1989 Loma Prieta earthquake
The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake occurred on California's Central Coast on October 17 at 5:04 p.m. local time. The shock was centered in The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park in Santa Cruz County, approximately 10 mi (16 km) northeast of Santa Cruz on a section of the San Andreas Fault System and was named for the nearby Loma Prieta Peak in the Santa Cruz Mountains. With an Mw magnitude of 6.9 and a maximum Modified Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), the shock was responsible for 63 deaths and 3,757 injuries.
Burma Railway was completed
The Burma Railway, also known as the Siam-Burma Railway, Thai-Burma Railway and similar names, or as the Death Railway, is a 415 km (258 mi) railway between Ban Pong, Thailand, and Thanbyuzayat, Burma (now called Myanmar). The railway was completed ahead of schedule. On 17 October 1943, construction gangs originating in Burma working south met up with construction gangs originating in Thailand working north. The two sections of the line met at kilometre 263, about 18 km (11 mi) south of the Three Pagodas Pass at Konkoita (nowadays: Kaeng Khoi Tha, Sangkhla Buri District, Kanchanaburi Province).
Madrid Metro opened
Madrid Metro is a rapid transit system serving the city of Madrid, capital of Spain. The system is the 14th longest rapid transit system in the world, with a total length of 293 km (182 mi). Its growth between 1995 and 2007 put it among the fastest-growing networks in the world at the time, rivaling many Asian metros. A light rail system feeding the metro opened in 2007 called Metro Ligero ("light metro"). The Cercanías system works in conjunction with the metro, with a majority of its stations providing access to the underground network. The Madrid Metro has 1,705 escalators and 529 elevators.
London tornado of 1091
The London Tornado of 1091 is the earliest reported tornado in England, occurring in London on Friday, 17 October 1091. It has been reckoned by modern assessment as possibly a T8 on the TORRO scale (roughly equivalent to an F4 on the Fujita scale) making it potentially the strongest recorded tornado in the British Isles, although this estimate is based on reports written 30 years after the tornado. The tornado claimed just two known victims from a population of about 18,000.
