri, killed 12 on July 31
• 1956 – Doctor's Memorial (Eitel) Hospital fire in Minneapolis, Minnesota, killed 8 on December 23
• 1957 – Browns Lane plant fire, Coventry on 12 February
• 1957 – Nursing home fire in Council Bluffs, Iowa, killed 16 on February 13
• 1957 – Warrenton Nursing Home Fire in Warrenton, Missouri, killed 72 on February 17
• 1957 – Moonglow Hotel fire in Niagara Falls, New York, killed 18 on November 16
• 1958 – Olympia Hotel fire in Des Moines, Iowa, killed 5 on January 27
• 1958 – Monarch Underwear Company fire in New York City, New York, killed 24 on March 19
• 1958 – Our Lady of the Angels School Fire, Chicago ultimately killed 95 (91 on December 1 alone) and injured another 107, 77 seriously
• 1958 – Almacen Vida Department Store Fire and kills eighty-three and injuring 200 in Bogotá, Colombia on December 16.
• 1959 – Syracuse University dormitory barracks fire in Syracuse, New York, killed 7 student airmen on January 6
• 1959 – Nursing home fire in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, killed 9 on January 30
• 1959 – Arkansas Negro Boys' Industrial School fire in Wrightsville, Arkansas, killed 21 on March 5
• 1959 – Hotel Gary fire in Hazleton, Pennsylvania, killed 6 on March 5
• 1959 – Stalheim Hotel fire, Norway, killed 34 on June 23

1960s

• 1960 – Kukje Rubber Manufacturing plant 2 fire at Busan, South Korea, killing 68, injured 44, on March 2
• 1960 – Cheapside Street Whisky Bond Fire, Glasgow, Scotland, killed 19 firefighters on March 28
• 1960 – Guatemala Mental Hospital Fire, killed 225 on July 14
• 1960 – Syrian Movie Theater Fire in Amuda (Syria), killed 152 schoolchildren on November 13
• 1961 – Thomas Hotel fire in San Francisco, California, killed 20 on January 6
• 1961 – Hilker & Bletsch Company building fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 9 firefighters on January 28
• 1961 – Top Storey nightclub fire in Bolton, England killed 19 on 1 May
• 1961 – Bukit Ho Swee Fire in Singapore killed 4 and destroyed a record S$2 million worth of property on 25 May
• 1961 – School fire (Elbarusovo), Soviet Union, November 5, 109 killed
• 1961 – Hartford Hospital fire in Hartford, Connecticut, killed 16 on December 8
• 1961 – Niterói circus fire in Niterói (Brazil) killed 323 on December 17
• 1962 – Chau Street tenement house fire, (New Kowloon, Hong Kong, 44 dead, 21 injured
• 1962 – Golden Hotel fire in Reno, Nevada, killed 6 on April 3
• 1963 – Fretz Building, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, twelve-alarm fire was largest in city history. 50 homes and multiple businesses destroyed along with original fire building on January 1.
• 1963 – Central Hotel fire in Wallingford, Connecticut, killed 5 on January 6
• 1963 – Children's home fire in Rockville, Indiana, killed 6 on May 3
• 1963 – Le Monde Theater fire at Diourbel, Kaolack, Senegal on May 4, killing 64
• 1963 – Paradise Pines nursing home fire in Riggins, Idaho, killed 6 on September 17
• 1963 – Fairgrounds Coliseum explosion in Indianapolis, Indiana killed 74 on October 31
• 1963 – Surfside Hotel Fire in Atlantic City, New Jersey on November 18, killing 25
• 1963 – Golden Age Nursing Home Fire in Fitchville, Ohio killed 63 on November 23
• 1963 – Hotel Roosevelt fire in Jacksonville, Florida on December 29, killing 22
• 1964 – All Hallows Church parish hall fire in San Francisco, California, killed 17 on May 23
• 1964 – McGraw Nursing Home fire in Fountaintown, Indiana, killed 20 on December 18
• 1965 – Seeley Club fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 13 on December 11. Robert Lee Lassiter was found guilty of murder for setting the fire
• 1965 – Yonkers Jewish Community Center fire in Yonkers, New York, killed 12 on December 21
• 1966 – Paramount Hotel fire in Boston, Massachusetts, killed 11 on January 28
• 1966 – Astor Hotel fire in Green Bay, Wisconsin, killed 8 on February 4
• 1967 – Dale's Penthouse restaurant fire in Montgomery, Alabama, killed 25 on February 7
• 1967 – Grand Hotel fire in Joliet, Illinois, killed 6 on February 11
• 1967 – L'Innovation Department Store Fire, in Brussels killed 322 on May 22
• 1967 – Florida State Prison Fire, in Jay, Florida killed 37 on July 16
• 1967 – Store fire "Regalux" in Formosa, Argentina killing 20 and injuring 70 on December 24
• 1968 – Mickelberry Food Products Company building fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 9 on February 7
• 1968 – Shelton Hospital fire, Shrewsbury, killing 21 and injures 14 on 26 February.
• 1968 – Jackson Hotel fire in Omaha, Nebraska, killed 6 on March 26
• 1968 – Ikenobo Mangetsujyo Hotel fire at Arima Spa, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan, killing 30 and injuring 44 on November 2
• 1968 – Stern's upholstery factory fire in Glasgow, Scotland, killed 24 on November 18
• 1969 – Bandai Atami International Sightseeing Hotel fire, in Koriyama, Japan, kills 31 on February 5.
• 1969 – Rose and Crown Hotal fire in Saffron Walden, England, killed 11 on 27 December.

