Summary of the Day ✨ 15 April (15/04)
Multiple mass shootings occurred today, including a deadly attack at a school in Turkey and another at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis, while a devastating fire severely damaged Paris’s Notre-Dame Cathedral and a bombing at the Boston Marathon left hundreds injured.
Historical Events 📜
- 2026: Ten people and the perpetrator are killed and twelve others injured in a mass shooting at a school in Onikişubat, Turkey.
- 2021: A mass shooting occurs at a FedEx Ground facility in Indianapolis, Indiana, killing nine and injuring seven.
- 2019: The cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris in France is seriously damaged by a large fire.
- 2014: In the worst massacre of the South Sudanese Civil War, more than 400 civilians are gunned down after seeking refuge in houses of worship as well as hospitals.
- 2013: Two bombs explode near the finish line at the Boston Marathon in Boston, Massachusetts, killing three people and injuring over 500 others.
- 2013: A wave of bombings across Iraq kills at least 75 people.
- 2002: Air China Flight 129 crashes on approach to Gimhae International Airport in Busan, South Korea, killing 129 people.
- 1994: Marrakesh Agreement relating to foundation of World Trade Organization is adopted.
- 1989: Hillsborough disaster: A human crush occurs at Hillsborough Stadium, home of Sheffield Wednesday, in the FA Cup Semi-final, resulting in the deaths of 97 Liverpool fans.
- 1989: Upon Hu Yaobang’s death, the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 begin in China.
- 1986: The United States launches Operation El Dorado Canyon, its bombing raids against Libyan targets in response to a discotheque bombing in West Germany that killed two U.S. servicemen.
- 1970: During the Cambodian Civil War, massacre of the Vietnamese minority results in 800 bodies flowing down the Mekong river into South Vietnam.
- 1969: The EC-121 shootdown incident: North Korea shoots down a United States Navy aircraft over the Sea of Japan, killing all 31 on board.
- 1960: At Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina, Ella Baker leads a conference that results in the creation of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, one of the principal organizations of the civil rights movement in the 1960s.
- 1955: McDonald’s restaurant dates its founding to the opening of a franchised restaurant by Ray Kroc, in Des Plaines, Illinois.
Famous Births 👶
- 2001: Shanti Dope, Filipino rapper
- 1998: Sexyy Red, American rapper
- 1997: Ashleigh Gardner, Australian cricketer
- 1997: Maisie Williams, English actress
- 1995: Leander Dendoncker, Belgian footballer
- 1994: Brodie Grundy, Australian rules football player
- 1994: Shaunae Miller-Uibo, Bahamian sprinter
- 1993: Felipe Anderson, Brazilian footballer
- 1992: Remo Freuler, Swiss footballer
- 1992: John Guidetti, Swedish footballer
- 1992: Jeremy McGovern, Australian rules football player
- 1991: Daiki Arioka, Japanese idol, singer, and actor
- 1991: Javier Fernández López, Spanish figure skater
- 1990: Emma Watson, English actress
- 1989: Darren Nicholls, Australian rugby league player
Notable Deaths 🕊️
- 2026: José Santamaría, Uruguayan-Spanish footballer and manager (born 1929)
- 2025: Wink Martindale, American DJ, radio personality, and TV personality (born 1933)
- 2024: Whitey Herzog, American professional baseball outfielder and manager (born 1931)
- 2024: Josip Manolić, Croatian politician, prime minister, and speaker of the Chamber of Counties (born 1920)
- 2022: Bilquis Edhi, Pakistani philanthropist and wife of Abdul Sattar Edhi (born 1947)
- 2022: Henry Plumb, British politician and farmer (born 1925)
- 2022: Liz Sheridan, American actress (born 1929)
- 2018: R. Lee Ermey, American actor (born 1944)
- 2018: Vittorio Taviani, Italian film director and screenwriter (born 1929)
- 2017: Clifton James, American actor (born 1920)
- 2017: Emma Morano, Italian supercentenarian, last person verified born in the 1800s (born 1899)
- 2015: Jonathan Crombie, Canadian-American actor and screenwriter (born 1966)
- 2015: Surya Bahadur Thapa, Nepalese politician, 24th Prime Minister of Nepal (born 1928)
- 2014: John Houbolt, American engineer and academic (born 1919)
- 2014: Eliseo Verón, Argentinian sociologist and academic (born 1935)
Holidays & Observances 🎉
- Christian feast day:
Abbo II of Metz - Christian feast day:
Blessed César de Bus - Christian feast day:
Father Damien (Catholic and Episcopal Church) - Christian feast day:
Hunna - Christian feast day:
Paternus of Avranches - Christian feast day:
April 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics) - Day of the Sun (North Korea)
- Father Damien Day (Hawaii)
- Hillsborough Disaster Memorial (Liverpool, England)
- Jackie Robinson Day (United States)
- National American Sign Language Day (United States)
- Pohela Boishakh (Bengali New Year; India)
- Tax Day, the official deadline for filing an individual tax return (or requesting an extension). (United States, Philippines)
- Universal Day of Culture