Cyclone Waka was one of the most destructive tropical cyclones ever to
impact the South Pacific Kingdom of Tonga. Waka originated within the
near-equatorial trough in mid-December 2001. The storm gradually matured
and attained tropical cyclone status on December 29. Subsequently, Waka
underwent rapid intensification in which it attained its peak intensity
as a Category 4 severe tropical cyclone on December 31, with winds of
185 km/h (115 mph). Shortly thereafter, it passed directly over
Vava'u, Tonga, resulting in widespread damage. By January 1, 2002, the
cyclone began to weaken as it underwent an extratropical transition. The
remnants of Waka persisted for several more days and were last observed
near the Southern Ocean on January 6. Although the storm affected
several countries along its path, Waka left the most significant losses
in Tonga, where it killed one person and wrought 104.2 million paʻanga
($51.3 million USD) in damage. Hundreds of structures, including 200 in
the island's largest city, and much of the nation's agriculture were
destroyed. Due to the severity of damage, the name Waka was later
retired and replaced with Wiki.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclone_Waka>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
68:
Roman Emperor Nero (bust pictured) committed suicide after he was
deposed by the Senate.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nero>
1772:
In an act of defiance against the Navigation Acts, American
patriots led by Abraham Whipple attacked and burned the British schooner
Gaspée.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasp%C3%A9e_Affair>
1873:
Sixteen days after it was built, Alexandra Palace in North
London, England, was destroyed by fire.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandra_Palace>
1928:
Australian aviator Charles Kingsford Smith and his crew landed
their Southern Cross aircraft in Brisbane, completing the first ever
trans-Pacific flight from the United States mainland to Australia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Kingsford_Smith>
1954:
During the Army–McCarthy hearings investigating conflicting
accusations between the United States Army and Senator Joseph McCarthy,
Army lawyer Joseph N. Welch famously asked McCarthy, "At long last, have
you left no sense of decency?"
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Army%E2%80%93McCarthy_hearings>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
colloquy:
1. A conversation or dialogue.
2. (law) A discussion during a trial in which a judge ensures that the
defendant understands what is taking place in the trial and what their
rights are.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/colloquy>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
One thing most of us agree on is that the universe exists (people who
deny that usually follow some trade other than science), so if some
theoretical particle interaction would lead ultimately to the
nonexistence of the universe, then you can save a lot of electricity by
not trying to demonstrate it.
--Joe Haldeman
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Joe_Haldeman>
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