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Tinder Fire burning on April 30

The Tinder Fire was a wildfire that burned 16,309 acres (66.00 km²) of the Coconino National Forest in the U.S. state of Arizona during April and May 2018. The 2017 Arizona wildfires had been followed by drought, including a historically dry winter season. The Tinder Fire was detected from a lookout tower of the U.S. Forest Service on April 27, and firefighters began working to contain its spread within the day. Stoked by strong winds, low humidity, and high temperatures, the fire grew rapidly over late April, prompting the closure of Arizona State Route 87 and evacuation orders for 1,000 houses in Coconino County. These orders remained until May 4. Almost 700 firefighters were involved in combating the fire, which was fully contained on May 24. It destroyed 96 buildings, including 33 homes, and cost $7,500,000 to contain and suppress. An investigation determined that the Tinder Fire was caused by an illegal campfire. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Sheryl Cooper

... that Sheryl Cooper (pictured) and her daughter Calico "beheaded" Sheryl's husband in front of a live audience?
... that the hotel The Redbury New York did not accept men for 95 years?
... that Anthony Vaz was the first flag bearer and team captain for Kenya at the Olympics?
... that the Caleb Grimshaw sank after catching on fire, leaving at least 90 of the 457 people on board dead?
... that when Robert Hale performed as Wagner's Wotan in Washington, a reviewer noted that he commanded "the spirit, from tragic grandeur to ironic detachment, from flooding tenderness to grim rage"?
... that a woman who bought The Sims 2: Bon Voyage sued its publisher?
... that the first newspaper in Korea, the Chōsen shinpō, was written in Japanese and Classical Chinese?
... that a radio station in Alberta fell afoul of Canadian content guidelines because new songs by Anne Murray were not Canadian enough?

In the news

Claudia Goldin

The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences is awarded to Claudia Goldin (pictured) "for having advanced our understanding of women's labour market outcomes".
Three earthquakes leave at least 1,000 people dead in Herat, Afghanistan.
Kelvin Kiptum breaks the men's marathon world record in the Chicago Marathon.
In motorsport, Max Verstappen wins the Formula One World Championship.

On this day

October 14

Roundhay Garden Scene

1758 – Third Silesian War: At the Battle of Hochkirch, an Austrian army under Leopold Joseph von Daun surprised the Prussians commanded by Frederick the Great, overwhelming them and forcing a general retreat.
1888 – French inventor Louis Le Prince filmed Roundhay Garden Scene (featured), the earliest surviving motion picture, in Leeds, England.
1956 – B. R. Ambedkar, a leader of India's "Untouchable" caste, publicly converted to Buddhism and became the leader of the Dalit Buddhist movement.
1979 – At least 75,000 people attended the National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights in Washington, D.C., to demand equal civil rights for LGBT people.
2021 – Approximately 10,000 John Deere employees went on strike in one of the largest private-sector strikes in the United States.

Antipope Dioscorus (d. 530)
Jacques Arcadelt (d. 1568)
Sumner Welles (b. 1892)
Jessie Bonstelle (d. 1932)

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Today's featured picture

The Zaniskari, also known as Zanskari, is a breed of small mountain horse or pony from Ladakh, a region of Kashmir administered by India. It is named after Zanskar, a valley or region in Kargil district. It is similar to the Spiti breed of Himachal Pradesh, but is better adapted to work at high altitudes. Like the Spiti, it shows similarities to the breeds of neighbouring Tibet. The Zaniskari is of medium size, and is often grey in colour. The breed is considered endangered, as there are only a few hundred alive today, and a conservation programme has been started at Padum, in the Kargil district of Ladakh. This Zaniskari horse was photographed in central Ladakh.

Photograph credit: Eatcha

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