The first two tables below summarize data on radiation accidents and other events (i.e. intentional) that have caused acute radiation injury. They are based on the events listed at the Database of radiological incidents and related events. While this includes the major accidents and event, it is not a complete listing, nor is it a uniform sampling. To illustrate the level of incompleteness, the third table lists data from some major databases of radiation accidents and casualties.
| type of event | incidents | fatalities | injuries |
|---|---|---|---|
| nuclear combat | 2 | 195,000 | 130,000 |
| nuclear weapons tests | 1 | 1 | 93 |
| criminal radiological acts | 5 | 4 | 1 |
| accidents with power reactors | 1 | 41 | 438 |
| accidents with research reactors | 4 | 6 | 9 |
| accidents with naval reactors | 3 | 18 | 80 |
| criticality accidents (non-reactors) | 19 | 15 | 27 |
| dispersal of lost sources | 2 | 6 | 24 |
| lost sources | 26 | 31 | 88 |
| irradiator accidents | 31 | 8 | 39 |
| radiotherapy accidents | 27 | 54 | 223 |
| occupational contamination | 9 | 13 | 108 |
| total (excluding nuclear combat) | 128 | 197 | 1,130 |
Note: Casualty figures include fatalities from effects other than ionizing radiation in several cases. The 1961 SL-1 reactor incident is counted as a reactor accident, although it appears to have been intentional, not accidental.
| country of event | incidents | fatalities | injuries |
|---|---|---|---|
| Algeria | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| Argentina | 10 | 1 | 11 |
| Australia | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Belarus | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Belgium | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Brazil | 1 | 5 | 20 |
| Bulgaria | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Canada | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| China (PR) | 13 | 8 | 32 |
| Costa Rica | 1 | 7 | 81 |
| Egypt | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| El Salvador | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Estonia | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| France | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| Germany (FR) | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Georgia | 3 | 1 | 14 |
| Iran | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Israel | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Italy | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Japan | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| Mexico | 2 | 5 | 5 |
| Morocco | 1 | 8 | 3 |
| Nigiria | 1 | 0 | 26 |
| Norway | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Panama | 1 | 17 | 11 |
| Peru | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Poland | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Russia (post-Soviet) | 7 | 8 | 11 |
| South Africa | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| Spain | 1 | 18 | 9 |
| Switzerland | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Thailand | 1 | 3 | 7 |
| Turkey | 1 | 0 | 10 |
| United Kingdom | 4 | 1 | 12 |
| United States | 26 | 30 | 289 |
| U.S.S.R. | 17 | 60 | 538 |
| Vietnam | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Yugoslavia | 1 | 1 | 5 |
Note: these figures do not include the use of two nuclear weapons in combat in Japan in 1945.
© 2004, 2005 by Wm. Robert Johnston.
Last modified 8 April 2005.
Return to Home. Return to Nuclear Weapons.