1970s

• 1970 – Nursing home fire Marietta, Ohio, killed 21 on January 10
• 1970 – Ozark Hotel arson fire in Seattle, Washington, killed 21 on March 20
• 1970 – Britannia Bridge fire in Menai Strait in Wales on May 23
• 1970 – Fenglei ship fire in Shanghai, China, August 31, killed 15 and severely injured 60.
• 1970 – Club Cinq-Sept fire in Saint-Laurent-du-Pont, France, killed 146 on November 1
• 1970 – Pioneer Hotel fire, Tucson, Arizona, killed 29 on December 20
• 1971 – Westminster Terrace Presbyterian Home for Senior Citizens fire in Louisville, Kentucky, killed 10 on January 14
• 1971 – Czechowice-Dziedzice Refinery fire, Czechowice-Dziedzice, Poland 26–27 June, 37 killed, 105 injured
• 1971 – Lil-Haven nursing home fire in Salt Lake City, Utah, killed 6 on September 15
• 1971 – Hotel 't Silveren Seepaerd fire, Eindhoven, Netherlands 28 September, 9 killed, 16 severely injured
• 1971 – Geiger Nursing Home fire in Honesdale, Pennsylvania, killed 15 on October 19
• 1971 – Under construction Jumbo Kingdom industrial fire in Aberdeen Harbour, Hong Kong, killing up to 34 workers on October 30.
• 1971 – Taeyunkak Hotel Fire in Seoul, South Korea on December 25
• 1972 – Green Nursing Home fire in Lincoln Heights, Ohio, killed 10 on January 26
• 1972 – Andraus Building Fire kills 16 in São Paulo on February 24.
• 1972 – Fair Hills boarding home fire in Rosecrans, Wisconsin, killed 10 on April 4
• 1972 – Carver Convalescent Center fire in Springfield, Illinois, killed 10 on May 5
• 1972 – Sennichi Department Store Building fire in Osaka, Japan, killed 118 on May 13
• 1972 – Hotel Vendome fire in Boston, 9 firefighters killed on June 17
• 1972 – Coldharbour Hospital fire in Sherborne, England, killed 30 on July 5
• 1972 – Blue Bird Café fire in Montreal, firebombed, resulting in 37 deaths on September 2
• 1972 – Robinson Department Store fire, killing twelve and 114-year-old landmark building in Singapore on November 21.
• 1973 – Street's Rest Home fire in Pleasantville, New Jersey, killed 10 on January 29. Resident Harry Kemp was arrested for setting the fire.
• 1973 – The nightclub Whiskey Au Go Go in Brisbane, Queensland firebombed, resulting in 15 deaths on March 18
• 1973 – National Archives Fire in St. Louis, Missouri
• 1973 – UpStairs Lounge in the UpStairs Lounge, a gay bar, in New Orleans, Louisiana killed 32 on June 24
• 1973 – Summerland disaster in Douglas, Isle of Man killed 51 on August 2
• 1973 – Hotel Hafnia fire, Copenhagen, Denmark, 35 killed on September 1
• 1973 – 1973 Taiyo Department Store fire in Kumamoto, Kyūshū, Japan, killed 104 on November 29
• 1973 – Caley Nursing Home and Rehabilitation Center fire in Wayne, Pennsylvania, killed 15 on December 4
• 1974 – Sacred Heart School fire in Heusden, Belgium, killed 23 on January 23
• 1974 – Joelma Fire kills 188 in São Paulo on February 1.
• 1974 – Gulliver's nightclub fire kills 24 in Port Chester, New York on June 30 as a result of arson at an adjacent business to cover up a minor burglary.
• 1974 – Moore's Rest Home fire in Brookhaven, Mississippi, killed 6 on August 16
• 1974 – Pui Lai Win Hotel with night club and other facilities fire, Seoul, South Korea, 89 killed on November 3
• 1974 – Worsley Hotel fire, Maida Vale, London, case of arson, resulting in attendance of over 25 appliances and killed 7 people on 12 December.
• 1975 – Marikina factory fire in Marikina, Philippines, killed 42 and injured 79 on 22 January.
• 1975 – The North Tower of the World Trade Center fire, New York City, New York The North Tower caught fire on the 11th floor, February 13.
• 1975 – Seminole County jail fire in Sanford, Florida, killed 11 on June 9
• 1975 – Philadelphia Refinery Fire, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Eight firemen lost their lives in the inferno. August 17.
• 1975 – Breezy Point Inn resort fire in Gnesen Township, St. Louis County, Minnesota, killed 6 on December 28
• 1976 – Wincrest Nursing Home fire in Chicago, Illinois, killed 23 on January 30
• 1976 – Cermak House Nursing Home fire in Cicero, Illinois, killed 8 on February 4
• 1976 – Four alarm Barson's Overbrook restaurant fire in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Four firemen perish when floor collapses, sending them into the flaming basement. May 16.
• 1976 – Retirement Home Fire, Goulds, Newfoundland and Labrador. 22 people killed on December 26.
• 1977 – Rossiya Hotel fire in Moscow, Russia, 42–45 killed and 50 injured on February 25
• 1977 – Central Hotel fire in Galveston, Texas, killed 8 on April 19
• 1977 – Hotel Polen fire in Amsterdam, Netherlands, kills 33 on 9 May 1977
• 1977 – Beverly Hills Supper Club fire kills 165 and injures more than 200 in Southgate, Kentucky; third deadliest nightclub fire in U.S. history
• 1977 – Xinyang cinema fire in Xinjiang, China, killed 694 people
• 1977 – A fire in the Aquinas Hall dormitory at Providence College in Rhode Island kills 10 students on December 13.
• 1978 – The Cinema Rex Fire (arson) kills 438 in Abadan, Khuzestan, Iran
• 1978 – A prison fire in Buenos Aires, Argentina, killed 61 and injured 85.
• 1978 – The Younkers Department store at the Merle Hay Mall in Des Moines, Iowa, killed 10 store employees. The store is closed and rebuilt a year after the fire.
• 1978 – Waldbaum's Supermarket fire, Brooklyn, New York. Six New York City firefighters died in the line of duty on August 2 when the roof of a burning Brooklyn supermarket collapsed, plunging 12 firefighters into the flames.
• 1979 – Old People's Nurse Home fire at Virrat, Pirkanmaa, Finland, at least 26 dead, January 23
• 1979 – Nursing home fire in Farmington, Missouri, kills 26 on April 2
• 1979 – Woolworth store fire in Manchester, England, killed 10 on May 8
• 1979 – Hotel Corona de Aragón fire Fire in Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain, killed at least 80
• 1979 – Lakshimki Talkies cinema fire, in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu, India, killed 73 on July 29
• 1979 – Hotel Am Augarten fire in Vienna, Austria, killed 25
• 1979 – Fire destroys the Woolworths department store in central Manchester, England, killing 11
• 1979 – Pioneer, Ohio nursing home fire, kills 14 on November 11
• 1979 – Bar fire in Rosario, Argentina, 15 killed and 11 injured on December 5

