On This Day: Earthquake kills 30,000 in Avezzano, Italy

Jan. 13 (UPI) -- On this date in history:

In 1910, radio pioneer and electron tube inventor Lee Deforest arranged the world's first public radio broadcast, a performance by the New York Metropolitan Opera.

In 1915, nearly 30,000 people were killed in an earthquake in Avezzano, Italy.

In 1941, Irish novelist James Joyce died at age 58 following surgery for a perforated ulcer in Zurich, Switzerland.

In 1968, Johnny Cash records his infamous At Folsom Prison live record.

File Photo by Ezio Petersen/UPI

In 1982, Air Florida Flight 90 crashed into the 14th Street Bridge over the Potomac River bridge in Washington, killing 78 people.

In 1985, a passenger train traveling through Ethiopia hurled off the tracks, plunging four cars into a ravine. More than 400 people died and 500 sustained injuries.

In 1990, L. Douglas Wilder took office in Virginia, becoming the first elected African-American governor of a U.S. state.

In 1991, at least 40 South Africans were killed and 50 injured when fighting erupted during a soccer game in Orkney.

In 1997, U.S. President Bill Clinton awarded the Medal of Honor to seven African-American soldiers for their courage in action in Italy during World War II. It was the first time the medal was given to black WWII servicemen.

In 1999, Michael Jordan, regarded by many as the greatest basketball player ever, announced his second retirement. He had led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships.

File Photo by Christine Chew/UPI

In 2001 a magnitude-7.7 early-morning earthquake killed more than 800 people, injured hundreds of others and caused widespread damage and destruction in El Salvador. Deadly mudslides were triggered by the quake.

In 2003, Pope John Paul II argued against war in Iraq except as "the very last option." He said it would be "a defeat for humanity."

In 2012, the cruise ship Costa Concordia slammed into a rocky shoal near the Italian coast and capsized, killing 32 people.

In 2014, U.S. Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., announced he would retire at the end of the year -- ending 40 years in Congress.

In 2016, three winning tickets split the largest lottery jackpot in the world -- $1.5 billion. The winning Powerball tickets were sold in California, Florida and Tennessee.

The Powerball billboard along Highway 64 can only go to 999 million in St. Louis on January 11, 2016. The drawing January 13, 2016, was $1.5 billion. File Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI