Tsunami hits Alexandria, Egypt Jul 21, 365

July 21, 2011

Tsunami hits Alexandria, Egypt. (2011). The History Channel website. Retrieved 3:47, July 21, 2011, from http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/tsunami-hits-alexandria-egypt. On this day in the year 365, a powerful earthquake off the coast of Greece causes a tsunami that devastates the city of Alexandria, Egypt. Although there were no measuring tools at the time, scientists now estimate that the quake was actually two tremors in succession, the largest of which is thought to have had a magnitude of 8.0.

The quake was centered near the plate boundary called the Hellenic Arc and quickly sent a wall of water across the Mediterranean Sea toward the Egyptian coast. Ships in the harbor at Alexandria were overturned as the water near the coast receded suddenly. Reports indicate that many people rushed out to loot the hapless ships. The tsunami wave then rushed in and carried the ships over the sea walls, landing many on top of buildings. In Alexandria, approximately 5,000 people lost their lives and 50,000 homes were destoyed.

The surrounding villages and towns suffered even greater destruction. Many were virtually wiped off the map. Outside the city, 45,000 people were killed. In addition, the inundation of saltwater rendered farmland useless for years to come. Evidence indicates that the area’s shoreline was permanently changed by the disaster. Slowly, but steadily, the buildings of Alexandria’s Royal Quarter were overtaken by the sea following the tsunami. It was not until 1995 that archaeologists discovered the ruins of the old city off the coast of present-day Alexandria.

Today, the anniversary of the tsunami is celebrated annually, with the residents saying prayers and marking the evening by illuminating the city.

Source: researchhistory.org

The Everglades do experience hurricanes and tornadoes.

• Hurricanes can cause significant damage, including storm surges and strong winds that can strip trees of their leaves and limbs.
• The Everglades’ wetlands act as a buffer, but they can still sustain severe damage from hurricanes, as seen with events like Hurricane Irma in 2017.
• Tornadoes have also been reported to affect the region, particularly in the context of hurricanes.

Overall, while hurricanes and tornadoes can impact the Everglades, they also play a role in the natural processes that support its ecosystem recovery.

everglades.org

1801 – A 1,235 pound cheese ball was pressed at the farm of Elisha Brown, Jr. The ball of cheese was later loaded on a horse-driven wagon and presented to U.S. President Thomas Jefferson at the White House.

1810 – Colombia declared independence from Spain.

1859 – Brooklyn and New York played baseball at Fashion Park Race Course on Long Island, NY. The game marked the first time that admission had been charged for to see a ball game. It cost $.50 to get in and the players on the field did not receive a salary (until 1863).

1861 – The Congress of the Confederate States began holding sessions in Richmond, VA.

1868 – Legislation that ordered U.S. tax stamps to be placed on all cigarette packs was passed. 

1871 – British Columbia joined Confederation as a Canadian province.

1881 – Sioux Indian leader Sitting Bull, a fugitive since the Battle of the Little Big Horn, surrendered to federal troops. (Montana)

1917 – The draft lottery in World War I went into operation.

1935 – NBC radio debuted “G-men.” The show was later renamed “Gangbusters.”

1942 – The first detachment of the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps, (WACS) began basic training at Fort Des Moines, Iowa.

1944 – An attempt by a group of German officials to assassinate Adolf Hitler failed. The bomb exploded at Hitler’s Rastenburg headquarters. Hitler was only wounded.

1944 – U.S. President Roosevelt was nominated for an unprecedented fourth term of office at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

1947 – The National Football League (NFL) ruled that no professional team could sign a player who had college eligibility remaining.

1961 – “Stop the World, I Want to Get Off” opened in London.

1969 – Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr. became the first men to walk on the moon. 

1974 – Turkish forces invaded Cyprus.

1976 – America’s Viking I robot spacecraft made a successful landing on Mars.

1982 – U.S. President Ronald Reagan pulled the U.S. out of comprehensive test ban negotiations indefinitely. 

1985 – Treasure hunters began raising $400 million in coins and silver from the Spanish galleon “Nuestra Senora de Atocha.” The ship sank in 1622 40 miles of the coast of Key West, FL.

1992 – Vaclav Havel, the playwright who led the Velvet Revolution against communism, stepped down as president of Czechoslovakia.

1998 – Russia won a $11.2 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund to help avert the devaluation of its currency.

2003 – In India, elephants used for commercial work began wearing reflectors to avoid being hit by cars during night work

Seneca Falls Convention begins » 1848

America bombs Rome » 1943

Massachusetts begins ill-fated Penobscot expedition » 1779

President Arthur proclaims power to impose quarantine on immigrants » 1884

http://www.history.com

1525 – The Catholic princes of Germany formed the Dessau League to fight against the Reformation.

1553 – Fifteen-year-old Lady Jane Grey was deposed as Queen of England after claiming the crown for nine days. Mary, the daughter of King Henry VIII, was proclaimed Queen.

1788 – Prices plunged on the Paris stock market.

1799 – The Rosetta Stone, a tablet with hieroglyphic translations into Greek, was found in Egypt.

1848 – The Women’s Rights Convention took place in Seneca Fall, NY. Bloomers were introduced at the convention.

1870 – France declared war on Prussia.

1909 – The first unassisted triple play in major-league baseball was made by Cleveland Indians shortstop Neal Ball in a game against Boston.

1939 – Dr. Roy P. Scholz became the first surgeon to use fiberglass sutures.

1942 – German U-boats were withdrawn from positions off the U.S. Atlantic coast due to effective American anti-submarine countermeasures.

1943 – During World War II, more than 150 B-17 and 112 B-24 bombers attacked Rome for the first time.

1946 – Marilyn Monroe acted in her first screen test.

1960 – Juan Marichal (San Francisco Giants) became the first pitcher to get a one-hitter in his major league debut.

1964 – In Illinois, Cahokia Mounds was designated as a U.S. National Landmark.

1971 – In New York, the topping out ceremony for Two World Trade Center (South Tower) took place. The ceremony for One World Trade Center had taken place on December 23, 1970.

1974 – The House Judiciary Committee recommended that U.S. President Richard Nixon should stand trial in the Senate for any of the five impeachment charges against him.

1975 – The Apollo and Soyuz spacecrafts separated after being linked in orbit for two days.

1979 – In Nicaragua, the dictatorship of the Somozas was overthrown by the Sandinista National Liberation Front (Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional or FSLN).

1982 – The U.S. Census Bureau reported that 14% of the population had an income below the official poverty level in 1981.

1984 – Geraldine Ferraro was nominated by the Democratic Party to become the first woman from a major political party to run for the office of U.S. Vice-President.

1985 – George Bell won first place in a biggest feet contest with a shoe size of 28-1/2. Bell, at age 26, stood 7 feet 10 inches tall.

1985 – Christa McAuliffe of New Hampshire was chosen to be the first schoolteacher to ride aboard the space shuttle. She died with six others when the Challenger exploded the following year.