1921 – One of the largest BASF flour mills in the region explodes in Oppau, southwestern Germany. During an accidental mixture of about 5000 tons of nitrate and ammonium sulfate, a chemical reaction occurred which, created a powerful explosion. As a result of this explosion nearly 600 people, most factory workers would lose their lives. Another 2,000 would be injured. While the roar of the explosion would be heard tens of km away.
1938 – One of the strongest hurricanes to hit the region in years, in New York State, USA, occurs. Also known as the New England Hurricane, it would cause about 800 dead, and over 2000 injured. The wind speed would be 260 km per hour and 60,000 houses would be exhausted. The financial damages would be $ 306 million. In addition to New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, and Massachusetts would be hit hard.
1939 – Romanian Prime Minister Armand Calinescu is assassinated by the Iron Guard (Romanian fascist organization). Calinescu, was one of the most promising and liberal leaders of Romania in the 1930s. His assassination would take place as a result of the extreme political polarization of Romanian society. After him, another Romanian politician of Albanian origin would be killed by the same organization, Nicolae Iorga.
1947 – Born in Portland, the famous American writer and screenwriter of the horror genre Stephen King. King would become known worldwide for his novels, The Shinning, Pet Sematary, Misery, and 1408. In these works, he masterfully describes fiction, thriller, and horror events. These novels have been successfully adapted as film scripts which have been awarded many national and international awards for their originality.
1953 – North Korean pilot and aeronautical engineer No Kum Sok flees to South Korea. During the Korean War he, would be one of the most successful pilots performing 100 combat missions. But after its completion he fled to the southern neighbor via his Mig-15 aircraft. He would then receive political asylum status in the US.
1964 – Malta, a small island nation in the Mediterranean, declares independence from the United Kingdom. During World War II British forces would defend the island from an attempted invasion by Italian and German troops. But in the 1960s the Maltese economy grew especially from tourism, which caused Malta to break away from the influence of official London. But even though the Mediterranean island declared independence, it remained within the Commonwealth English-speaking group.
1976 – Chilean Foreign Minister Orlando Letelier dies at the age of 44 after a bombing in Washington DC. Letelier after the Coup in Chile had sought political asylum in the US, and spoke out against the Pinochet regime. For this reason, he, along with a colleague of his named Ronnie Moffit and her husband Michael would be blown up by a bomb placed under their car. Letelier and Moffit would die on the spot while Michael would be seriously injured. The assassination was carried out by the Chilean Intelligence Service called DINA.
1991 – Armenia declares independence from the USSR. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the republics of the Caucasus region would begin one after the other, emerging from the tutelage of Moscow. Armenia would be one of the first to take this step. But also, in parallel with the withdrawal of the Armenian state from Soviet sovereignty, local ethnic conflicts with Azerbaijan’s neighbor over Nagorno-Karabakh would begin.
