YEAR IN REVIEW 2001: DISASTERS

Disasters Aviation January 13, Off the coast of Libya. A twin-engine jet en route from Tripoli to Marsa al-Burayqah, Libya, plunged into the sea about 10 km (6 mi) short of its destination; 22 of the 41 persons aboard the craft were killed. January 30, Off the coast of Cte d'Ivoire. A Kenya Airways jet bound for Lagos, Nigeria, went down in the Atlantic Ocean shortly after takeoff from Abidjan, Cte d'Ivoire; 169 persons died, and 10 persons survived the crash. January 31, Off the coast of southern California. En route from Puerto Vallarta, Mex., to San Francisco, Alaska Airlines Flight 261 plummeted into the Pacific Ocean; all 88 persons aboard the MD-83 jetliner were killed. Early February, Lubango, Angola. An overloaded military helicopter that was carrying 37 persons, well over its capacity, crashed soon after takeoff and burst into flames; at least 30 persons perished. March 30, Near Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. While attempting to land, an air force plane crashed after one of its engines caught fire; 36 soldiers and 4 crew members died. April 8, Marana, Ariz. A U.S. Marine Corps V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft carrying 19 persons crashed on a training mission while landing at an airfield; there were no survivors. April 19, Near Davao, Phil. In what was the worst aviation disaster in the history of the Philippines, a Boeing 737-200 slammed into a coconut plantation on Samal Island, killing all 131 persons aboard; while there was no immediate word on what caused the crash, the airliner apparently encountered foggy conditions as it was making its approach to the airport in Davao. May 21, Near Wilkes-Barre, Pa. A twin-engine charter plane en route from Atlantic City, N.J., to Wilkes-Barre with 19 persons on board crashed after both engines failed; there were no survivors. June 22, Central China. While flying through a thunderstorm, a Chinese airliner was struck by lightning and went down in Hubei province; all 42 persons aboard the craft were killed. July 8, Southern Mexico. After encountering bad weather, a passenger plane crashed in a heavily wooded area in Chiapas state; all 19 persons on board died. July 17, Patna, India. A Boeing 737-200 crashed into houses during its second landing attempt at Patna, killing 51 persons aboard the craft and 4 on the ground; 7 persons on the plane survived. July 21, Near St. Petersburg. A Russian air force helicopter crashed in a military airfield shortly after takeoff; 19 persons died. July 25, Near Paris. A Concorde jet en route from Paris to New York City suffered engine failure shortly after takeoff, burst into flames, and crashed into a small hotel and restaurant; all 109 persons on board, including 100 passengers and 9 crew members, died; 4 people on the ground were also killed. July 27, Western Nepal. A small passenger plane carrying 25 persons crashed while attempting to land in bad weather; there were no survivors. August 12, Kasai-Occidental province, Democratic Republic of the Congo. An airliner developed engine problems after takeoff and crashed, killing 26 persons. August 23, Off the coast of Bahrain. An Airbus A320 en route from Cairo to Manama, Bahrain, crashed into the Persian Gulf after one of its engines caught fire; all 143 persons aboard the plane were killed. September 16, Sri Lanka. An air force helicopter en route from Colombo to Amparai crashed into a hill and exploded; 15 persons were killed, including Sri Lankan Ports Minister M.H.M. Ashraff. October 25, Western Georgia. A Russian military plane with 75 persons aboard crashed into a mountain while attempting to land in bad weather; there were no survivors. October 31, Taipei, Taiwan. A Singapore Airlines jumbo jet with 179 persons aboard crashed while taking off and burst into flames; 82 persons died. October 31 and November 15, Angola. Two Soviet-built Antonov planes crashed in separate incidents; on October 31 an Antonov An-26 crashed in a remote jungle area shortly after takeoff, killing all 48 persons aboard; on November 15 an Antonov An-24 slammed into a field after takeoff and exploded, killing at least 40 persons. Fires and Explosions February-March, Southern Nigeria. On February 7 a group of people in the village of Ogwe