December 1
2020
Collapse of the Arecibo Telescope
The Arecibo Observatory’s 305‑meter radio telescope — a landmark instrument completed in 1963 in a Puerto Rico karst sinkhole — suffered progressive cable failures in 2020 and catastrophically collapsed on December 1, 2020. The collapse destroyed the suspended instrument platform and large portions of the dish, killed two workers, and ended decades of unique scientific capability while prompting questions about aging national infrastructure and stewardship. Read more
1997
Laxmanpur-Bathe massacre
On the night of December 1–2, 1997, armed men entered the Dalit village of Laxmanpur-Bathe in then-Gaya district, Bihar, India, and carried out a house-to-house attack that left 58 people dead. The massacre—widely attributed to members of the Ranvir Sena, a private upper-caste militia—became emblematic of the tit-for-tat caste violence, weak local law enforcement, and long, contested struggles for justice that scarred Bihar in the 1990s. Read more
1981
Inex‑Adria Aviopromet Flight 1308
On December 1, 1981, an Inex‑Adria MD‑80 on a holiday charter to Ajaccio, Corsica, descended below safe altitude in instrument conditions and struck rising ground on Mont San‑Pietro during final approach to Ajaccio–Campo dell’Oro Airport. All on board were killed; the accident was later attributed to controlled flight into terrain amid ambiguous communications and procedural lapses. Read more
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1974
Trans World Airlines Flight 514
On December 1, 1974, TWA Flight 514, a Boeing 727 on approach to the Washington, D.C. area, struck the eastern slope of Mount Weather in Loudoun County, Virginia, killing all 92 people on board. The NTSB found the crew descended below a safe altitude while not on a protected portion of the published approach; ambiguous air traffic clearances and chart presentation were cited as contributing factors. The accident sharpened industry focus on controlled‑flight‑into‑terrain prevention, approach‑chart clarity, and the need for unambiguous ATC phraseology.
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1958
Our Lady of the Angels School fire
In the morning hours of December 1, 1958, a smoldering ignition in a cloakroom of Our Lady of the Angels School in Chicago set off a rapid, deadly fire that spread through vertical openings and filled stairwells with smoke. Ninety-five people died — 92 students and three nuns — and roughly 77 others were injured. The disaster exposed dangerous design and practice in older school buildings and led to sweeping changes in fire safety nationwide.
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