1980s

• 1980 – Opémiska Community Hall fire, Chapais, Quebec, Canada, killed 48 on January 1
• 1980 – A fire in the Eventide Home for the Aged in Kingston, Jamaica killed 157 on May 20
• 1980 – A fire on the third floor of the Extendicare Ltd. nursing home in Mississauga, Ontario, killed 21 residents on July 14.
• 1980 – Boarding home fire in Bradley Beach, New Jersey, killed 24 on July 26
• 1980 – Nightclub fire by arson killed 37 in Soho, London, on 16 August
• 1980 – Górna Grupa mental hospital fire, in Górna Grupa, Poland, during the night of 31 October – 1 November, 55 patients killed and 26 wounded
• 1980 – MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, killed 87
• 1980 – Prince Hotel of Kawaji Fire in Kinugawa, Japan, killed 45
• 1980 – Stouffer's Inn of Westchester in Harrison, NY, 26 killed on December 4
• 1981 – Nilkanth Mahaden temple fire, Asarwa, Gujarat, India, 49 killed on December 6
• 1981 – Boarding home fire in Keansburg, New Jersey, killed 30 on January 9
• 1981 – New Cross Fire, London, killed 13 on January 18
• 1981 – Stardust Disaster, discothèque fire in Dublin killed 48
• 1981 – 1981 Bangalore circus fire in Bangalore, India, killed 66
• 1982 – Hotel New Japan fire in downtown Tokyo, Japan, kills 33 on 8 February
• 1982 – The Notre Dame de Lourdes Church fire in Fall River, Massachusetts destroys historic church and much of two adjacent city blocks on May 11
• 1982 – Dorothy Mae Apartments arson fire in Los Angeles kills 25 people, highest structure fire death toll in city history.
• 1982 – Minneapolis Thanksgiving Day Fire destroys the Northwestern National Bank building and former Donaldson's flagship store
• 1982 – Connecticut Street Armory Fire in Buffalo, New York, severely damaged historic armory
• 1983 – Kensington Theater Explosion in Buffalo, New York, 5 alarm explosion and fire destroys historic Kensington Theater
• 1983 – Cinema Statuto fire in Turin, Italy, killed 64
• 1983 – Alcalá 20 nightclub fire in Madrid, Spain, killed 83
• 1984 – Haunted Castle attraction at Six Flags Great Adventure amusement park in Jackson Township, New Jersey. Eight teenagers lost their lives in a fast-moving fire. Their corpses were mistaken for mannequins by emergency personnel. None of them or the Six Flags administrators realized these fatalities until later.
• 1984 – Union Oil refinery in Romeoville, IL had two explosions and a fire on July 23, 1984 killing at least 14 and injuring 23 people.
• 1985 – Valley Parade Ground Stadium fire in Bradford, England, 56 die
• 1985 – Saavedra Psychiatric Hospital fire in Buenos Aires, Argentina, killed 79 and injured 247
• 1986 – Fire and chemical spill at Sandoz in the Schweizerhalle industrial area near Basel, Switzerland, caused heavy pollution problems in the river Rhine in November 1986
• 1986 – Dupont Plaza Hotel fire, set by disgruntled employees, kills 97 in San Juan, Puerto Rico
• 1987 – The Kerr Mill fire destroys three mills in Fall River, Massachusetts on January 12
• 1987 – A fuel tanker truck ran into an ice cream parlour and exploded in Herborn, Germany; 12 houses set on fire and 6 killed on July 7
• 1988 – Chung King Mansions fire, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, 1 killed and 9 injured on February 21
• 1988 – A fire at the Hotel International in Oerlikon, Zürich, Switzerland, killed 6 on February 14
• 1988 – First Interstate Tower in Los Angeles, California catches fire on May 4, killing 1
• 1988 – A fire at a Ford dealership in Hackensack, New Jersey, killed 5 firefighters from the Hackensack Fire Department on July 1
• 1989 – Hotel Bethlehem, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, caused by faulty iron cord, killed 5 people on January 27
• 1989 – Premier Studio of Mysore fire, Mysore, Karnataka, India, 62 killed on February 8
• 1989 – Downunder Hostel fire, set on September 17 in a backpackers hostel in Sydney, killed 6
• 1989 – Girls' school fire in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, killed 27 girls on September 21
• 1989 – Hillhaven Rehabilitation and Convalescent Home fire in Norfolk, Virginia, killed 12 on October 5

