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On this day in history - December 30

What Happened On This Day – December 30

  • 2011 Samoa and Tokelau skipped December 30

    The South Pacific Ocean Islands changed their time zone and move west of the international dateline to align their time zone with their major trading partners, Australia and New Zealand. In doing so, they skipped December 30 and moved directly from December 29 to December 31. 119 years ago, Samoa had made a similar shift, eastwards of the dateline, to synchronize its time with the United States. Today, Samoa follows West Samoa Time, which is 13 hours ahead of UTC.

  • 2006 Saddam Hussein executed

    The deposed president of Iraq was hanged after he was found guilty of crimes against humanity. Hussein was the fifth president of Iraq and came to power after a coup in 1968.

  • 2004 Highest barometric pressure recorded

    At 2 am local time, the atmospheric pressure in Tosontsengel, Mongolia rose to 846.5 hPa (adjusted for height above sea level).

  • 1995 Lowest temperature ever recored in the UK

    Altnaharra, a small hamlet in northern Scotland, recorded a temperature of −27.2°C (-16.96 degrees Fahrenheit). The temperature had dipped this low once before in the UK - in Braemar, East Scotland on January 10, 1982

  • 1947 Last king of Romania steps down

    Michael I was forced to abdicate by the Communist Party of Romania. His first reign over the country was in 1927 as a 6-year old, and it lasted only 3 years until 1930. He was then reinstalled in 1940.

Illustration of stork, signifying birth

Births On This Day,
December 30

  • 1984 LeBron James

    American basketball player

  • 1975 Tiger Woods

    American golfer

  • 1946 Patti Smith

    American singer-songwriter, poet

  • 1865 Rudyard Kipling

    English author, poet, Nobel Prize laureate

  • 1853 André Messager

    French composer

Illustration of tombstone, signifying death

Deaths On This Day,
December 30

  • 2009 Abdurrahman Wahid

    Indonesian politician, 4th President of Indonesia

  • 2006 Saddam Hussein

    Iraqi politician, 5th President of Iraq

  • 1970 Sonny Liston

    American boxer

  • 1947 Alfred North Whitehead

    English mathematician, philosopher

  • 1896 José Rizal

    Filipino polymath