Ellis Park Stadium Stampede – 2011
During the apartheid era, sport in South Africa played a central role both for those who wished to punish the…
Zimbabwe Cholera Epidemic – 2008-2009
In 2008, Zimbabwe’s suffering people had a glimmer of hope to lighten the dark decades during which Robert Mugabe and…
China Baby Milk Scandal – 2008
A parent’s worst nightmare came true for thousands of families in China in 2008 when they found out they had…
Ivory Coast Waste Dumping – 2006
The multinational company Trafigura did a nifty deal in 2006, buying a large amount of coker gasoline from Mexican oil…
Northwick Park Drug Trial – 2006
In March 2006 six healthy men, all under the age of 40, signed up as volunteers in a drug trial…
SARS Virus – 2002-2003
Towards the end of 2002 reports began to emerge from China of a virulent and potentially fatal respiratory disease that…
African Meningitis Outbreak – 1996-1997
Meningococcal meningitis is a bacterial infection of the slender lining that envelops the spinal cord and the brain. Even if…
Zaragoza Radiotherapy Accident – 1990
When the Zaragoza Clinic’s electron accelerator malfunctioned and was repaired in early December 1990, it was fortunate that the machine’s…
BSE and vCJD
In scientific terms Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) and variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) are Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (TSEs). Put simply this…
Goiânia Accident – 1987
Nothing goes to waste where people are living on the breadline, and few opportunities to make a little extra money…