Today in History: October 17, Loma Prieta earthquake strikes California

On Oct. 17, 1989, a magnitude-6.9 earthquake struck northern California, killing 63 people and causing up to $10 billion worth of damage.

Also on this date:

In 1777, British forces under Gen. John Burgoyne surrendered to American troops in Saratoga, New York, in a turning point of the Revolutionary War.

In 1931, mobster Al Capone was convicted in Chicago of income tax evasion; he would be sentenced to 11 years in prison, fined $50,000 and ordered to pay back taxes. Capone was released in 1939.

In 1933, Albert Einstein arrived in the United States as a refugee from Nazi Germany.

In 1967, Puyi, the last emperor of China, died in Beijing at age 61.

In 1979, Mother Teresa of India was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In 1989, Game 3 of the World Series was canceled as the Loma Prieta earthquake struck Northern California just 30 minutes before the game was scheduled to begin at Candlestick Park in San Francisco; the game would eventually be played 10 days later.

In 2024, Israel announced its forces in Gaza killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, a chief architect of 2023's Hamas-led attack on southern Israel in which militants abducted 251 people and killed some 1,200 others, prompting Israel's retaliatory war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians in the small coastal strip.

Today’s Birthdays: Singer Gary Puckett is 83. Actor-musician Michael McKean is 78. Astronaut Mae Jemison is 69. Country singer Alan Jackson is 67. Film director Rob Marshall is 65. Animator-filmmaker Mike Judge is 63. Reggae singer Ziggy Marley is 57. Actor Wood Harris is 56. Musician Wyclef Jean is 56. Golf Hall of Famer Ernie Els is 56. Singer Chris Kirkpatrick (’N Sync) is 54. Rapper Eminem is 53. Actor Matthew Macfadyen is 51. Actor Felicity Jones is 42. Singer-songwriter Nikki Lane is 42.