What Happened in April 2020

• Apr 1 All England Lawn Tennis Club cancels Wimbledon for the first time since World War II because of the COVID-19 pandemic; entire grass-court season abandoned

• Apr 2 New study shows western Antarctica once swampy with temperate forests 93-83 million years ago during Cretaceous period, according to Alfred Wegener Institute

• Apr 2 Record 6.6 million Americans filed claims for unemployment in last week according to the US Department of Labor, 10 million over 2 weeks
• Apr 2 Spain's death toll passes 10,000 (10003), as it posts a record single-day rise of 950 deaths
• Apr 3 27 people swept off a ferry and feared dead in the Solomon Islands during Cyclone Harold

• Apr 3 US aircraft carrier captain Brett Crozier cheered off his ship after being fired for a letter demanding more help for his sailors infected with COVID-19

• Apr 6 149th British Open Men's Golf Championship is cancelled for the first time since WWII due to the COVID-19 pandemic; Royal St George's GC to host event in 2021
• Apr 6 Cyclone Harold makes landfall in Vanuatu, leaving thousands of houses destroyed and 2 dead

• Apr 6 Nadia, a tiger at the Bronx Zoo (New York City), tests positive for COVID-19, 1st known case of human-to-cat transmission
• Apr 6 US COVID-19 death toll passes 10,000 in six weeks, with more than 356,000 American infected, New York death toll reaches 4,758
• Apr 7 Australia's highest court overturns the child sexual abuse conviction of Catholic Cardinal George Pell
• Apr 7 China ends its lockdown of Wuhan, the city at the center of the COVID-19 pandemic after 76 days as the country reports no new deaths for the 1st time
• Apr 7 US Acting-Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly resigns after calling USN Capt. Brett Crozier of aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN71) "too naive and too stupid", in an address to the ship's crew
• Apr 7 Wisconsin holds its Democratic primary with in-person voting in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, after a mail-in voting rejected by the Wisconsin Legislature

• Apr 8 Saudi-backed coalition fighting Houthi fighters in Yemen calls for a ceasefire after five years to stop the spread of COVID-19
• Apr 8 World Trade organization predicts a drop in global trade greater than the 2008 financial crisis, between 13% and 32% for 2020
• Apr 11 Brazil is the 1st country in the southern hemisphere to report more than 1,000 deaths from COVID-19, with 1,056 deaths and 19,638 cases

• Apr 12 Huge storm system produces more than 40 tornadoes in the US from Texas to South Carolina killing 32 people across six states
• Apr 12 OPEC and other major oil companies agree to the largest-ever drop in production to stabilize world prices

• Apr 13 Bernie Sanders endorses former rival Joe Biden for president

• Apr 14 IMF warns the global economy expected to contract by 3% in 2020 due to COVID-19 "Great Lockdown", steepest downturn since the Great Depression
• Apr 14 Parts of Europe begin to ease lockdown restrictions after 5-6 weeks with some shops opening in Austria and parts of Italy

• Apr 14 US President Donald Trump freezes funding for the World Health Organization pending a review, for mistakes in handling the COVID-19 pandemic and for being "China-centric", prompting international criticism
• Apr 15 Revised death count for New York taking into account assumed COVID-19 deaths makes the city's per-capita death rate higher than Italy at 10,367 at this date

• Apr 15 US's deadliest day during COVID-19 pandemic with 2,752 deaths reported
• Apr 16 22 million Americans have filed for unemployment in 4 weeks (5.2 million in the last week), wiping out 9 1/2 years of job gains
• Apr 16 Nationwide State of Emergency declared in Japan till 6 May due to the worsening COVID-19 outbreak
• Apr 16 New study claims a multi-decade megadrought is already under way in the western US, published in journal "Science"
• Apr 17 WHO warns Africa could be next epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, with over 300,000 deaths, pushing 30 million into poverty as it records nearly 1000 deaths and 19,000 cases to date

