Ajka alumina plant accident
An industrial accident at a caustic waste reservoir chain took place at the Ajkai Timföldgyár alumina plant in Ajka, Veszprém County, in western Hungary. On 4 October 2010, at 12:25 CEST (10:25 UTC), the northwestern corner of the dam of reservoir number 10 collapsed, freeing approximately one million cubic metres (35 million cubic feet) of liquid waste from red mud lakes. The mud was released as a 1-2 m (3-7 ft) wave, flooding several nearby localities, including the village of Kolontár and the town of Devecser. Ten people died, and 150 people were injured. About 40 square kilometres (15 sq mi) of land were initially affected. The spill reached the Danube on 7 October 2010. It was not initially clear how the containment at the reservoir had been breached.
André Waterkeyn died
André Waterkeyn was a Belgian engineer, born in Wimbledon, London, best known for creating the Atomium. Waterkeyn was the economic director of Fabrimetal (now Agoria), a federation of metallurgical companies when in 1954 he was asked to design a building for the 1958 Brussels World's Fair (Expo '58) that would symbolise Belgian engineering skills.
Inter-City 125 (High Speed Train) went into service
The InterCity 125 (originally Inter-City 125) or High Speed Train (HST) is a diesel-powered high-speed passenger train. On 4 October a partial service of HSTs running at 125 mph (201 km/h) began on the Western Region, from London Paddington, on the Great Western and South Wales Main Lines.
John Rennie the Elder died
John Rennie was a Scottish civil engineer who designed many bridges, canals, docks and warehouses, and a pioneer in the use of structural cast-iron.
Pierre-Paul Riquet died
Pierre-Paul Riquet, Baron de Bonrepos was the engineer and canal-builder responsible for the construction of the Canal du Midi. The Canal du Midi is a 240 km (150 mi) long canal in Southern France. It is considered one of the greatest construction works of the 17th century.