1990s

• 1990 – Flying discothèque fire at Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain, 43 killed on January 14
• 1990 – Happy Land Fire arson fire in the Bronx, New York City, killed 87 on March 25
• 1990 – 1991 Hamlet chicken plant fire killed 25 people
• 1991 – Fire caused by oil-soaked rags at One Meridian Plaza, Philadelphia, United States, killed 3 firefighters on February 23–24
• 1991 – Bright Sparklers Fireworks fire, killed 26 and injured over 100 on May 7
• 1992 – Shek Kong Vietnamese refugee detention centre fire, Hong Kong, 24 killed and 126 injured
• 1992 – Pension de Vogel homeless hostel fire, The Hague, Netherlands, 11 killed and 15 injured on 16 September
• 1992 – Windsor Castle fire, England
• 1992 – A part of the roof and the upper floor of the Hofburg Imperial Palace in Vienna, Austria, burned down on November 26
• 1993 – Fire in a 10-story building in the Hsinhua section of Taipei, Taiwan, killed 34 on January 18
• 1993 – Linxi department store fire, Tangshan, Hebei, China, 79 killed and 51 injured on 14 February
• 1993 – World Trade Center bombing, New York City, New York, 6 killed and 1042 injured on 26 February
• 1993 – Paxton Hotel fire, Chicago, Illinois, killed 19 on March 16
• 1993 – Branch Davidian church in Waco, Texas, about 80 killed
• 1993 – Kader Toy Factory fire, Bangkok, Thailand, 189 killed on May 10
• 1993 – Madimak Hotel fire, Sivas, Turkey, killed 35 on July 2.
• 1993 – Zhili Toy Factory fire, Kuiyong, Shenzhen, China, 81 killed on November 20
• 1993 – Gaofu Textile Factory fire, Fuzhou, Fujian, China, 61 killed on December 13
• 1993 – Nightclub Kheyvis fire in Buenos Aires, Argentina, 17 killed and 25 injured on December 20
• 1994 – The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) HSBC Shek Kip Mei branch fire, Shek Kip Mei, Hong Kong, 12 killed in firebomb attack on January 10
• 1994 – Fuxin Discothèque fire at Fuxin, Liaoning, China, 234 killed on November 27
• 1994 – 1994 Karamay fire, Karamay, Xinjiang, China, 324 killed (288 pupils and 36 teachers) on December 10
• 1994 – Switel Hotel fire, Antwerp, Belgium, 15 killed and 164 severely injured on 31 December
• 1995 – Wei Er Kang Restaurant fire at Taichung, Taiwan, killed 64
• 1995 – Anshan hotel fire, Anshan, Liaoning, China, killed 30 on March 14
• 1995 – Ürümqi fire, Urumqi, Xinjiang, China, killed 51 on April 24
• 1995 – Gyeonni Women Technical School fire, Yongin, Gyeonggi, South Korea, killed 38
• 1995 – Dabwali tent fire, Haryana, India, 540 killed on December 23
• 1996 – Teatro La Fenice in Venice
• 1996 – Ozone Disco Club fire, Quezon City, Philippines, 162 killed and 95 injured on March 18
• 1996 – Kebon Kembang shoppong mall fire, Bogor, Jawa Barat, Indonesia, 78 killed on March 28
• 1996 – Düsseldorf Airport fire, killed 17 on April 11
• 1996 – Heaven Hill distillery fire in Kentucky on November 7
• 1996 – The Garley Building fire, Hong Kong, 40 killed on November 20
• 1996 – Residential building fire caused by arson attack, Shanghai, China, 36 killed on November 27
• 1997 – Top One Karaoke fire caused by arson attack, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, 17 killed on January 25
• 1997 – 1997 Aisin fire, Kariya, Aichi, Japan, on February 1
• 1997 – Brihadiswara temple fire started by a visitor's firecracker, at Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, India, 60 killed and 200 injured on June 8
• 1997 – Uphaar cinema fire, Green Park, New Delhi, 59 killed on June 13
• 1997 – Royal Jomtien Resort Hotel fire, in Thailand, killed 88 on July 11
• 1997 – Arson attack by an employee at a shoe factory, Jinjiang City, Fujian, China, 32 killed on September 21
• 1998 – Dormitory fire at Bombolulu Girls High School, Mombasa, Kenya, 24 killed on March 25
• 1998 – Gothenburg nightclub fire in Gothenburg, Sweden, killed 63 on October 30
• 1998 – Orphanage fire in Manila, Philippines, killed 28 on December 3
• 1999 – Worcester Cold Storage Fire killed 6 firefighters
• 1999 – One story Sealand Youth Training Center fire at Hwaseong killed 23 and injured 5 on June 30
• 1999 – Two-story buildings with cinema complex fire at Yogyakarta, Central Java, Indonesia, killed 75 on September 24
• 1999 – Four-story complex buildings with Sun-Hun Choe karaoke room fire at Incheon, South Korea, killed 54 and injured 70 on October 30
• 1999 – Jilin hotel fire, Changchun, Jilin, China, killed 20 on December 26

