On this day in 1943, the Royal Air Force bombed Hamburg, Germany during World War II, causing a firestorm that killed 42,000 German civilians.
On this day in 1965, U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson announced his order to increase the number of United States troops in South Vietnam from 75,000 to 125,000.
On this day in 1976, the Tangshan earthquake, measuring between 7.8 and 8.2 moment magnitude, flattened Tangshan in China, killing 242,769 and injuring 164,851.
On this day in 2010, Airblue Flight 202 crashed into the Margalla Hills north of Islamabad, Pakistan, killing all 152 people aboard. It was the deadliest aviation accident in Pakistan's history and the first involving an Airbus A321.