1874  - 

Colonel Peter Warburton completes his gruelling nine-month crossing of the Great Sandy Desert. 

1896  - 

Bourke, New South Wales, sees the end of thirteen days of extreme temperatures which kill 47. 

1986  - 

The Gateway Bridge in Brisbane, Australia, is officially commissioned. 

2011  - 

Despite Brisbane being supposedly flood-proof, a flood of epic proportions begins to inundate the city. 

1935  - 

Amelia Earhart becomes the first person to fly solo from Honolulu to Oakland, California.

1962  - 

Up to 4,000 people are killed in an avalanche and mudslide in Peru.