Today in History: August 4, massive explosion rocks Beirut

Today is Tuesday, Aug. 4, the 216th day of 2026. There are 149 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Aug. 4, 2020, nearly 3,000 tons of ammonium nitrate that had been improperly stored for years in the port of Beirut, Lebanon, exploded, killing more than 200 people, injuring more than 7,000 and devastating nearby neighborhoods; it was one of the largest non-nuclear explosions ever recorded.

Also on this date:

In 1790, the U.S. Coast Guard had its beginnings as President George Washington signed a measure authorizing a group of revenue cutters to enforce tariff and trade laws and prevent smuggling.

In 1916, the United States reached agreement with Denmark to purchase the Danish Virgin Islands for $25 million in gold.

In 1936, Jesse Owens of the United States won the second of his four gold medals at the Berlin Olympics as he prevailed in the long jump over German Luz Long, who was the first to congratulate him.

In 1944, 15-year-old diarist Anne Frank was arrested with her sister, parents and four others by the Gestapo after hiding for two years inside a building in Amsterdam. (Anne and her sister, Margot, died at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.)

In 1960, Burkina Faso (known then as Upper Volta) declared its independence from France after more than 60 years of colonial rule.

In 1964, 44 days after their murders, the bodies of missing civil rights workers James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner were found buried in an earthen dam in Mississippi.

In 1972, Arthur Bremer was convicted and sentenced in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, to 63 years in prison for his attempt on the life of Alabama Gov. George C. Wallace (the sentence was later reduced to 53 years; Bremer was released from prison in 2007).

In 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed a measure establishing the Department of Energy.

In 1984, the album “Purple Rain,” by Prince and the Revolution, began its 24-week run at the top of the Billboard 200 record chart.

In 1987, the Federal Communications Commission voted 4-0 to abolish the Fairness Doctrine, which required radio and television stations to present balanced coverage of controversial issues.

In 1993, a federal judge sentenced Los Angeles police officers Stacey Koon and Laurence Powell to 2 1/2 years in prison for violating Rodney King’s civil rights.

In 2009, North Korean leader Kim Jong Il pardoned American journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee for entering the country illegally and ordered their release during a surprise visit by former U.S. President Bill Clinton.

In 2017, former pharmaceutical CEO Martin Shkreli, who became notorious for a price-gouging scandal, was convicted of federal charges that he deceived investors in a pair of failed hedge funds. (Shkreli was later sentenced to seven years in prison; he was released in 2022.)

In 2019, a masked gunman fired on revelers enjoying summer nightlife in a popular entertainment district of Dayton, Ohio, leaving nine people dead and 27 wounded; police said officers shot and killed the shooter within 30 seconds of the start of his rampage.

In 2022, American pro basketball star Brittney Griner was convicted in Russia of drug possession and sentenced to nine years behind bars after police said they found vape canisters containing cannabis oil in her luggage at Moscow's airport. (She would be freed and sent home in the politically charged case in exchange for the U.S. releasing Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout in December 2022.)

Today’s Birthdays: Actor-singer Tina Cole is 83. Football Hall of Famer John Riggins is 77. Actor-screenwriter Billy Bob Thornton is 71. Actor Kym Karath (Film: “The Sound of Music”) is 68. Hall of Fame track star Mary Decker Slaney is 68. Actor Lauren Tom is 65. Former President Barack Obama is 65. Retired MLB All-Star pitcher Roger Clemens is 64. Actor Crystal Chappell is 61. Author Dennis Lehane is 61. Actor Daniel Dae Kim is 58. Former race car driver Jeff Gordon is 55. Rapper-actor Yo-Yo is 55. R&B singer-actor Marques Houston is 45. Britain’s Duchess of Sussex, the former actor Meghan Markle, is 45. Actor Abigail Spencer is 45. Actor/director Greta Gerwig is 43. Country singer Crystal Bowersox (TV: “American Idol”) is 41. Actors Dylan and Cole Sprouse are 34. Singer Jessica Sanchez (TV: “American Idol”) is 31. Actor Tinsley Price is 14.