This is a list of all major natural disasters in modern Australian history. The natural disasters included here are all the notable events that resulted in significant loss of life or property due to natural, non-biological processes of the Earth within Australian territory. Due to inflation, the monetary damage estimates are not comparable. Unless otherwise noted, the year given is when the currency's valuation was calculated. References can be found in the associated articles noted.
+YearDisasterEventDeath tollMaterial destructionEstimated costNotes1851BushfireBlack Thursday bushfires1250,000 square kilometres (12,000,000 acres; 5,000,000 ha) burnt One million sheep and thousands of cattle1852Flood1852 Gundagai flood89Destroyed the entire townA severe flash flood destroyed the town of Gundagai.1860FloodNowra Flood16The flood led to the rebuilding of Nowra as it was originally located in a low-lying area near the Shoalhaven River. The village of Terara was also abandoned and its residents moved to the relocated Nowra. 1875CycloneSinking of the 98–112Sinking of the In February 1875 Gothenburg was wrecked by a cyclone on the Great Barrier Reef off the north coast of Queensland. 22 people survived in three lifeboats. Records of passengers vary.1887CycloneUnnamed Cyclone (1887)140Around 20 boats lost.A late season cyclone hit the Eighty Mile Beach area (then known as Ninety Mile Beach), devastating the pearling fleet there.1893Flood1893 Brisbane flood35A$4 million (1893 figures)Occasionally referred to as the Great Flood of 1893 or the Black February flood1894Cyclone1894 January 4th unnamed tropical cyclone40+12 luggers and the steamer Anne sunk, 15000 sheep killed£15,000 On 4 January 1894 and 9 January 1894 – Within the space of five days, two cyclones crossed the Pilbara coast. The first caused damage to many buildings at Roebourne and Cossack. The second cyclone caused more significant damage to the area completely washing away the previously damaged sea wall at Cossack. 1894 January 9th unnamed tropical cyclone1895–1896Heat wave1895–1896 Australian heat wave437Widespread heat wave killed 437, including 47 in Bourke, New South Wales.1896CycloneCyclone Sigma23–261897Cyclone1897 Darwin cyclone28Destroyed the city of Darwin£150,000 (1897 AUD)The cyclone is considered the worst cyclone to strike the Northern Territory of Australia prior to Cyclone Tracy in 1974. Prior to contemporary naming conventions, the storm became known as the "Great Hurricane".1898BushfireRed Tuesday bushfires12Two thousand buildings1899CycloneCyclone Mahina300–4101903CycloneCyclone Leonta 14£250,000 damage (1903 AUD)12 people killed in Townsville and 2 in Charters Towers and caused massive property damage across North Queensland1907–1908Heat wave1907–1908 Australian heat wave246There were 105 deaths in South Australia alone (between 7 December 1907 and 8 February 1908).1909Flood1909 Western Victorian floods41909–1910Heat wave1909–1910 Australian heat wave1091909 Dec – 1910 Feb1911CycloneSinking of the 122En route from Melbourne to Cairns she steamed into a cyclone and sank south of Townsville. The wreck is one of the largest and well-preserved shipwrecks of Queensland's seas.1911–1912Heat wave1911–1912 Australian heat wave1431912CycloneSinking of the SS Koombana and Balla Balla cyclone 173+The SS Koombana was lost in a cyclone between Port Hedland and Broome with all 158 on board. The cyclone crossed the Western Australia coast around Balla Balla, early on 22nd. Several other ships and vessels were also wrecked in the cyclone, claiming another 15 lives.1913–1914Heat wave1913–1914 Australian heat wave1221916FloodClermont flood of 1916 65On 28 December floods in Clermont, Queensland from a cyclone in the Whitsunday Passage which led to cyclonic rains.1918CycloneMackay cyclone30Cyclone and storm surge that caused heavy damage in Mackay, Rockhampton and surrounding areas on 20 January 1918. 