• Apr 18 Canada's worst modern mass shooting as a gunman kills 18 people, including a Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer, across Nova Scotia
• Apr 18 French flagship aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle reports over 1,000 cases of COVID-19, prompting an investigation
• Apr 19 Turkey passes Iran to become the Middle Eastern country with the most COVID-19 cases with 86,306 infections, Iran continues to have the most deaths
• Apr 19 UK COVID-19 death toll reaches 16,060 (hospitals only), as "The Sunday Times" criticizes Boris Johnson's government's response, saying they "sleepwalked into disaster"
• Apr 19 US COVID-19 death toll passes 40,000, with 742,442 cases recorded according to Johns Hopkins tally
• Apr 20 Price of US oil turns negative for the 1st time in history - West Texas Intermediate, the benchmark for US oil, falls as low as minus $37.63 a barrel as worldwide demand falls
• Apr 20 The last three cruise ships still afloat amid COVID pandemic, finally dock at the ports of Marseille, France; Barcelona, Spain; and Los Angeles California
• Apr 20 Three US states, Georgia, Tennessee and South Carolina the 1st to announce end to some COVID-19 restrictions
• Apr 21 At least 25,000 extra people across 11 countries have died during COVID-19 pandemic that were not previously counted according to new mortality figures
• Apr 21 Health Secretary Matt Hancock and UK government come under criticism for lack of personal protective equipment and testing for COVID-19 (despite pledge to test 100,000 a day only 19,000 done April 20th)
• Apr 21 Mexico says it is entering stage three of its COVID-19 outbreak, with rapid spread and hospitalizations from 8,772 infections and 712 deaths

• Apr 21 US President Donald Trump announces new 60-day ban on most green cards for the US
• Apr 22 Sudan bans female genital mutilation and makes it a criminal offense
• Apr 23 Ecuador's COVID-19 death toll is then one of world's highest per capita after 7,600 more deaths than usual (503 official toll), in report by "The New York Times"
• Apr 23 First findings of a frog fossil 40 million years old, found on Seymour Island, Antarctica (2015) published in "Scientific Reports"
• Apr 23 German Chancellor Angela Merkel warns this is "not the end phase but still just the beginning" of the COVID-19 pandemic

• Apr 23 US President Donald Trump suggests studying if COVID-19 could be treated by introducing disinfectant or UV lights into a human body, during a White House press briefing; government officials and disinfectant companies quickly state doing so is not only extremely dangerous but potentially deadly
• Apr 27 Global confirmed cases of COVID-19 pass 3 million with the death toll at 205,000. US has 1/3 of all new cases.
• Apr 27 US Defense Department declassifies and releases videos of unidentified "aerial phenomena" from 2004 and 2015
• Apr 28 Argentina bans all commercial domestic and international flights until September 1 because of COVID-19

• Apr 28 US confirmed cases of COVID-19 pass 1 million, while death toll of 58,365 surpasses that of US soldiers killed in Vietnam War (Johns Hopkins)
• Apr 28 US Department of Defense releases three declassified videos of possible UFOs from 2004 and 2015
• Apr 29 A mile-wide asteroid named 1998 OR2 passes within 3.9 million miles of Earth
• Apr 29 Fire at an Icheon warehouse, South Korea, kills 38
• Apr 29 UK official death toll reaches 26,000 deaths from COVID-19 as care home and community deaths included
• Apr 29 US GDP falls 4.8% for the financial quarter, officially ending the country's growth streak. Worst contraction since 2008.
• Apr 29 World record for the longest single lightning flash of 477miles (768km) across US states of Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi according to World Meteorological Organization [1]
• Apr 30 British Captain Tom Moore, who raised more £30 million for the National Health Service walking in his garden, turns 100 and made an honorary colonel by the Queen

• Apr 30 Russian Prime Minister Mikhail V. Mishustin says he has COVID-19
• Apr 30 South Korea reports no new domestic cases of COVID-19 for 1st time, their virus cases peaked Feb 29
• Apr 30 UK PM Boris Johnson says Britain is past the peak of the COVID-19 outbreak
• Apr 30 US President Donald Trump claims COVID-19 originated in a lab in Wuhan, while the Office of the Director of National Intelligence saying the virus is not manmade