were illegally siphoning off fuel from an oil pipeline when a young man in the crowd struck a match, igniting an explosion that claimed the lives of at least 15 persons. In a similar incident on March 22, a large number of people were sabotaging an oil pipeline in Isioma when the pipeline caught fire, killing at least 50 persons. March 9, Tuvalu. A fire in a locked dormitory of a boarding school on Vaitupu atoll claimed the lives of at least 17 schoolgirls and one of the school's female staff members. March 28, Guangdong province, China. An explosion at a cigarette lighter factory claimed the lives of 17 persons. March 29, Henan province, China. A fire swept through a pornographic movie theatre whose front doors had been locked with a steel grille to prevent police from entering; of those persons trapped inside, at least 74 perished. April 14, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. A series of explosions occurred at a military fuel and munitions depot located at the airport in Kinshasa; 109 persons were killed, and more than 200 were injured; as to what caused the blasts, there were conflicting accounts, including reports of a warehouse fire, sabotage by political dissidents, and a military plane crash. May 13, Enschede, Neth. A fire broke out inside a large fireworks warehouse, setting off multiple explosions that killed at least 20 persons, injured some 950, and destroyed more than 400 homes in a nearby residential area; the owners of the warehouse were later arrested and charged with safety violations. Late June, Jiangmen, China. A fire that began in a fireworks factory set off an explosion and spread to two other factories; 30 persons died, and 200 were injured. Mid-July, Southern Nigeria. In two separate incidents, one in the city of Warri and the other in the village of Adeje, persons intent on stealing fuel ruptured an oil pipeline and triggered deadly explosions; at least 30 persons were killed in Warri, and more than 250 died at Adeje. July 19, Tileran, Costa Rica. A fire, apparently caused by a short circuit, engulfed a retirement home, claiming the lives of 17 persons. August 4, Jiangxi province, China. A blast in an apartment building where illegal fireworks were produced claimed the lives of at least 27 persons and injured 26 others. September 8, Urumqi, China. A truck carrying explosives intended for disposal blew up on a highway, killing more than 60 persons and damaging more than 20 other vehicles and houses nearby. October 20, Mexico City. An early-morning fire swept through one of the largest nightclubs in the city, destroying the building and claiming the lives of at least 20 persons; the fire apparently was ignited by short circuits in the nightclub's electrical system. November 11, Near Kaprun, Austria. A fire in an Alpine mountain tunnel claimed the lives of at least 155 skiers who were traveling through the tunnel in a cable car; investigators suspected that the cable car may have caught fire before it entered the tunnel, but the cause of the fire was unclear. November 30, Near Apapa, Nigeria. A group of people were collecting fuel from a ruptured pipeline when the liquid exploded into flames; between 30 and 60 persons died. December 25, Luoyang, China. A fire swept through a crowded dance hall on the fourth floor of a commercial building, killing 309 persons; the disaster occurred one week after the building had failed a safety inspection. Marine January 16, Off the coast of the Dominican Republic. An overcrowded fishing boat, apparently bound for Puerto Rico with Dominican migrants aboard, capsized in the Mona Passage; at least 16 persons died. February 12, Lake Albert, Eastern Africa. At least 45 persons lost their lives when a boat capsized on the lake, which borders Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Mid-March, Southern Bangladesh. An overcrowded ferry sank in the Sandhya River, killing at least 17 persons. Late March, Nowshera, Pak. A boat being pulled by a cable across the Kabul River overturned after the cable snapped in strong winds; at least 22 persons drowned, and 12 were missing and feared dead. April 12, Southern Philippines. A cargo boat overloaded with passengers capsized off Jolo island; of the more than 200 persons aboard, at least 143 perished. April 