1918CycloneInnisfail cyclone37–97On 10 March 1918, a cyclone passed over Innisfail. Only 12 houses in the town of 3500 residents survived being blown flat or unroofed, and damage was also widespread in Cairns,100 km to the north, Babinda, and inland to the Atherton Tableland. 1920–1921Heat wave1920–1921 Australian heat wave1471926Bushfire1925–26 Victorian bushfire season601,000 buildings were destroyed.The worst fires occurred on 14 February (Black Sunday) in the Gippsland region and other areas, where 31 people died at Warburton, Victoria. Houses and buildings were destroyed in many places including Erica and Belgrave. The town of Noojee was destroyed, with only the hotel left standing. In all, over the two-month period, 60 people died and 1,000 buildings were destroyed.1926–1927Heat wave1926–1927 Australian heat wave1301926 Dec – 1927 Jan1929Flood1929 Tasmanian floods22Eight drowned when truck ploughed into river and 14 died when dam collapsed and wall swept into town.1932Bushfire1932 West Gippsland fires9206,000 ha burntSix of the nine killed were mill workers who became trapped in the town Erica.1934Flood1934 Victorian floods36400 housesTorrential rainfall of up to . Yarra River becomes raging torrent. Extensive damage with 35 dead, 250 injured, and 6,000 homeless. Of the dead, 18 died from drowning.1938BushfireBlack Sunday5A rough surf pulled in swimmers at Bondi Beach, Sydney, leading to 245 people saved with 60 receiving treatment and 35 revived from unconsciousness.1938–1939Heat waveBlack Friday bushfires438Heat wave killed 438 and sparked the Black Friday bushfires (see below).Bushfire713,700 buildings1939–1940Heat wave1939–1940 Australian heat wave1121943–1944Bushfire1943–44 Victorian bushfire season51500 buildingsBushfires broke out in various parts of Victoria from late December 1943 to mid February 1944, resulting in 51 deaths, and destroying 500 buildings.1947HailstormSydney hailstorm045,000,000 AUD (2007)1951VolcanoMount Lamington eruption2,942Occurred in the former Territory of Papua and New Guinea. Deadliest natural disaster in Australian history.1954CycloneThe Gold Coast Cyclone26–30A tropical cyclone (known as The Gold Coast Cyclone) crossed the coast late evening on 20 February 1954 at Coolangatta. Extreme rainfall associated with the cyclone produced record totals, including 900mm at Springbrook, Queensland in the 24 hours crossing and 809mm at Dorrigo, New South Wales in 24 hours to 9 am on 21st. There was widespread severe flooding over many areas of NSW.1955BushfireBlack Sunday bushfires21955Flood1955 Hunter Valley floods25Most deaths were around Singleton and Maitland, but most other river systems in the state were also in flood.1959Heat wave1959 Australian heat wave105–1451959 Jan – Feb heat wave in southern regions of Australia. Some sources puts the death toll as high as 145.1961BushfireWestern Australian bushfires0160 homes1965BushfireChatsbury bushfires359 homes1967BushfireTasmanian fires621,293 homesNow known as Black Tuesday, 7000 left homeless as over a hundred fires burned in southern Tasmania.1969Bushfire1969 bushfires23230 houses, 21 other buildings and more than 12,000 stockOccurred on 8 January 1969. 17 casualties at Lara1970CycloneCyclone Ada1412,000,000 AUD (1970)1971Flood1971 Canberra flood.71971TornadoKin Kin tornado3100,000 AUDA tornado swept through the town of Kin Kin.1974Bushfire1974-75 Australian bushfire season6Farmers' crops, 57,000 farm animals, and of fencingFire burned up 117 million hectares (290 million acres), which is 15% of Australia's land.1974FloodBrisbane flood16980,000,000 AUD1974CycloneCyclone Tracy71645,350,000 USD (1974)Cyclone Tracy destroys the city of Darwin on Christmas Day 1974. Top wind gust recorded was . On 17 March 2005, a Northern Territory Coroner's Inquest outcome increased the official death toll from 65 to 71.1978CycloneCyclone Alby745,000,000 