21st century

2000s

• 2000 – Immigration Tower fire, Wan Chai, Hong Kong, 2 killed and 48 injured on August 2
• 2000 – Tiantang cinema fire in Jiaozuo, Henan, China, killed 74 on March 29
• 2000 – Xiamen, Fuji electric factory, killed 8 females
• 2000 – Qingzhou chicken processing plant fire, Qingzhou, Shandong, China, 38 workers killed on April 22
• 2000 – Enschede fireworks disaster, Enschede, Netherlands, 22 killed (including 4 firemen) on May 13
• 2000 – Fireworks factory fire, Guangdong, China, 36 killed on June 30
• 2000 – Fire on Ostankino Tower, Moscow
• 2000 – Childers Palace Backpackers Hostel fire in Childers, Queensland, 15 killed in arson attack on June 23
• 2000 – Dongdu Commercial shopping center fire in Luoyang, Henan, China, killed 309 on December 25
• 2001 – Kyanguli Secondary school fire, Machakos, Eastern Province, Kenya, 68 killed on March 26
• 2001 – Erwadi fire incident, Tamil Nadu, India, 25 killed on August 6
• 2001 – Manor Hotel fire, Quezon City, Philippines, 75 killed on August 17
• 2001 – Myojo 56 building fire, Tokyo, Japan, 44 killed by arson on September 1.
• 2001 – September 11 attacks — Two airliners deliberately flown into the World Trade Center Twin Towers in New York City, sparked fires on multiple floors. Over 2000 people die as a result of the fires and the subsequent collapse of the towers.
• 2001 – Volendam New Years fire during a New Year party in De Hemel cafè in Volendam, Netherlands killed 14 and injured 200
• 2001 – Mesa Redonda fire, Lima, Peru, 291 killed on December 29
• 2002 – Shree Lee International footwear factory fire, Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India, 42 killed on June 26
• 2002 – Heppi Karaoke bar fire, Palembang, South Sumatra, Indonesia, 42 killed on July 9
• 2002 – Ho Chi Minh City ITC fire, Vietnam, over 60 killed, over 100 missing and 500 injured in a luxury department store fire and collapse
• 2002 – Sidi Moussa prison fire, El Jadida, Morocco, killing 50, on November 2
• 2002 – La Coajira nightclub fire at Caracas, Venezuela, 47 killed on December 1
• 2003 – Greenwood Nursing Home fire in Hartford, Connecticut, killed 16 on February 26
• 2003 – Daegu subway fire in Daegu (South Korea)
• 2003 – Nursing home fire in Nashville, Tennessee, killed 14 on September 25
• 2003 – The Station nightclub fire 96 died at the scene; 4 died from injuries at local hospitals in West Warwick, Rhode Island
• 2003 – Peoples' Friendship University of Russia fire, Moscow, Russia, 36 killed on November 24
• 2004 – Zhongbai Commercial Plaza fire, Jilin, northeastern China, killed 53 on February 16
• 2004 – San Pedro Sula prison fire, Honduras, killed 103 on May 17
• 2004 – Momart warehouse fire, numerous significant contemporary work of arts destroyed by fire, 24 May 2004, Leyton, East London.
• 2004 – Sri Krishna Aided Higher Secondary School fire, Kumbakonam, Tamil-Nadu, India, killed 94 on July 16
• 2004 – Ycuá Bolaños supermarket fire, Asunción, Paraguay, kills 370, injures 500 on August 1.
• 2004 – República Cromagnon nightclub fire in Buenos Aires kills 194, injures 714 on December 30.
• 2005 – The Windsor Tower Building Fire (Spain), February 14–15
• 2005 – Beni Suef Cultural Palace fire in Egypt and kills 46 on September 5.
• 2005 – Aardman Animations storage depot fire, 10 October
• 2005 – 11 die in a fire at the detention center of Amsterdam Schiphol Airport on October 27.
• 2005 – Hertfordshire Oil Storage Terminal fire, a major explosion at Hertfordshire Oil Storage Terminal in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire injures 43 on December 11.
• 2005 – Liaoyang City Central Hospital fire, Liaoyang, Jilin, China, 39 killed on December 12.
• 2006 – KTS Composite Textile factory fire, at Chittagong, Bangladesh, 65 killed, 100 injured on February 24.
• 2006 – Kolkata leather factory fire kills at least nine people in India on November 22.
• 2006 – Moscow hospital fire kills 46 December 9.
• 2006 – Fire at a store in Ormoc City, Philippines kills 24
• 2007 – Nursing home fire at Kamyshevatskaya, Krasnodar, southern Russia, killed 63 on March 19
• 2007 – Penhallow Hotel fire at Newquay, Cornwall
• 2007 – Charleston Sofa Super Store Fire in Charleston, South Carolina; 9 firefighters were killed on June 18
• 2007 – Warehouse fire in Atherstone-on-Stour, Warwickshire when 4 firefighters were killed
• 2007 – Warehouse fire in Mexico City, Mexico, killed 5 people
• 2008 – Fire at Korea 2000 refrigerated warehouse while under construction, Icheon, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, 40 killed on January 7
• 2008 – Namdaemun fire with collapse at Seoul, South Korea on February 10.
• 2008 – Historic Quebec City Armoury roof and interior destroyed by fire, Quebec, Canada, on April 4
• 2008 – Four-story Rosamor Furniture factory fire, Lissasfa, Casablanca, Morocco, killed 55 on April 25

Fire at Alma College in May 2008. Only a brick shell remained and was subsequently demolished.

• 2008 – Historic Alma College in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada burnt down by arsonists on May 28
• 2008 – Texas Governor's Mansion heavily damaged during an extensive renovation; thought to be arson
• 2008 – Cornwall Court Fire in Hong Kong on August 10, killed 4 people including 2 firefighters
• 2008 – Toronto propane explosion in North York on August 10, killed 2 people including 1 firefighter
• 2008 – Wuwang Club fire in Shenzen, China, on September 20, killing 43
• 2008 – Video Parlour Cats fire by arsonist in Nanba, Osaka, Japan, killed 15 and injured 10 on October 1
• 2009 – Santika Club fire, Bangkok, Thailand, killed 66 on January 1
• 2009 – Nakumatt supermarket fire, Nairobi, Kenya, killed 29 on January 28
• 2009 – Great Beijing Mandarin Oriental Hotel fire of February, 2009 caused by fire works, 1 death
• 2009 – Bashundhara City mall fire in Dhaka, Bangladesh, killed 7 people on March 13
• 2009 – Homeless hostel fire in Kamień Pomorski, Poland, kills 23 on April 13
• 2009 – ABC daycare center fire kills 47 in Hermosillo, Mexico, on June 5
• 2009 – Lakanal House tower block fire kills 6 in Camberwell, London on July 3
• 2009 – Three alarm fire at a delicatessen in Buffalo, New York, kills 2 firefighters on August 24
• 2009 – Taldykorgan Regional Drug Rehabilitation Hospital fire in Almaty Province, Kazakhstan, killed 38 on September 13
• 2009 – Perm Lame Horse Night club fire in Perm, Russia, killed 153 people and injured over 140 on December 4
• 2009 – Medan Karaoke bar fire in Medan of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, killed 20 on December 4