19, Southeastern Nigeria. A boat carrying some 500 persons, more than twice its capacity, sank on the Nembe River; all aboard were feared dead. April 30, Off the coast of Tarifa, Spain. A small boat overloaded with passengers from Morocco who apparently were intent on entering Spain illegally sank in the Straits of Gibraltar; at least 20 persons died. May 2, Eastern Bangladesh. In separate incidents on the Meghna River, two ferries sank after being caught in a storm; at least 73 persons died, and more than 100 were missing. May 7, Eastern Indonesia. Large waves capsized an overcrowded ferry off the coast of Ambon island; at least 41 persons were killed. June 22, Sichuan province, China. A ferry carrying some 221 passengers, more than twice its capacity, overturned on the Chang Jiang (Yangtze River) after striking rocks in heavy fog; more than 100 persons died. June 29, Eastern Indonesia. A ferry overloaded with passengers fleeing fighting between Christians and Muslims in the Maluku Islands sank in heavy seas; of the some 500 persons aboard, only 10 survived. Mid-July, Madhya Pradesh state, India. A ferry overturned during a storm on the Talperu River, killing at least 20 persons. July 27, Near Dhaka, Bangladesh. A small ferry collided with a larger boat on the Buriganga River and sank; at least 50 persons lost their lives. August 5, Off the coast of Nigeria. A boat overloaded with Nigerian traders bound for Cameroon capsized in a storm; at least 40 persons died. August 12, Off the northern coast of Russia. A Russian nuclear submarine with 118 crew members on board suddenly plunged to the floor of the Barents Sea about 56 km (35 mi) offshore; Russian officials cited a collision as the cause of the accident, though Western experts believed a series of catastrophic explosions occurred in the submarine's torpedo bay; days later a team of Norwegian and British divers were able to open the rear escape hatch but found that the entire vessel had been flooded; there were no survivors. August 23, Near Sinjah, The Sudan. An overloaded boat capsized on the Nile River; as many as 50 persons, mostly schoolchildren, were feared drowned. September 4, Northwestern Uganda. A boat carrying about 50 passengers capsized on Lake Albert; 37 persons were missing and presumed dead. September 26, Off the coast of Paros, Greece. A ferry en route from Athens to the island of Lipsoi struck a rocky outcrop and sank; at least 80 persons perished; the ship's captain, who admitted having been asleep before the collision, and four crew members were later arrested and charged with manslaughter. October 21, Lake Malawi, Malawi. An overloaded boat capsized and sank during a storm; at least 17 persons drowned. Mid-December, Off the northern coast of Australia. Two boats transporting more than 160 suspected illegal immigrants from Indonesia to Australia sank in stormy seas; all aboard the two vessels were feared drowned. December 29, Southeastern Bangladesh. A collision in dense fog between two ferries on the Meghna River claimed the lives of at least 150 persons. Mining and Construction Early March, Near Koidu-New Sembehun, Sierra Leone. The collapse of an illegal diamond mine claimed the lives of some 150 persons. March 11, Krasnodon, Ukraine. A powerful methane-gas explosion in the Barakova coal mine killed 82 miners; authorities stated that safety violations were to blame for the blast; the accident was the worst mining disaster in Ukraine since 1980. Mid-June, China. In Sichuan province on June 16, a gas explosion in a mine claimed the lives of seven miners, and gas fumes killed five others who were attempting to rescue them. A day later in Henan province, another gas explosion occurred in a coal mine; seven miners died, and seven were missing. July 19, Alexandria, Egypt. A six-story clothing factory collapsed after a fire, killing at least 15 persons and injuring 38. September 2, Near Agra, India. A locomotive shed collapsed as it was being demolished, killing more than 25 persons, most of them workers at the site. September 27, Guizhou province, China. A huge gas explosion ripped through a coal mine, killing some 150 miners. Early October, Khogiani, Afg. The roof of a mud house where a wedding was taking place collapsed, killing at least 42 persons and