Deaths 1 - 100 of 110

• Apr 1 Adam Schlesinger, American rock musician (Fountains Of Wayne) and songwriter (That Thing You Do), dies of COVID-19 complications at 52
• Apr 1 David Driskell, American artist and champion of African American art, dies of COVID-19 complications at 88
• Apr 1 Ed Farmer, American baseball pitcher (MLB All Star 1980; Chicago WS) and radio broadcaster (Chicago White Sox, 1991-2005), dies of kidney disease at 70
• Apr 1 Edward L. Feightner, American rear-admiral and WWII flying ace (Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands), dies at 100
• Apr 1 Ellis Marsalis Jr., American jazz pianist, and educator, dies of COVID-19 complications at 85 [1] [2]
• Apr 1 John "Bucky" Pizzarelli, American jazz guitarist, dies of COVID-19 at 94
• Apr 1 Nur Hassan Hussein [Nur Adde], Somalian politician, Prime Minister of Somalia (2007-09), dies from COVID-19 at 82
• Apr 2 Carl Tacy, American college basketball coach (Wake Forest University 1972-85; 222-149 record), dies at 87
• Apr 2 Claudio Spies, Chilean American composer, dies at 95
• Apr 2 Eddie Large [McGinnis], British comedian (Little and Large), dies of heart issues and COVID-19 complications at 78
• Apr 2 Goyo Rubio, Spanish soccer defender (22 caps; Real Madrid 317 games), dies of COVID-19 at 73
• Apr 2 Patricia Bosworth, American actor, journalist, writer, and biographer, dies of COVID-19 complications at 86
• Apr 2 Sergio Rossi, Italian shoe designer, dies of COVID-19 complications at 84
• Apr 3 Robert Armstrong [Lord Armstrong of Illminster], British peer and civil servant (Spycatcher trial), dies at 93
• Apr 3 Tom Dempsey, American NFL kicker (Pro Bowl, First-team All-Pro 1969; New Orleans Saints; longest winning field goal, 63 yards), dies of COVID-19 complications at 73
• Apr 4 Alexander Thynn, 7th Marquess of Bath, dies at 87

• Apr 4 Forrest Compton, American actor (Gomer Pyle USMC, Edge of Night), dies at 94
• Apr 4 Patrick Kincaid, American computer programmer (TODAY) and communications consultant, dies at 72
• Apr 5 Bobby Mitchell, American Pro Football Hall of Fame running back (Pro Bowl 1960, 62–64; First-team All-Pro 1962–64; Cleveland Browns, Washington Redskins), dies at 84
• Apr 5 Dougie Morgan, Scottish rugby union halfback (21 caps Scotland, 2 British & Irish Lions; Stewart's Melville FP), dies at 73
• Apr 5 Ed Biles, American football coach (College: Xavier 1962-68; NFL: Houston Oilers 1981-83), dies from leukemia at 88
• Apr 5 Honor Blackman, English actress (Goldfinger, The Avengers), dies at 94
• Apr 5 Margaret Burbidge, British-American astronomer and educator (faint object spectrograph of the Hubble Space), dies at 100 [1]
• Apr 5 Peter Walker, English cricket batsman (3 Tests; Glamorgan CCC), dies after a stroke at 84

• Apr 6 Fred Singer, Austrian-American physicist and climate change doubter, dies at 95 [1]
• Apr 6 Graham "Jock" Edwards, New Zealand cricket batsman (8 Tests, 3 x 50; Central Districts), dies from heart failure at 64
• Apr 6 James Drury, American actor (The Virginian), dies of natural causes at 85
• Apr 6 Radomir Antić, Serbian soccer defender (1 cap Yugoslavia; Partizan, Luton Town) and manager (Atlético Madrid; Serbia), dies from pancreatitis at 71
• Apr 7 Hal Willner, American music producer (Lost In The Stars: The Music of Kurt Weill; Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films; The Carl Stalling Project), dies with symptoms of COVID-19 at 64
• Apr 7 Harv Schmidt, American college basketball coach (University of Illinois 1967-74), dies at 83
• Apr 7 Herb Stempel, American game show contestant and television industry whistleblower (Twenty-One), dies at 93 [1]
• Apr 7 John Prine, American country folk singer-songwriter ("Hello In There"; "Angel From Montgomery"; "Paradise"), dies of COVID-19 complications at 73
• Apr 8 Jackie Du Preez, Zimbabwe cricket spin bowler (2 Tests, South Africa; Zimbabwe Test selector), dies from heart failure at 77
• Apr 8 Robert Poujade, French politician and Mayor of Dijon (1971-2001), dies at 91
• Apr 9 Dmitri Smirnov, Russian-British classical composer (Solo for Harp; Thel; Red Bells), and teacher, dies of COVID-19 at 71
• Apr 9 Jocelyn Barrow, British race relations campaigner (Card) and 1st black female governor of the BBC, dies at 90
• Apr 10 Frits Flinkevleugel, Dutch soccer defender (11 caps; DWS, FC Amsterdam), dies at 80
• Apr 10 Pete Retzlaff, American football halfback, tight-end (5 x Pro Bowl; First-team All-Pro 1958, 65 Philadelphia Eagles) and executive (GM Philadelphia Eagles 1969-72), dies at 88
• Apr 10 Tom Webster, Canadian ice hockey right wing (Boston Bruins, Detroit Red Wings) and coach (NY Rangers, LA Kings), dies of brain cancer at 71
• Apr 11 Francis Tombs, Lord Tombs, British engineer and businessman (CEO of Rolls Royce), dies at 95 [1]
• Apr 12 Doug Sanders, American golfer (4 x runner-up in major C'ships; 20 PGA Tour titles), dies at 86
• Apr 12 Francisco Aritmendi, Spanish athlete (International Cross Country Championships 1964), dies of COVID-19 at 81
• Apr 12 Glenn Beckert, American baseball second baseman (MLB All-Star 1969-72; Gold Glove Award 1968; Chicago Cubs), dies at 79
• Apr 12 Jim Frey, American MLB manager (Kansas City Royals, American League C'ship 1980; Chicago Cubs), dies at 88
• Apr 12 John Horton Conway, British mathematician (cellular automaton Game of Life), dies of COVID-19 complications at 82
• Apr 12 Peter Bonetti, English soccer goalkeeper (7 caps; World Cup 1966; Chelsea 600 games), dies at 78

