Most expensive accidents in history

Space Shuttle Columbia
The Space Shuttle Columbia was the first space worthy shuttle in NASA's orbital fleet. It was destroyed during re-entry over Texas on February 1, 2003 after a hole was punctured in one of the wings during launch 16 days earlier. $500 million was spent on the investigation, making it the costliest aircraft accident investigation in history. In the end, the total cost of the accident (not including replacement of the shuttle) came out to $13 billion.

Prestige Oil Spill

On November 13, 2002, the Prestige oil tanker was carrying 77,000 tons of heavy fuel oil when one of its twelve tanks burst during a storm off Galicia, Spain. Fearing that the ship would sink, the captain called for help from Spanish rescue workers in vain. The storm eventually took its toll on the ship resulting in the tanker splitting in half and releasing 20 million gallons oil into the sea. The total cleanup cost was $12 billion.

Challenger Explosion

The Space Shuttle Challenger was destroyed 73 seconds after takeoff due on January 28, 1986 due to a faulty O-ring. It failed to seal one of the joints, allowing pressurized gas to reach the outside. This in turn caused the external tank to dump its payload of liquid hydrogen causing a massive explosion. The cost of replacing the Space Shuttle was $2 billion in 1986. The cost of investigation, problem correction, and replacement of lost equipment cost $450 million from 1986-1987.

Challenger Explosion

The Space Shuttle Challenger was destroyed 73 seconds after takeoff due on January 28, 1986 due to a faulty O-ring. It failed to seal one of the joints, allowing pressurized gas to reach the outside. This in turn caused the external tank to dump its payload of liquid hydrogen causing a massive explosion. The cost of replacing the Space Shuttle was $2 billion in 1986. The cost of investigation, problem correction, and replacement of lost equipment cost $450 million from 1986-1987.

Chernobyl

On April 26, 1986, the world witnessed the costliest accident in history. Over 200,000 people had to be evacuated and resettled while 1.7 million people were directly affected by the disaster. The death toll attributed to Chernobyl, including people who died from cancer years later, is estimated at 125,000. The total cost has been estimated to be roughly $200 billion. The cost of a new steel shelter for the Chernobyl nuclear plant will cost $2 billion alone

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