injuring 15. November 5, Jilin province, China. A gas explosion at a coal mine left 13 miners dead and 18 missing and feared dead. November 26, Northern China. A gas explosion at a coal mine claimed the lives of 51 miners. December 11, Guangxi province, China. A gold mine collapsed, killing at least 15 persons and injuring 4. Miscellaneous February, Southern Bangladesh. At least 40 persons died and some 100 others became ill after drinking a brew of contaminated homemade liquor. Late March, Krishnanagar, India. At least 18 persons died after drinking illegally brewed liquor that was apparently contaminated with methyl alcohol. June 19, Dover, Eng. British customs officials discovered the bodies of 58 illegal Chinese immigrants who had suffocated in an airtight compartment of a Dutch-registered truck that had arrived on a ferry from Belgium; two persons were found alive inside the compartment. The driver of the truck was charged with 58 counts of manslaughter, and Dutch authorities brought charges against several others. July 10, Manila. Heavy rain from a typhoon caused a massive garbage dump to avalanche on a shantytown known as the "Promised Land"; by mid-July 196 persons had been confirmed dead, and hundreds were still missing. September 1, Pucallpa, Peru. At least 15 persons died and 14 were hospitalized after they drank cocktails tainted with rubbing alcohol. October, El Salvador. In numerous incidents throughout the country, at least 119 persons lost their lives after drinking liquor contaminated with methyl alcohol. Mid-November, Nairobi, Kenya. At least 34 persons died and some 112 were hospitalized after they drank contaminated homemade liquor. Natural Early January, Northern India. A cold wave that swept across the Gangetic Plain left as many as 341 persons dead, including at least 211 in Bihar state. Early January, Southeastern Brazil. Heavy rains triggered floods and landslides that claimed the lives of at least 28 persons, including 13 in Rio de Janeiro state, and left tens of thousands homeless. January 20-23, Eastern Australia. A heat wave brought blistering temperatures to Queensland state; 22 persons died, and more than 100 were hospitalized. Late January-mid-March, Southern Africa. Torrential rains produced some of the worst flooding in the region in more than four decades. The hardest-hit country was Mozambique, where floods washed away some 200,000 homes before Cyclone Eline-with winds of up to 260 km/h (162 mph)-brought new rains on February 22. By mid-March the country's official death toll stood at 492, and countless others were missing. Eline moved on to strike Madagascar, which was also hit by Tropical Storm Gloria on March 4-5; the storms left at least 137 persons dead and some 500,000 homeless on the island. Other affected areas included South Africa's Northern and Mpumalanga provinces, where floods had claimed the lives of at least 70 persons by the end of February. Thousands of persons were also left homeless in Zimbabwe, Namibia, and southern Botswana. Mid-February, Bangladesh. A cold wave accompanied by heavy fog swept across the country; 65 persons, most of whom were elderly, died. February 14, Georgia. A series of tornadoes wreaked havoc in the southwestern portion of the U.S. state, claiming the lives of 18 persons, injuring more than 100, and damaging hundreds of homes and businesses. May 4, Central Indonesia. An earthquake of magnitude 6.5 caused severe damage across Central Sulawesi province and Peleng and Banggai islands; the earthquake was followed by tidal waves, which flattened a number of coastal villages; at least 40 persons were killed, and some 15,000 homes and other buildings were destroyed. Mid-May, West Timor, Indon. Severe floods caused by a combination of monsoon rain and a tidal surge claimed the lives of at least 140 persons and left some 20,000 homeless. May 21, Southern Colombia. Flooding and mud slides were blamed in the deaths of at least 21 persons. June 4, Sumatra, Indon. A magnitude-7.9 earthquake hit the southwestern part of the island; at least 120 persons were killed, and some 25,000 were left homeless. Mid-June, Northeastern India. Heavy monsoon rains triggered floods that killed at least 20 persons in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh