The deadly Vargas mudslides in Venezuela

The deadly Vargas mudslides in Venezuela

In December 1999, torrential rain in Venezuela led to floods and mudslides. Government estimates put the number killed at 3,000 but other reports suggest between 10,000 and 30,000 were killed. Many bodies were buried under mud, rocks or trees. Tens of thousands more people were made homeless. The state of Vargas, known as La Guaira, was one of the worst areas affected. Leydys Crespo speaks to Jen Dale about her experience.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more. Recent episodes explore everything from the death of Adolf Hitler, the first spacewalk and the making of the movie Jaws, to celebrity tortoise Lonesome George, the Kobe earthquake and the invention of superglue. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: Eva Peron – Argentina’s Evita; President Ronald Reagan and his famous ‘tear down this wall’ speech; Thomas Keneally on why he wrote Schindler’s List; and Jacques Derrida, France’s ‘rock star’ philosopher. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the civil rights swimming protest; the disastrous D-Day rehearsal; and the death of one of the world’s oldest languages.

Episoder(2000)

Japan surrenders in Beijing

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Eighty years ago, in the autumn of 1945, World War II surrender ceremonies took place across the Japanese Empire.The one in China was held at the Forbidden City in Beijing bringing an end to eight yea...

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The remote island that was evacuated to 10,000km away

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On 10 October 1961, a volcanic eruption threatened the population of Tristan da Cunha, a British Overseas Territory in the South Atlantic, and all 264 islanders were evacuated to the UK.Two years late...

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'I designed the Indian rupee symbol'

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The acquittal of OJ Simpson

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It’s 30 years since American football star OJ Simpson was acquitted of murdering his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman. Ron Shipp was a close friend of OJ Simpson's and also ...

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'I took the famous photo of JFK and his son'

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On 2 October 1963, American photographer Stanley Tretick took the best picture of his life – a photo of President John F Kennedy working at the Resolute Desk in the White House, with his two-year-old ...

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The strike that shook up India's tea industry

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In September 2015, thousands of women tea pickers went on strike at one of India’s biggest tea producers.They had picked more tea than ever that year but were furious that wages remained low and manag...

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The birth of the Excel spreadsheet

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