One of the deadliest volcanic eruptions of all times took place in 1902 when the eruption of Mt. Pelee in Martinique island of the French West Indies destroyed the city of St. Pierre and killed nearly 29,000 people. Another catastrophic eruption was that of Nevada del Ruiz in Columbia in 1985. The village of Armero was completely destroyed and the death toll reached 23,000.
Floods form a part of nature's fury that has imperiled man through the ages.
This century like the others before it has borne the onslaught of ravaging deluges in various parts of the world. The worst floods have been caused by cyclones striking the coastal areas. India and Bangladesh experienced some of the worst cyclones this century, the death toll in Bangladesh reaching 150-200,000. Other devastating cyclones to hit the world this century were the Cyclone Tracy that devastated Darwin in 1974, Cyclone Wanda that struck Southeast Queensland, Cyclone Joy which caused the worst floods in Queensland coast in 1991. If excess floods have caused much damage to some areas there have been other places in the world where lack of rain has caused severe famines.