December 9
Dec 9
Chiapas truck crash
On December 9, 2021, a cargo truck carrying dozens of migrants overturned on a highway near Chiapa de Corzo in Chiapas, southern Mexico. The crash killed at least 55 people and injured more than 100. Emergency teams, consular officials, and prosecutors converged on the scene as investigators probed whether overloading, driver error, or smuggling networks were to blame.
Dec 9
2019 Whakaari / White Island eruption
On December 9, 2019, at 14:11 NZDT, a sudden steam-driven (phreatic) eruption tore through Whakaari / White Island in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand. About 47 people were on the island for guided tours; the blast killed 22 people and left many others with life‑changing burn and inhalation injuries. The event exposed the fragile limits of volcanic monitoring, sparked national debates over commercial access to active hazards, and set in motion legal, scientific, and cultural reckonings that continue to unfold.
Dec 9
Trans‑Canada Air Lines Flight 810 crash (Mount Slesse disaster)
On December 9, 1956, Trans‑Canada Air Lines Flight 810, a Canadair North Star on a routine transcontinental run, flew into instrument weather and struck the steep slopes of Mount Slesse in the Cascade Range of southwestern British Columbia. The impact destroyed the aircraft; there were no survivors. The disaster shocked a nation, prompted difficult recoveries on alpine terrain, and helped focus attention on the limits of mid‑century navigation and mountain flying procedures.
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Dec 9
Cross Mountain Mine disaster
On December 9, 1911, an explosion tore through the Cross Mountain Mine near Briceville in Tennessee’s Coal Creek Valley, killing dozens of miners and leaving a small Appalachian community to reckon with sudden, large-scale grief. The blast — widened by coal-dust and fueled by uncertain ignition sources — prompted frantic surface rescues, multi-day recovery work, and renewed calls for stronger mine safety at a moment when federal attention to such dangers was only beginning.