2019
More than 1,200 tin homes were destroyed after a fire broke out in the Chalantika slums of Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Ten thousand people were left homeless, and the blaze took firefighters over six hours to extinguish.
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2018
Over 566 wildfires swept through British Columbia in Canada, which led to a State of Emergency, and 3,000 people were evacuated.
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2016
Georgian heavyweight-lifting champion Lasha Talakhadze smashed a world record by lifting an incredible 473 kg.
This was 22 kg more than the first runner-up Gor Minasyan.
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2012
Julian Assange, who founded WikiLeaks, was given political asylum by Ecuador.
Assange had been hiding out at the Ecuadorian Embassy in Knightsbridge, London.
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2008
Michael Phelps won the 100-meter butterfly swim in a record 50:58 at the Beijing Olympic finals.
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1989
A solar flare from the sun created a geomagnetic storm, which caused Toronto’s stock market to halt.
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1984
NASA launched its Active Magnetospheric Particle Tracer Explorers mission (AMPTE) from the Cape Canaveral launch pad.
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1960
Cyprus gained its independence from the United Kingdom.
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1954
The first issue of Sports Illustrated magazine is published.
Sports Illustrated is an American sports magazine owned by Authentic Brands Group.
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1930
The world’s first colored cartoon with synchronized sound was released.
“Flip the Frog – Fiddlesticks” was created by animator Ubbe Eert Iwerks, Mickey Mouse’s co-creator. Although the cartoon was made in the USA, it was first shown in cinemas in England.
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1898
Edwin Prescott was awarded a patent for the vertical loop Roller Coaster.
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1858
Queen Victoria of Britain sent the first-ever transatlantic telegraph to US President James Buchanan.
The cable was laid between Ireland and Newfoundland and allowed the two countries to communicate by telegraph, which was innovative at the time. The Queen’s message expressed her joy for the two countries being connected and the hopes for continued friendship.
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963 AD
Nikephoros II Phokas was crowned emperor of the Byzantine Empire.
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