Disaster Area

It might have felt like just a bad day at work - cracks in the walls, the merchandise shaking on the shelves, the air conditioning needing to be turned off. But the Sampoong department store wasn't just falling apart metaphorically. It was quite literally taking all day to fail.

Videos:

Seconds From Disaster: Superstore Collapse
Blueprint for Disaster: Sampoong Collapse

Articles and books:

Collapse: When Buildings Fall Down by Phillip Wearne
30th Anniversary Memorial for Sampoong Department Store Disaster: "Longing Deepens with Time"
The Sampoong Department Store Memorial page on FindAGrave

In 6th century Constantinople, Emperor Justinian would lead the Byzantine empire into conquering other lands, constructing impressive architecture, and instituting a new legal code that still influences nations today. But before a lot of that was done, Justinian faced the wrath of his subjects, with their rage coming to a head at one of the unlikeliest of places - a chariot race.

Videos:

Yale Courses: The Reign of Justinian

Articles and books:

Nika Riots: A Week of Chaos that Shook Byzantine Constantinople
Nika Riots: History, Causes and Aftermath
Blue versus Green: Rocking the Byzantine Empire
CHARIOT-RACING HOOLIGANISM? THE NIKA RIOTS OF CONSTANTINOPLE
Justinian: Emperor, Soldier, Saint, by Peter Sarris

We all know what a good strong summer thunderstorm looks like, and we know just how much rain one of them can douse us in. But on a warm Friday night in 1972, the eastern foothills of the Black Hills -- and in particular the town of Rapid City, South Dakota -- were struck by storms which broke dams, overflowed creek beds, and killed hundreds.
Videos:

Disasters of the Century: Rapid City Flood
Photasma Travel: Rapid City Flood 1972
Dakota Life: Remembering the 1972 Rapid City Flood
Surviving the '72 Flood
The Black Hills Flood: 50 Years Later
1972 Flood Special

Articles and books:

Images of America: The 1972 Black Hills flood, by Corey Christianson
US Geological Survey: The 1972 Black Hills-Rapid City flood
Weather.gov: The Black Hills flood of 1972
Rapid City Library: The Rapid City Flood of 1972
Obituary: Don Barnett

It was a beautiful Monday morning in San Diego on September 25, 1978 - sunny and hot with not a cloud in the sky. There was no reason whatsoever to think the day would be ruined by anything, but especially not by two planes colliding over a horrified suburb.

Videos:

Air Crash Investigation: Blind Spot
Allec Joshua Ibay: Blind Spot - 1978 San Diego Mid-Air Collision

Articles and books:

NTSB report on the collision between Flight 182 and the Cessna
San Diego Magazine: This is It!
Memorializing the 45th Anniversary of the Crash of PSA Flight 182 at the San Diego Air & Space Museum
Memories That Will Never Go Away" The Crash of Flight 182 and Its Aftermath

When we think of deadly peacetime maritime disasters, Titanic is the first ship to come to mind. But there is a far deadlier disaster which holds the record for the worst in terms of loss of life ... when a loaded oil tanker and a packed ferry collided in the Philippines one moonless night just before Christmas in 1987.

Videos:

Asia's Titanic

Articles and books:

Doña Paz victims waiting for justice 25 years after
Catbalogan folk cry foul over demolition of Doña Paz memorial
The Philippines Off Mindoro, a Night to Remember
It's Gloom And Glitter For Manila
NYT: 1,500 ARE FEARED LOST AS 2 SHIPS COLLIDE AND SINK NEAR PHILIPPINES
Caltex v. Sulpucio
Paul Allen's research vessel surveys wreckage of 'Asia's Titanic' — 1987 ferry sinking killed 4,300
Alchetron: MV Dona Paz