• Apr 12 Tim Brooke-Taylor, English comedian (The Goodies), dies of COVID-19 complications at 79
• Apr 13 Ryo Kawasaki, Japanese jazz fusion guitarist, composer, bandleader, and synthesizer software programmer, dies at 73
• Apr 14 Hank Steinbrenner, American businessman and MLB team owner (New York Yankees 2010-20), dies of liver condition at 63
• Apr 14 Paul Bayvel, South African rugby union scrum-half (10 caps; Transvaal), dies from cancer at 71
• Apr 14 Ron Wylie, Scottish soccer forward (Notts County, Aston Villa, Birmingham City) and manager (WBA), dies at 86
• Apr 15 (Leon) "Lee" Konitz, American jazz saxophonist (Miles Davis - Birth of the Cool), dies of COVID-19 complications at 92
• Apr 15 Brian Dennehy, American actor (Cocoon, Death of a Salesman), dies at 81
• Apr 15 Dámaso García, Dominican baseball second baseman (MLB All-Star 1984, 85; Silver Slugger Award 1982; Toronto Blue Jays), dies from a malignant brain tumour at 63
• Apr 15 Dries Holten, Dutch pop singer (Sandra & Andres), dies of cancer at 84
• Apr 15 Willie Davis, American Pro Football HOF defensive end (Super Bowl I, II; Pro Bowl 1963-67; First-team All-Pro 1962, 64–67; GB Packers), dies from kidney failure at 85
• Apr 16 Gene Deitch, American illustrator (Tom Terrific, Nudnik), dies at 95
• Apr 16 Howard Finkel, American pro wrestling ring announcer (WWE Hall of Fame), dies from stroke complications at 69
• Apr 16 Kenneth Gilbert, Canadian harpsichordist, organist, musicologist, and educator, dies at 88
• Apr 16 Luis Sepúlveda, Chilean writer and political activist (The Old Man Who Read Love Stories), dies of COVID-19 at 70
• Apr 16 Steve Cash, YouTube personality (Talking Kitty Cat), commits suicide at 40
• Apr 17 Arlene Saunders [Soszynski], American soprano, 1961-85 (Hamburg Opera; New York Metropolitan Opera), dies of COVID-19 complications at 89
• Apr 17 Bobby Winkles, American College Baseball Hall of Fame coach (Arizona State University) and manager (California Angels, Oakland A's), dies at 90
• Apr 17 Carlos Contreras, Chilean soccer defender (30 caps; Universidad de Chile), dies at 81
• Apr 17 Matthew Seligman, British studio and touring new wave rock bassist (Robyn Hitchcock; Thompson Twins; Thomas Dolby), dies from COVID-19 complications at 64
• Apr 17 Norman Hunter, English soccer defender (28 caps; Leeds United, Bristol City, Barnsley; FIFA World Cup 1966), dies from COVID-19 at 76
• Apr 17 Raymond Van Gestel, Belgian soccer winger (5 caps; Lyra) and athlete (Belgian long jump champion), dies at 90
• Apr 18 François Lafortune Jr., Belgian rifle shooter (7 x Olympic Games 1952-1976, 50m Rifle, Prone Position), dies from Parkinson's disease at 87
• Apr 18 Takuo Aoyagi, Japanese engineer who invented the pulse oximeter, dies at 84
• Apr 19 Bob Oliver, American MLB player, dies at 77
• Apr 19 Ian Whitcomb, English rocker ("You Turn Me On"), dies at 78
• Apr 19 Índio, Brazilian soccer striker (7 caps; Flamengo, Corinthians, Espanyol), dies at 89
• Apr 19 Steve Dalkowski, American baseball player and inspiration for Bull Durham film, dies of COVID-19 complications at 80
• Apr 20 Mike Curtis, American NFL linebacker (Super Bowl 1971; Pro Bowl 1968, 70, 71, 74; First-team All-Pro 1968, 69; Baltimore Colts), dies at 77

