1962 Avalanche in the Andes

1962 : A major avalanche of rocks and ice from the extinct volcano of Huascaran, Peru's highest mountain in the Andes range buried the village of Ranrahirca and 8 other local villages with the loss of over 4000 estimated

1964 Skipping School

Three students were tried and convicted on this day for an incident of skipping school a few months prior to this date. They also were tried guilty of vandalism and looting. One of the boys was sentenced to the Youth Service Board and the other boy and girl were suspended.

1964 Smoking Bad For You

U.S. Surgeon General Luther Leonidas Terry reported that smoking may lead to major health problems including lung cancer

1971 Uruguay Urban Guerrillas

A group known as the Tupamaro Urban Guerrillas had assassinated Detective Jose Leandro Villalba in Montevideo, Uruguay. Villalba had been leaving a bar when he was shot by numerous 45-caliber bullets that were fired by the above-mentioned Tupamaro.

The same group that had shot the detective had also challenged the government of Uruguay into a kidnapping negotiation of a British Hostage.

The Tupamaro Urban Guerrillas mentioned above is a terrorist group. They have very extreme ideals, and are known for using extreme measures to "get their way".

1973 Great Britain Open University ( OU )

The first graduates from the Open University (OU) have been awarded their degrees after two years studying from home. The Open University (OU) was set up in 1971 to allow mature students to obtain degrees while still working and studying at home ( there are currently 200,000 students on its books making it the largest University in the country )

1986 Australia Gateway Bridge

1986 : The Gateway Bridge with 6 lanes opens in Brisbane, Australia over the Brisbane River

1988 Electrical Fire

A report on this day said that two banks had shut down within two months. The incident that happened last week to close one of the banks (Chase Manhattan) was an electrical fire.

1998 Algeria Massacre

Islamic extremists attack the villages of Sidi-Hamed and Haouche Sahraoui, in Algeria massacre up to 400 of the local villagers ( official figures give 103 dead ) bombing the local mosque and cinema and then rounding up survivors and hacking them to death.

2003 Illinois Criminal Justice system

In Chicago, Illinois, Governor George Ryan had released four prisoners who were on death row. These prisoners were four men who were tortured by police in the 1980's, forcing these men to falsely testify against murders they did not commit.

Incidentally, none of these men knew each other. Moreover, quotes of Governor George Ryan recorded in a Kansas newspaper indicated the governor's view of the Illinois Criminal Justice system.

Governor Ryan pointed out flaws, such as the fact that the system was inaccurate and unable to separate the innocent from the guilty. He also was reported to saying that this criminal justice system was "racist".

George Ryan was only three days away from the end of his term when he had made this decision. His plan for the time he was in office was to improve the Chicago, Illinois capital punishment system.

2003 Alaska

Alaska's sale of goods to foreign countries had increased by $106 million dollars. Furthermore seafood sale exports rose five percent from the previous nine months.

2007 Hurricane Katrina Victims Insurance Claims

2007 : Nearly 18 months after Hurricane Katrina a "Mississippi federal court judge" has ruled that Insurance companies are liable for payment to claims by victims of the hurricane. Up till now Insurance Companies including State Farm have refused to pay out stating ( Claims arising from water damage would not be paid ) and most of the damage to homes was caused due to Katrina's storm surge which they claimed should be considered water damage. This is the first time that the courts have sided with those affected, all earlier cases have supported the Insurance Companies .

2009 Europe Gas Supplies Dispute

11 days after the dispute between Russia and the Ukraine started, Russian, Ukrainian and European Union officials have signed a deal enabling a resumption of Russian gas deliveries to European countries through Ukraine. For hundreds of thousands of Europeans it can not come fast enough with freezing temperatures and no form of heating for the last 5 days.

2010 Calls For Investigation On Swine Flu

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (P.A.C.E.) has said it will be launching an inquiry into the influence made by the pharmaceutical companies on the global swine flu campaign. They will be focusing on how far the pharmaceutical industry’s influence on W.H.O. went, and P.A.C.E.'s Health Committee is asking for a better transparency of the 'Golden Triangle' between W.H.O., the pharmaceutical industry and academic scientists.

2011 Stealth Fighter Tested in China

11th January, China tests its first stealth fighter jet, the J-20. The flight lasted fifteen minutes and China suggest the stealth fighter could be fully operational as early as 2017. The United States is currently the only country in the world with stealth planes that are fully operational.   

2012 Netherlands to Ban Drug Khat

The government of the Netherlands has announced that will ban the use of the drug khat, a mild narcotic often used by the Somali community. The ban came after concerns emerged that the drug caused a public threat and had the potential to induce psychosis or schizophrenia.

2013 Flu Reaches Epidemic Levels in USA

2013 : Health officials claim that the influenza has crossed over the threshold into epidemic status in the United States. The CDC stated that the percentage of deaths caused by the flu went up to 7.3% which was just enough to reach epidemic levels.

2014 Protesters Attacked in Bangkok

2014 : At least seven people were injured after an unidentified gunman opened fire on a crowd of anti-government protesters in Bangkok.