2010s

• 2010 – 2010 Tioman Island fire in Pulau Tioman, Malaysia; no deaths but 12 injured
• 2010 – 2010 Bangkok riots in Thailand, burned BEC TV3, CentralWorld and many buildings
• 2010 – 2010 San Bruno explosion in San Bruno, California, six-alarm fire from a gas main killed at least 4 and destroyed dozens of homes on September 10
• 2010 – 2010 Shanghai fire, high-rise apartment building fire killed at least 53
• 2010 – A fire in a prison in Santiago, Chile killed at least 81 inmates in the country's deadliest ever prison incident
• 2010 – Stephen Court historic building fire in Kolkata, India, kills at least 42
• 2011 – Fire caused by electrical short circuit at a eunuch festival, Delhi, India, 15 killed and at least 36 injured on November 21
• 2011 – AMRI hospital Kolkata, West Bengal; killed at least 90, most caused by toxic fumes spreading through ducts of the Central air conditioning system, December 9
• 2012 – Propane tanks at a dentist office in Laredo, Texas, cause an explosion heard several miles away. No deaths, but millions of dollars in reported damage within a 3,000 m (1.9 mi) radius
• 2012 – A prison fire in Comayagua, Honduras, kills at more than 361 inmates on 14 February
• 2012 – A massive fire sweeps through a market in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, destroying between 500 and 1800 stalls and injuring 11 people.
• 2012 – A fire in a Moscow market kills 17 migrant workers
• 2012 – Explosions and a fire at Bangkok Synthetics Plant petrochemical plant for synthetic rubber, in the Map Ta Phut industrial estate in Rayong Province, Thailand, killed 12 people and injured more than 100
• 2012 – Explosion and fire at Paraguaná Refinery Complex killed 48 and injured 151
• 2012 – A fire in a Karachi garment factory killed at least 312 workers.
• 2012 – A fire in a Lahore shoe factory in Pakistan killed 25 workers
• 2012 – Beinan Branch of Xinyang Hospital has been committed an arson, resulting 13 patient dead, the perpetrator was in final phase of cancer and upset by his illness, received the death penalty, was died during detention in April 2014.
• 2012 – Fire in a Tazreen Fashion factory in Dhaka, Bangladesh, killed at least 124.
• 2013 – A fire in the Kiss nightclub in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, after performers said to have set off fireworks, killed at least 233 people
• 2013 – A fire in Surya Sen Market, Kolkata killed 18 people
• 2013 – An ammonium nitrate explosion at a fertilizer plant in West, Texas killed 15 and injured over 160.
• 2013 – The 2013 Moscow psychiatric hospital fire killed 38
• 2013 – The Southwest Inn Motel fire killed 4 firefighters in Houston, Texas
• 2013 – The Jilin Baoyuanfeng Poultry Plant fire killed 119 persons in Mishazi Township, Jilin Province, China
• 2013 – A fire at a psychiatric hospital in Luka, Novgorod Region, Russia, killed 37.
• 2013 – A fire at Hải Dương Province Trade Centre, Vietnam, with the total value of the contract at 500 billion Vietnamese đồng (25,000,000 USD)
• 2013 – A fire at Diana Vietnam diaper factory in Bắc Ninh Province with a loss of 20,000,000 USD.
• 2014 – A fire at Valparaiso, Chile left over 2,500 houses destroyed, 11,000 people homeless and a death toll of 15 people. Authorities stated that was the worst fire of the history of Valparaiso.
• 2014 – A fire at a bakery shop in Yuanlin, Changhua, Taiwan, caused 5 deaths.
• 2014 – A fire at a hospital in Jangseong County in South Korea killed 21 patients and a nurse, and injured several more people.
• 2014 – A fire in Lowell, Massachusetts in a triple-decker kills four adults and three children.
• 2014 – Arson at an air traffic control edifice in Aurora, Illinois, United States (also known as the "Chicago Center") caused close to 2000 airline flights to undertake emergency landings
• 2015 – An industrial fire in Valenzuela, Philippines kills 72 people.
• 2015 – A fire in a residence building in Baku, Azerbaijan kills 14 people.
• 2015 – A fire at Colectiv nightclub in Bucharest, Romania kills 60 people.
• 2016 – A massive fire at a factory in Sokolniki District, Moscow, Russia kills 12 people.

Transportation fires

Ship fires

See also: List of maritime disasters

• 1800 – British warship Queen Charlotte — 673 deaths
• 1840 – Steamship Lexington in Long Island Sound — 139 deaths
• 1865 – Sultana on the Mississippi River, near Memphis, Tennessee — 1,547 deaths
• 1893 – Freighter Cabo Machichaco in Santander, Spain — 500 deaths
• 1904 – Steamship General Slocum in New York City — 1,021 deaths
• 1906 – SS Hankow fire in Hong Kong — 130+ deaths (14 October)
• 1917 – Munitions ship Mont-Blanc burned, drifted and detonated in the Halifax Explosion — roughly 2,000 deaths
• 1924 – SS City of Singapore at Port Adelaide - 3 deaths, 13 injured
• 1934 – SS Morro Castle off Asbury Park, New Jersey — 137 deaths, ship gutted and beached
• 1941 – Attack on Pearl Harbor, sinking USS Arizona (BB-39) and several other ships; extensive fires generated aboard and around ships
• 1941 – SS Normandie in New York City, ship capsized and sank at pier
• 1944 – Bombay Explosion (1944) – SS Fort Stikine docked in Bombay, India underwent a fire and two explosions and set fire to the area killing around 800 people
• 1944 – Port Chicago disaster – SS E A Bryan docked in Port Chicago, California underwent massive explosions and fire while munitions were loaded. 320 people were killed and 390 were injured.
• 1947 – Texas City Disaster— 2 ships' cargoes of ammonium nitrate caught fire and exploded, killing 581, more than 5000 injured.
• 1947 – SS Xi'an in Hong Kong — 200 deaths
• 1949 – SS Noronic in Toronto — 118 to 139 deaths
• 1963 – Lakonia near Madeira burned — 128 deaths
• 1965 – SS Yarmouth Castle near Nassau, Bahamas — 90 deaths
• 1965 – Orient Trader in Toronto, Ontario, Canada— no deaths or injuries. Was towed from pier into harbour and was totally destroyed by fire. 1960 ORIENT TRADER, Orient Mid-East Great Lakes Services, Piraeus. 21st Jul.1965 Caught fire Toronto harbour, CTL. 1966 Scrapped Valencia.
• 1967 – USS Forrestal in the Gulf of Tonkin — 134 deaths.
• 1972 – RMS Queen Elizabeth in Hong Kong, ship sank in harbour
• 1987 – Doña Paz in the Philippines — an estimated 4,000 deaths
• 1990 – MS Scandinavian Star off Norway — 159 deaths
• 1991 – Moby Prince disaster in Livorno, Italy. 140 killed.
• 1994 – Achille Lauro near Somalia
• 2001 – MS Windoc in Allanburg, Ontario, Canada — Bridge lowered on the ship, this tore off the wheelhouse and funnel and caused a fire that burned out the aft cabins and engine room. No deaths.
• 2006 – Star Princess in the Caribbean — 1 death
• 2007 – Cutty Sark, 19th-century clipper in dry dock as a museum ship in Greenwich, London extensively damaged while undergoing restoration on May 21
• 2011 – MS Nordlys, Norwegian cruise ship, September 15, 2 deaths
• 2014 – MS Norman Atlantic in Strait of Otranto, Greece — 13 deaths (including two rescue crewmembers who died from an indirect result)