states. Early July, Southeastern Europe. A heat wave scorched the region as hot air masses moved north from the Sahara desert; more than 50 persons died throughout the region. July 12, Near Mumbai (Bombay). After days of heavy rain, a landslide destroyed a slum settlement north of the city; at least 80 persons died. July 13, Shaanxi province, China. A huge mud slide buried numerous houses and knocked out electrical power in 10 towns; at least 119 persons died, and 29 were missing. Mid-July, India. Heavy rains in Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Andhra Pradesh states produced floods that left some 140 persons dead. July 21, Northern Vietnam. Landslides claimed the lives of at least 20 persons. Late July-early August, Northeastern Brazil. Days of torrential rain caused mud slides that killed at least 56 persons and forced more than 100,000 from their homes. Late July-early October, Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. Unseasonably early and heavy monsoon rains contributed to the worst flooding in the Mekong Delta in 40 years; by October 8 at least 315 persons had died, among whom 232 were children. August 22-23, East Asia. Two deadly storms wreaked havoc on the region; on August 22 Tropical Storm Kaemi killed 14 persons in Vietnam; a day later Typhoon Bilis claimed the lives of at least 11 persons and injured 80 others. August 22-24, Southern India. Heavy rains and flooding in Andhra Pradesh state killed at least 70 persons, including 13 in Hyderabad, the state capital. September 1, Southern China. Typhoon Maria swept through Guangdong and Hunan provinces; the storm claimed the lives of at least 47 persons and caused some $175 million in damage. September-October, India and Bangladesh. Heavy monsoon rains set off widespread flooding in India's West Bengal state and in southwestern Bangladesh; more than 900 persons were killed in India, and some 150 persons died and about 5 million were left homeless in Bangladesh. September 10, Southern Italy. A mud slide brought on by flash floods destroyed a campsite in the Calabria region; 11 persons were killed, and 4 were missing and feared dead. Mid-September, Guatemala. Floods and mud slides occurred throughout the country after days of torrential rain; at least 19 persons lost their lives. Mid-October, Italian and Swiss Alps. Heavy rains set off floods and landslides in the mountainous region; at least 35 persons perished. Late October-November, Southeast Asia. Torrential monsoon rains triggered floods and landslides across the region; by the end of November, at least 119 persons had died in Indonesia, at least 51 had died in Malaysia, and some 20 persons had perished in Thailand. November 1-2, Taiwan. Typhoon Xangsane triggered the worst flooding on the island in 30 years; the storm, which produced winds of up to 145 km/h (90 mph), pounded the island for two days; at least 58 persons died, and another 31 were missing. November 3, Northern Philippines. Landslides and floods set off by Typhoon Bebinca claimed the lives of 40 persons, and at least 13 others were missing. Early December, Northern Tanzania. The heaviest rains in eight years set off floods that killed at least 30 persons and left more than 600 homeless. Railroad January 4, Near Rena, Nor. In one of the worst railroad disasters in Norway's history, two passenger trains traveling at about 90 km/h (55 mph) collided head-on as they rounded a curve; 17 persons were confirmed dead, and several were missing. March 1, Near Ksar el-Kebir, Mor. A collision between a passenger train and a vehicle transporting farm workers at a railway crossing claimed the lives of at least 35 persons. August 20, Near Nairobi, Kenya. Nine train cars-six of them carrying liquefied gas-became detached from a freight train and derailed, igniting an explosion that killed 25 persons. October 11, Near Hwange, Zimb. A passenger train en route to Victoria Falls collided with a train transporting goods to Bulawayo; 15 persons lost their lives. December 2, Northern India. The end cars of a freight train derailed and strayed into the path of an oncoming passenger train; as many as 43 persons perished. Traffic January 1, Fujian province, China. A bus rear-ended a truck hauling steel bars, which punctured the front of the bus upon