USD (1978)1983BushfireAsh Wednesday bushfires752,400 homes1989CycloneCyclone Orson516,800,000 USD (1989)1989EarthquakeNewcastle earthquake134,000,000,000 AUD1990FloodCyclone Nancy6Tropical Cyclone Nancy crossed the coast near Byron Bay, then moving back out to sea. It brought extremely heavy rain which led to flash flooding, with 6 lives lost to drowning.Cyclone1993–1994BushfireEastern seaboard fires4225 homes1996LandslideGracetown landslide9About 30 tonnes of rock and sand fell from a cliff to the below spectators of a school surf event.1997LandslideThredbo landslide18One victim was found alive after 60 hours of being buried.1998FloodCyclone Les (1998)3Cyclone1998Flood1998 Townsville and Thuringowa city floods1$100,000,000 AUD1998BushfireLinton Bushfire51998ThunderstormSydney to Hobart Yacht Race630,000,000 AUDA supercell storm caused chaos during the annual Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race, with only 44 out of 115 yachts finishing.1999CycloneCyclone Vance0100,000,000 USD (1999)1999HailstormSydney hailstorm12,300,000,000 AUD2001–2002BushfireBlack Christmas bushfires0121 homes2002CycloneCyclone Chris12929,000 USD (2002)2003Thunderstorm2003 Melbourne thunderstorm0The Australian Bureau of Meteorology called the storm a "once in 100-year event".2003BushfireCanberra bushfires4Close to 500 homes350,000,000 AUD (2003)2003BushfireEastern Victorian alpine bushfires341 homes2005BushfireEyre Peninsula bushfire, 2005993 homes2006BushfireJunee Bushfire02006CycloneCyclone Glenda0965,000 USD (2006)2006BushfireMount Lubra bushfire22006CycloneCyclone Larry11,100,000,000 USD (2006)2006BushfirePulletop bushfire02007BushfireKangaroo Island bushfires12007CycloneCyclone George515,700,000 USD (2007)2007Flood/Storm2007 New South Wales storms102008ThunderstormQueensland storms2500,000,000 AUD2009Heat wave2009 southeastern Australia heat wave374A nine-day heat wave in early 2009 in which Adelaide recorded six consecutive days over , a high of and a record overnight minimum of on 28 January.75 excess deaths attributed to heat stress were recorded in the Adelaide metropolitan area, 33 in Melbourne and an unknown number in country areas. Sparked the Black Saturday bushfires (see below). Health authorities attribute 374 deaths to the heat wave.2009BushfireBlack Saturday bushfires1732,029 homes, 2,000 other structures2009CycloneCyclone Hamish238,800,000 USD (2009)2010FloodMarch 2010 Queensland floods0200,000,000+ AUD2010FloodMarch 2010 Victoria storms02000+ houses 500,000,000+ AUD2010Flood2010 Western Australian storms0$1,080,000,000 AUDIt is the costliest natural disaster in Western Australian history2010FloodSeptember 2010 Victoria floods02502010Flood2010 Gascoyne River flood0two thousand head of cattle perished100,000,000 AUD ( preliminary)The most severe flood to take place along the Gascoyne River in Western Australia on record.2010–2011Flood2010–11 Queensland floods332,390,000,000 AUD2011CycloneCyclone Yasi13,600,000,000 USD (2011)2011Flood2011 Victoria floods2$2,000,000,000 AUD2011Flood2011 Wollongong floods02013BushfireTasmanian bushfires1170+ buildings2013BushfireNew South Wales bushfires12013CycloneCyclone Oswald72,520,000,000 USD (2013)2014HailstormBrisbane hailstorm01,100,000,000 AUD2014CycloneCyclone Ita01,150,000,000 USD (2014)2015BushfireSampson Flat bushfires02015BushfireEsperance bushfires42015BushfirePinery bushfire22017BushfireCarwoola bushfire056 buildings2017CycloneCyclone Debbie142,730,000,000 USD (2017)2018Flood2018 Broome flood0The rainfall was caused by Cyclone Joyce, which struck Broome on 12 January 2018. Another tropical low struck the area two weeks later, which delivered further rains. Cyclone Kelvin then hit on 16 February.2018BushfireTathra bushfire069 homes2019Flood2019 Townsville flood51500 homes rendered uninhabitable1,243,000,0002019–2020Bushfire2019–20 bushfire season34 direct9,352 buildings
3,500 homes