Train and rail fires

• 1903 – Paris Métro train fire kills 84
• 1913 – Ais Gill rail crash in England kills 14 chiefly through fire on September 1
• 1915 – Quintinshill rail crash in Scotland kills 227 chiefly through fire on May 22
• 1951 – Sakuragicho commuter train fire, Yokohama, Japan, 106 killed on April 24
• 1972 – Hokuriku railroad tunnel fire in Tsuruga, Japan, 31 killed and 637 injured
• 1978 – Taunton train fire on British Rail kills 12 on July 6
• 1984 – Summit tunnel fire in West Yorkshire, England
• 1987 – Kings Cross London Underground fire London Subway system fire, London, England, 31 killed, 100 injured on November 18
• 1995 – 1995 Baku Metro fire kills over 200
• 1996 – Channel Tunnel fire between France and England on November 18
• 1998 – Yaounde train explosion fuel train explosion, kills 120 people
• 2000 – Kaprun disaster, Austrian funicular train fire, kills 155 people
• 2002 – Al Ayatt train disaster, Egypt
• 2002 – The Godhra train burning took place which lead to the 2002 Gujarat violence
• 2003 – Daegu subway fire in Daegu (South Korea) Train fire killed at least 198 people and injured at least 147
• 2003 – Ladhowal train fire, India
• 2008 – Channel Tunnel fire, between France and England
• 2012 – Nellore train fire kills 32 passengers on the Tamil Nadu Express near Nellore in Andhra Pradesh, India
• 2013 – Lac-Mégantic rail disaster kills 47 when an unattended 74-car freight train carrying crude oil rolled downhill and derailed. More than 30 buildings in the town's centre, roughly half of the downtown area, were destroyed.
• 2014 – Several tanker cars carrying crude oil caught fire along the James River in Lynchburg, Virginia.

Bus fires

• 1988 – Carrollton, Kentucky, bus collision—27 deaths on May 14, one of the deadliest bus disasters in US history
• 1992 – Chien-Kang Bus Fire (健康幼稚園火燒車事件) – one bus carrying 50 kindergarten students, teachers, and parents caught fire at Taoyuan City (now Taoyuan District) on their way to the Leofoo Amusement Park, killing 23 and injuring 9
• 1997 – Bus fire, Guangdong, China – bus caught fire on expressway, killing 39 passengers
• 2003 – Chun-Lung Bus Fire (尊龍客運高速公路火燒車事故)—A charter bus caught fire at Taipei County killing 6 and injuring 4
• 2006 – A bus caught fire on a street in Rio Grande, Brazil. 28 people were injured, but no-one was killed. The cause of the fire was a can of paint thinner under the driver's seat, which ignited following a short-circuit.
• 2007 – Comilla bus caught fire in Bangladesh, at least fifty-five killed on January 6.
• 2008 – Lower Saxony: A bus caught fire presumably due to a passenger smoking in the toilet on the A2 Autobahn (Expressway) in Germany, 20 killed on November 4
• 2008 – Boromo bus caught fire in Balé Province, Burkina Faso, sixty-seven killed on November 15
• 2008 – Firozabad bus caught fire in Uttar Pradesh, India, killing sixty-three on December 9.
• 2009 – Chengdu bus fire, a mass murder–suicide attack Chengdu, Sichuan, China, results in 27 deaths on June 5
• 2010 – During the Mount Carmel forest fire, a bus that was transporting prison guards was caught up in a wildfire as they made their way to evacuate a nearby prison, resulting in the death of 40 guards as flames overwhelmed the bus
• 2011 – Xinyang bus fire kills at least 41 people in Xinyang, Henan, China, on 22 July.
• 2013 – A bus fire in Xiamen, China, believed to be an act of arson, killed 47 and injured 30.
• 2014 – Colombia bus fire killed 32 children who had just attended a church service in the city of Fundación 18 May 2014.
• 2014 – Six people died and dozens were injured in a bus terminal fire near Seoul, South Korea on 26 May 2014.

Road fires

• 1978 – Los Alfaques disaster kills 217 on a campsite near Tarragona, in Spain on July 11
• 1982 – Salang tunnel fire kills between 150 and 1,000 people in Afghanistan's only road tunnel
• 1982 – Caldecott Tunnel fire kills 6 and severely damages major road tunnel in Oakland, California
• 1999 – 1999 Mont Blanc Tunnel fire—39 deaths, caused by the cargo of a transport truck catching fire while in the tunnel
• 2000 – Ibadan tanker truck explosion multiple car pile-up explodes 100–200 killed.
• 2012 – Okobie road tanker explosion in Nigeria killed at least 95 people and injured 50 others.

Other fires

• 1916 – Black Tom explosion (fires led to the explosion)
• 1937 – Hindenburg disaster near Lakehurst, New Jersey
• 1955 – Le Mans 24 hour race disaster, Le Mans, France, over 80 killed on June 11
• 1967 – Apollo 1 burned during ground tests at Cape Canaveral January 27, 3 astronauts died
• 1973 – Kingman Explosion Propane tanker BLEVE incident kills 13, injures 107
• 1975 – Tent site at Mina, Saudi Arabia, 138 killed
• 2006 – Brand India Fair at Meerut Victoria Park fire, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, India, 100 killed on April 10
• 2009 – 2009 Kenyan oil spill ignition resulted in the deaths of at least 111 people and infliction of gruesome injuries to countless hundreds more on 31 January, following a road accident in Molo, Kenya.

Mining fires

See also: Coal seam fire and Oil well fire

This is a partial list of fire due to mining: man-made structures to extract minerals, ores, rock, petroleum, natural gas, etc.