collision; 22 persons died, and 29 were injured. January 2, Southern Peru. A crowded bus left a mountain road and plummeted some 150 m (495 ft) into a ravine; at least 29 persons perished, and 7 others were injured. January 4, Near Quito, Ecuador. A bus fell off a mountain road into a ravine about 40 km (25 mi) east of Quito; at least 15 persons died, and 30 were injured. January 10, Central Malawi. A truck transporting some 40 mourners and the coffin of a dead child was struck head-on by another vehicle near a one-lane bridge, then plummeted into the Kaombe River; at least 15 persons lost their lives, including the mother, grandmother, and siblings of the deceased child. January 12, Near Pouso Redondo, Braz. A double-decker tourist bus collided head-on with another bus in heavy fog on a mountain highway; the collision started a pileup involving several other cars. At least 42 persons died, and 50 were injured. January 13, Near Cairo. A collision between two buses claimed the lives of 21 persons and injured 19. January 23, Near Queenstown,S.Af. A crowded bus veered from a rain-slickened highway and overturned, killing at least 30 persons. Late January, Punjab state, India. A truck overturned and hit two oncoming cars; 18 persons died. January 31, Near Bhansali, India. A bus traveling in the lower Himalayas went out of control and dropped into a gorge; 31 persons died. February 14, Central Vietnam. A collision between two buses sent one careening into a river; 17 of the 73 persons on board were confirmed dead. February 19, Near Huancayo, Peru. A bus smashed through the barriers of a narrow, rain-slickened bridge in the Andes and landed in a river; 31 persons died, and 15 were injured. March 6, Near Coronel Oviedo, Paraguay. A collision between a bus and a truck loaded with bricks claimed the lives of at least 32 persons. March 6, Sindh province, Pak. An overcrowded bus careened off a road and landed in a ravine; at least 52 persons were killed, and 24 were injured. March 17, Leogane, Haiti. A collision between a bus and a truck claimed the lives of 18 persons. March 29, Near Kericho, Kenya. A head-on collision between two buses occurred after one bus swerved to avoid a pothole and crossed into the lane of the other bus; at least 101 persons died. April 3, Near Miracatu, Braz. A container fell off a truck and struck a bus on the Regis Bitencourt Highway; 18 persons were killed. April 15, Central Guatemala. A bus overloaded with passengers overturned in a curve on a mountainous road in Sacatepquez department; at least 30 persons died. April 19/20, Near Mtito Andei, Kenya. An overcrowded bus collided head-on with a truck, killing 69 persons and injuring 30. April 23, Northern Honduras. A tourist bus crashed in Rio Lindo after a brake failure; at least 22 persons died, and 60 were injured. May 8, Dandipur, India. A bus crowded with passengers, some sitting on the roof, swerved off the road to avoid hitting an oncoming truck and plummeted into a canal; 20 persons died, and 50 were injured. May 13, Bosnia and Herzegovina. A bus carrying Muslim worshipers from Zenica to a prayer gathering in Buna fell off a bridge into the Bosna River after smashing through a guardrail; 43 persons perished, and 11 were injured. June 5, Jammu and Kashmir, India. A bus careened off a mountain road and plunged into the Chenab River near the village of Thatri; at least 30 persons died, and 15 were injured. June 12, Abia state, Nigeria. A collision involving an oil tanker and two buses claimed the lives of 30 persons. June 29, Near Nazret, Eth. At least 60 persons died when a bus en route from Addis Ababa to Harer crashed in a ravine. July 6, Southeastern Morocco. A collision between a truck and a passenger bus killed at least 19 persons and injured 20. July 6, Near Soria, Spain. A truck hauling livestock swerved out of control and collided head-on with a chartered bus filled with teenagers heading to summer camp; at least 27 persons died. July 14, Near Kimchon, S.Kor. A pileup involving three school buses and a truck occurred on a rain-slickened highway and claimed the lives of more than 20 persons, at least 14 of whom were students. July 17, Southern Egypt. A minibus collided with a car, and the two vehicles were then slammed by a truck; 18 persons