SS Andrea Doria was an ocean liner for the Italian Line out of Genoa,
Italy. The ship capsized and sank on 26 July 1956 after colliding with
the MS Stockholm as it was en route to New York. Of the nearly
1,500 passengers and more than 600 crew members only 46
people died in one of the most successful rescues in maritime
history.  

The space shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after liftoff from Cape Canaveral, killing all seven crew members.

Near the completion of a $5 million conversion, the ocean liner RMS Queen Elizabeth caught fire on Sunday, January 9 1972. There is some speculation the fires were set deliberately, as several blazes broke out simultaneously throughout the ship. The
vessel had been acquired for $3.5 million, and had been insured for $8 million.

The ship was completely destroyed, and the water being sprayed by the fireboats to
put out the flames caused the Queen Elizabeth to capsize and sink in Hong Kong
Victory Harbor. It was soon declared a shipping hazard and was dismantled for
scrap between 1974 and 1975. Portions of the hull were left at the bottom of
the bay along with the keel and boilers.

The Douglas DC-8 of United Airlines Flight 173 was en route from Denver to Portland 
International Airport on Wednesday, December 28, 1978. A landing gear malfunction forced the plane to circle the Portland area while the problem was investigated by the crew. The big jet ran out fuel within an hour and crash landed in a sparsely populated area near 157th and East Burnside, killing 10 and seriously injuring 24 of the 189 passengers who were aboard the aircraft.

President  Roosevelt signing the declaration of war on Japan, Dec. 8, 1941.