• 1884 to present – New Straitsville, Ohio, coal mine fire ignited by striking miners
• 1892 – Fire in the Marie iron mine, Příbram, now in the Czech Republic, 319 killed on May 31
• 1895 – Osceola copper mine in Osceola Township, Houghton County, Michigan, caught fire on September 7, 30 killed
• 1911 – Fire at the Price-Pancoast Colliery, Throop, Pennsylvania, on April 7, with 72 dead by suffocation
• 1915 to present – Laurel Run mine fire in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States, ignited when at carbide lamp set fire to a timber support
• 1956 – Bois du Cazier fire, Belgium, killed 262 people from 12 nations
• 1962 – Devil's Cigarette Lighter fire in a gas field in Algeria, lasted almost 6 months before doused with explosives
• 1962 to present – Centralia Mine Fire, Pennsylvania, rendering the town uninhabitable
• 1971 to present – Door to Hell fire in a natural gas field in Derweze, Ahal Province, Turkmenistan
• 1972 – Fire broke out in the Sunshine Mine in Kellogg, Idaho, on the morning of May 2; 91 workers died from smoke inhalation or carbon monoxide poisoning
• 1986 – Fire in a gold mine owned by the General Mining Union Corporation in Kinross, Transvaal, South Africa, with 177 killed and 235 injured on September 16
• 1988 – Piper Alpha oil platform disaster, North Sea, on July 6; 167 deaths
• 2010 – Explosion and fire on the Deepwater Horizon mobile offshore drilling unit in the Gulf of Mexico

Forest and countryside fires

See also: List of forest fires and List of wildfires

• 1871 – The Great Michigan Fire, killed over 200 in Michigan
• 1910 – Great Fire of 1910 (aka Big Blowup; Big Burn), Washington, Idaho and Montana, over 3 million acres (12,000 km²), at least 85 dead. This fire set new policies, and created new organizations for fighting wildfires.
• 1911 – Great Porcupine Fire, Ontario
• 1916 – Matheson Fire, Ontario, July 29. Six towns destroyed, two more damaged, 223 people dead.
• 1918 – 1918 Cloquet Fire,453 lives lost in a single day, October 12. Minnesota
• 1921 – 1921 Mari wildfires, 35 killed
• 1922 – Great Fire of 1922, Northern Ontario, several towns destroyed including 90% of the City of Haileybury
• 1933 – Griffith Park Fire in Los Angeles, California, killed 29 firefighters on October 3
• 1933 – Tillamook Burn, Oregon
• 1935 – Kursha-2, 1200 killed
• 1936 – Bandon, Oregon, Bandon's entire commercial district was destroyed, total loss stated at the time was $3 million USD, with 11 fatalities.
• 1937 – Blackwater fire of 1937 in Shoshone National Forest in Wyoming, killed 15 firefighters on August 21
• 1949 – The great forest fire of 1949 in the Landes Forest, wildfire, 256,000 acres (1,040 km²) lost, 240 killed, include 82 firefighters, on August.
• 1949 – Mann Gulch fire
• 1953 – Rattlesnake Fire, set by an arsonist named Stan Pattan, in Mendocino National Forest near Willows, California, killed 15 firefighters on July 9
• 1963 – Paraná forest fire, 20,000 square kilometres destroyed, killing at least 110, with 5,000 houses burned in September.
• 1966 – Serra de Sintra forest fire,outskirt of Lisbon, Portugal, 26.6 km² destroyed, killing 26.
• 1967 – 1967 Tasmanian fires in Tasmania, Australia
• 1971 – Kure forest fire, Kure, western Honshū, Japan, 18 firefighters killed on April 27
• 1975 – Fire on the Lüneburg Heath in north Germany, 80 square kilometres destroyed, 7 fatalities including 5 firefighters killed on August 10
• 1983 – Ash Wednesday fires in south-eastern Australia killed 75 people in South Australia and Victoria.
• 1987 – 1987 Daxing'anling wildfire in People's Republic of China, burned for a month
• 1988 – Yellowstone fires of 1988 largest, most expensive wildfire in the history of the National Park Service, at the world's first National Park
• 1994 – Isabela Island forest fire, Galápagos Island, Ecuador, 12 km² lost in April.
• 1994 – South Canyon Fire on Storm King Mountain near Glenwood Springs, Colorado kills fourteen firefighters on July 6.
• 2003 – Canberra bushfires, Australian Capital Territory, 4 killed and 435 injured
• 2003 – Cedar Fire destroyed over 550 homes and many acres of land, Southern California
• 2003 – 2003 Okanagan Mountain Park Fire, British Columbia
• 2005 – Eyre Peninsula bushfire, South Australia, 9 killed, at least 113 injured and 79 houses destroyed
• 2006 – Pilliga forest fire burned out 740 km² on just its first day
• 2007 – October 2007 California wildfires Fires in California
• 2008 – Summer 2008 California wildfires Second costliest in US history to extinguish.
• 2009 – Black Saturday bushfires In February, at the end of the early 2009 southeastern Australia heat wave, bushfires swept through the Australian state of Victoria killing 173 people, injuring around 500, destroying at least 2029 homes.
• 2010 – 2010 Russian wildfires, 2000 buildings, 8000 km² destroyed, 54 killed.
• 2010 – Mount Carmel forest fire in Israel led to 44 fatalities.
• 2011 – Fires across parts of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, during the Easter holidays, destroying many parks and forests.
• 2011 – Summer fire outbreak across Texas claimed almost 4 million acres in over 21,000 fires. Approximately 7,000 homes were lost and approximately 50,000 homes in direct danger were saved by fire departments across the state.
• 2011 – Two wildfires burn in Bastrop, Texas; 2 people killed, 34,000 acres burned, over 1000 houses and other structures destroyed
• 2011 – Swinley Forest, UK, 12 fire services attended from various counties to extinguish this forestry fire in Berkshire.
• 2015 – Sampson Flat bushfires, Mount Lofty Ranges, South Australia, destroyed 12,500 hectares (31,000 acres) of native forest, farmland, vineyards and 27 houses, with not human fatalities

See also

• List of accidents and disasters by death toll
• List of fire departments
• List of the largest artificial non-nuclear explosions

Further reading

• Irish Examiner article on 1875 fire