died, and at least 15 were injured. August 12, Near Bordj Bou Arreridj, Alg. A collision between an oil truck and a bus killed 22 persons. August 22, Sarawak state, Malaysia. After colliding with a car, a truck went out of control and then slammed into a bus; at least 15 persons died. August 24, Eastern Kenya. A bus that was reportedly overloaded with passengers and traveling at a high speed fell from a bridge into a river near the town of Meru; at least 37 persons died, and 19 were injured. August 28, Edea, Cameroon. A bus ran off a road and rolled several times after its driver attempted to pass a truck; 15 persons died, and 30 were seriously injured. September 5, Southwestern Rwanda. Brake failure caused a bus to slam into a stopped truck; 39 persons died, and more than 80 were injured. September 10, West Bengal state, India. A bus plummeted into a river after its driver lost control of the vehicle; at least 20 persons died. October 14, Central Turkey. A head-on collision between two buses claimed the lives of 19 persons and injured 29. November 4, Southwestern Nigeria. An oil tanker truck slammed into a line of cars stopped at a police checkpoint and burst into flames; at least 200 persons died. November 13, Near Jahanian, Pak. A head-on collision between two buses killed 40 persons and injured at least 17; one of the buses had apparently swerved to avoid hitting a cyclist. Mid-November, Northern Egypt. A bus collided with a tractor and overturned in an irrigation canal; as many as 30 persons were believed dead. November 23, Southern Nigeria. A bus fell from a bridge into a river, killing 60 persons. Late November, Northern Thailand. A bus swerved from a four-lane highway and fell into a ditch; at least 20 persons were killed, and 15 were injured. December 14, Western Saudi Arabia. After a bus and a truck collided head-on, both vehicles caught fire; 26 persons perished. December 19, Himachal Pradesh state, India. A truck plunged down a mountain gorge, killing some 50 persons. December 24, Central Bolivia. A collision between two buses claimed the lives of 17 persons and injured 48. Dominican Republic Area: 48,671 sq km (18,792 sq mi)Population (2000 est.): 8,443,000Capital: Santo DomingoHead of state and government: Presidents Leonel Fernndez Reyna and, from August 16, Hiplito Meja Dominguez The central event in the Dominican Republic was the election on May 16, 2000, of Hiplito Meja Dominguez to the presidency. Apart from an unsuccessful attempt by computer hackers to manipulate the election commission's tabulations, the election was probably the cleanest in the country's history and brought to office the Dominican Revolutionary Party, which had last been in power in 1986 and was deprived of office in 1994 owing to election irregularities. Although Meja roundly defeated his opponents-Danilo Medina of the incumbent Dominican Liberation Party and former president Joaqun Balaguer of the Social Christian Reformist Party-he narrowly missed achieving the 50% majority vote necessary to avoid a runoff. Predictions that Medina and Balaguer would form a coalition in a bid to defeat Meja failed to materialize. Balaguer, the infirm nonagenarian and seven-time president, formally acknowledged Meja's victory, which thus encouraged Medina to concede. At his inauguration in August Meja promised that he would govern "from a glass house, with transparency." Economic growth continued to exceed expectations. For the fourth consecutive year, the country enjoyed one of the most robust surges of growth in Latin America. Gross domestic product expanded by about 10% in the first six months, with strength particularly in construction, tourism, free-trade zones, nickel mining, and telecommunications. In addition, inflation was within targeted limits. Notwithstanding economic prosperity, Meja was committed to bridging the gulf between the well-off and the estimated 44% of those at the poverty level. In his campaign he had included policies to revitalize the agricultural industry and rehabilitate ramshackle educational and health systems. Meja also pressed international donors to develop a coordinated aid package to address the chronically difficult and unstable relationship with Haiti, the Dominican Republic's impoverished neighbour. John W. Graham