76,806 Killed in 2003 Disasters

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies reported that the global death toll from disasters hit 76,806 in 2003, three times the number of victims in 2002. Two major disasters in 2003 killed tens of thousands -- the Bam, Iran earthquake (31,000 dead) and the European heat wave (35,000 dead) -- which resulted in the abnormally high number of global fatalities.