The 10 biggest natural disasters in U.S. history

Since the beginning of civilization, natural disasters have been the scourge of man and women kind. From fires to floods, hurricanes to earthquakes, Mother Nature is often unpredictable, unmerciful, and deadly. Unfortunately, we've seen that recently as Houston and Texas struggles in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.

Here are the 10 biggest natural disasters in U.S. history, both by death toll and financial impact, listed by date:

Johnstown Flood - 1889
The town of Johnstown was a thriving steel mill community in the late 19th century…until disaster struck on May 31, 1889. After days of torrential rains hit, their South Fork dam finally gave way and burst, unleashing 20 millions tons of water with a 14-mile head start on the town. The fast-moving wall of water hit the town with the force of Niagra Falls, crushing 1,600 homes and killing 2,209 people.

Hurricane Galveston - 1900
The beautiful island community of Galveston – which was known as the “Jewel of Texas” – was the unfortunate target for a 1900 hurricane that turned out to be the single deadliest natural disaster in U.S. history. On September 8 that year, Not long after the city planners rejected a measure to build a sea wall to protect their city, a Category 4 hurricane swung into Galveston like a wrecking ball. With 145 mph winds and 15-foot waves, buildings and homes were pulverized, and the whole island was soon underwater, with 8,000 – 12,000 fatalities.

San Francisco Earthquake -- 1906
It only lasted less than 60 seconds, but then the San Andreas fault split during the middle of the night back in 1906, San Francisco was shaken to the ground and engulfed in flames. The 7.8 magnitude earthquake destroyed more than 80 percent of the city, but it was the ensuing fires that caused just as much damage. By the time the last ashes were doused, more than 500 city blocks had been burnt to the ground, 3,000 people had lost their lives, and 225,000 of the city's residents were left homeless.

Okeechobee Hurricane - 1928
When the newspapers and radio programs announced that a hurricane was set to descend upon Lake Okeechobee on September 16, residents of the Florida lake-front community evacuated their homes. But unfortunately, most people returned to their homes that evening when they thought the hurricane had passed – but it just was late arriving. They were beset by 140 mph winds and so much rain that the lake's dike broke, causing catastrophic flooding that wiped out 2,500 people, making it the second deadliest hurricane in U.S. history.

Dust Bowl - Early 1930's
Going way back to the midst of the Great Depression, a prolonged natural disaster was the last thing the U.S. people needed. But that’s exactly what they faced with the Dust Bowl – a decade-long drought that transformed the Great Plains from a lush, fertile farmland into a barren wasteland of dust and wind. The disaster was in-part due to man as well as nature, caused by farmers who severely over-plowed and mismanaged their crops, resulting in massive erosion that ruined the land.

When a ten-year drought ensued, the once rich topsoil was reduced to useless dust, and millions of people had to leave their homes and livelihoods to move elsewhere. Half a million people were left homeless, and a third of all farmers had to turn to government aid. The dust was so bad that windstorms sometimes blew the dust so far east that the skies darkened all the way on the Atlantic Coast.

Heat Wave of 1980
The death toll was just as high during a devilish heat wave during the summer of 1980, where the thermometer never went below 90 degrees for most of the summer. In all, 10,000 people died due to the heat factor, and the damage to the agriculture sector and other costs added up to $48 billion.

Heat Wave of 1988
It’s not just hurricanes, earthquakes, and flooding that cause disasters, as something as simple as high temperatures can turn deadly. In fact, heat waves have killed more people than any of the wind or rain-based weather events of the past 30 years in the U.S! Such was the case in the summer of 1988 when a record heat wave scorched about 45 percent of the nation, and rainfall levels were even lower than during the Dust Bowl era. Between heat stress, wildfire deaths, and other heat-related deaths, about 5,000 – 10,000 people lost their lives and the heat wave left $61 billion of damage to the agricultural economy.

Hurricane Katrina - 2005
The Category 1 hurricane that slammed south eastern United States ended up being the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history with a final tab of about $125 billion, including about $81 billion in property damage. But it was the unbelievable scenes of the levees breaking in New Orleans and the aftermath that affected us the most, as 80 percent of the city was underwater and countless people scrambling for survival. While that financial damage was unprecedented, it was the human toll of 1,836 lives lost that made it one of the worst American tragedies ever.

Hurricane Sandy - 2012
Seven years after Katrina hit New Orleans, Hurricane Sandy wreaked havoc in New York in 2012. Also known as Superstorm Sandy, the hurricane stretched an unnerving 1,100 miles across the Atlantic Coast. When it was all over, 44 people had lost their lives in New York and New Jersey and the financial damage – an estimated $70.2 billion - made it one of the most costly natural disasters in U.S. history.

Hurricane Harvey - 2017
Of course, news about Hurricane Harvey and the devastation it has caused in Texas is now worldwide. Starting as a Category 3 storm, Harvey increased in power into a Category 4 storm, with 52 inches of rain and winds up to 130 mph.

So far, 50,000 homes have been damaged or destroyed, there are scores of casualties, and 30,000 people are living in shelters. With at least 1/3 of the city of Houston completely underwater, early estimates account for up to $23 billion in damage.