• Apr 21 Florian Schneider, German musician (Kraftwerk), dies of cancer at 73
• Apr 21 Milt Sunde, American NFL guard (Pro Bowl 1966; NFL Champion 1969; Minnesota Vikings), dies from Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease at 78
• Apr 21 Teruyuki Okazaki, Japanese karate master (10th degree black belt Shotokan Karate; founder International Shotokan Karate Federation), dies from COVID-19 at 88
• Apr 22 Hartwig Gauder, German race walker (Olympic gold men's 50k walk 1980), dies at 65
• Apr 22 Robert "Bootsie" Barnes, American jazz tenor saxophonist, dies of CovidCOVID-19 at 82 [1]
• Apr 22 Shirley Knight, American actress (Endless Love, Desperate Housewives), dies at 83
• Apr 22 Terence Frisby, English actor and playwright (There's a Girl in My Soup), dies at 87
• Apr 23 Bernardino Lombao, Spanish handballer (Atlético de Madrid 1967-69), coach (Nat basketball teams) and TV presenter (De Olimpia a Los Ángeles, Objetivo 92), dies at 81
• Apr 23 Norbert Blüm, German politician, Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, dies at 84
• Apr 24 (Hamilton) Bohannon, American R&B and disco percussionist, bandleader, songwriter, and record producer ("Save Their Souls"), dies at 78
• Apr 24 Graeme Watson, Australian cricket all-rounder (5 Tests, 1 x 50, 6 wickets; 2 ODIs; Victoria CA, WA CA, NSW CA), dies from cancer at 75
• Apr 24 Harold Reid, American country bass vocalist (Statler Brothers - "Bed Of Rose's"), dies of kidney failure at 80 [1]
• Apr 24 Lynn Faulds Wood, Scottish television presenter (Watchdog), dies of a stroke at 72
• Apr 25 Marino H. Casem, American College Football Hall of Fame coach (Alabama State, Alcorn State, Southern) and athletic administrator (Alcorn State, Southern), dies at 85
• Apr 25 Per Olov Enquist, Swedish writer (Hour of the Lynx, The Royal Physician’s Visit), dies at 85
• Apr 25 Richard Divila, Brazilian motorsports designer (Fittipaldi Automotive; Ligier, Nissan), dies at 74
• Apr 26 Ron Marlenee, American politician (Rep-R-MT, 1977-93), dies at 84
• Apr 27 Lynn Harrell, American classical cellist, educator, and Grammy Award-winner, dies of a stroke at 76
• Apr 27 Marty Smith, American motocross racer (AMA 125cc 1974, 75; AMA 500cc 1977), dies in a dune buggy accident at 63
• Apr 27 Robert Herbin, French soccer defender (23 caps; Saint-Étienne) and manager (Saint-Étienne, Lyon, Strasbourg), dies at 81
• Apr 28 Bobby Lewis, American rock and roll singer ("Tossin' and Turnin'"), dies at 95
• Apr 28 Eddy Pieters Graafland, Dutch soccer goalkeeper (47 caps; Ajax; European Cup 1970, Feyenoord), dies at 86
• Apr 28 Jill Gascoine, British stage and pioneering TV actress (The Gentle Touch - "Maggie Forbes"), and novelist, dies of Alzheimer's disease at 83

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