Unprecedented. It’s the word none of us want to hear again after 2020.
Before January 1 even arrived, we were in the midst of an unprecedented bushfire season — the worst in our nation’s history — and the ripples of a devastating pandemic that would claim 1.6 million lives had begun in Wuhan, China.
Fast forward 12 months and vaccines againt the virus are rolling out across the globe — a glimpse of a post-pandemic ‘normal’ is in sight.
As 2020 draws to a close, we take a look at some of the highs and lows of an unforgettable year.
JANUARY
January 1: Australians wake to tragedy after a massive night of fires destroys entire towns. Thousands are forced to shelter on beaches in southern NSW and Victoria as fires tear through coastal towns. Close to 4000 people remain stranded on Mallacoota’s foreshore in Victoria. Scores of homes are lost and more than 20 people are missing as hundreds of fires rage on.
January 2: The NSW Government declares its third State of Emergency in months as a result of the unprecedented risk of bushfires. Prime Minister Scott Morrison is heckled by angry fire victims in Cobargo as he faces mounting criticism over his handling of the bushfire crisis.
January 8: Prince Harry and Meghan announce their split from the royals, stating they intend to become financially independent and live between the UK and North America.
January 10: Thousands of climate change activists take to streets across the nation in response to the bushfires and the federal government’s perceived inaction on climate change.
January 11: Chinese state media report the first known death from a novel coronavirus which has now infected dozens of people in Wuhan.
January 13: The death toll of the White Island volcano disaster rises to 20 after another Australian dies in hospital. The final death toll would later reach 22.
January 23: Wuhan locks down millions of citizens as its virus cases rise and deaths hit.
January 25: Australia confirms its first novel coronavirus case in Melbourne.
January 26: Kobe Bryant dies in a chopper crash. ‘Invasion Day’ rallies draw huge crowds across the country in opposition to Australia Day being celebrated on January 26.
January 30: The W.H.O. declares the novel coronavirus outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
FEBRUARY
February 1: A Sydney family is left devastated after a drunk, drugged driver kills four children in an horrific crash in Oatlands. In an extraordinary act of grace, parents Leila and Danny Abdallah offer forgiveness to the driver. Their children Antony, 13, Angelina, 12, Sienna, 9, and relative Veronique Sakr, 11, were killed while walking home.
February 2: Novak Djokovic defeats Dominic Thiem to win his eighth Australian Open.
February 3: Australia begins evacuating citizens trapped in China to Christmas Island.
February 5: US President Donald Trump is acquitted on articles of impeachment.
February 7: Torrential rain hits parts of NSW causing rivers to rise and flash flooding. Sydney receives 391.6mm of rain between February 7-10, its wettest period since 1990.
February 11: WHO officially names the novel coronavirus COVID-19.
February 16: Thousands pour into a Fire Fight Australia concert in Sydney raising close to $10 million for bushfire-affected communities. It follows a record-breaking $51 million viral Facebook fundraiser by Celeste Barber for fire victims (which ends in court over how the money can be spent). Meanwhile, Port Macquarie Koala Hospital’s $25,000 Go Fund Me target balloons to more $7 million due to massive post-fire donations.
February 17: General Motors announces it is retiring iconic Australian car brand Holden by 2021. Assisted flights are confirmed for 200 Australians trapped on the infected Diamond Princess cruise ship in Yokohama.
February 19: In a domestic violence crime that shocked the nation, Hannah Clarke and her three children aged under six are burned to death in a car in a Brisbane street by her husband, Rowan Baxter, who later died near the scene from self-inflicted wounds.
February 19: Prime Minister Scott Morrison announces a Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements to look into the 2019/2020 bushfires. The fires burned 18 million hectares of land, destroyed 3000 homes, and claimed the lives of 33 people.
February 24: Harvey Weinstein is found guilty of rape.
February 27: Australia declares the coronavirus will become a global pandemic, extending its travel ban on visitors from China.
MARCH
March 1: Australia records its first death from the COVID-19 pandemic. James Kwan, 78, dies after contracting the virus on the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan.
March 3: Supermarkets begin to ration toilet paper after the pandemic triggers panic buying.
March 4: All fires in NSW are finally extinguished for the first time since July 2019.
March 10: Italy becomes the first country to implement a nationwide lockdown.
March 11: WHO characterises COVID-19 as a pandemic.
March 12: Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson reveal they have COVID-19 in Australia.
March 13: The Australian Grand Prix is cancelled, with thousands of fans waiting to enter the event left dumbstruck. Six hours later, the Prime Minister announces a ban on mass gatherings with more than 500 people. A national cabinet is formed to deal with the coronavirus crisis.
March 15: Australia now has 250 coronavirus cases. All travellers arriving in or returning to Australia from overseas must self-isolate for 14 days. Cruise ships are barred from docking.
March: A ‘kindness pandemic’ campaign takes hold on social media with people using Facebook to celebrate acts of decency shown to others.
March 16: The Dow plunges 2997 points in the worst drop since 1987.
March 18: The Ruby Princess cruise ship docks in Sydney Harbour. Australians are advised not to travel overseas. Indoor gatherings are further limited to 100 people.
March 19: 2700 Ruby Princess passengers are discharged at 6am, despite about 110 having flu-like symptoms. Three are tested but not asked to wait for results. Five weeks later, 662 passengers will test positive, 21 will die.
March 19: Qantas suspends all international flights, 60 per cent of domestic flights and puts 75 per cent of its workforce on leave.
March 20: Australia closes its borders to all non-citizens and non-residents. The 2020 AFL season kicks off with Richmond taking on Carlton at the MCG.
March 21: Australian states begin announcing restrictions and compulsory quarantine for domestic travellers. NSW reports 83 new virus cases in a single day.
March 23: Last drinks are called as all pubs, clubs, restaurants, cinemas and indoor sporting venues across the country shut down indefinitely to curb outbreaks. The 2020 AFL season and 2020 AFL Women’s season are suspended. Centrelink and myGov websites crash as thousands apply for unemployment. Bondi beach crowds spark outrage and police announce a crackdown on social distancing. Sydney’s beaches are closed to the public. The NRL suspends 2020 season.
March 24: After months of uncertainty, the Tokyo Olympics are cancelled.
March 27: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson contracts COVID-19 after boasting of shaking hands with “everyone” in a hospital caring for COVID-19 patients. He later enters intensive care.
March 28: Australia reaches a daily diagnosis peak of 469 new virus cases.
March 31: Lockdowns begin. Residents in NSW are ordered to stay at home.
APRIL
April 1: Beloved ABC kids’ show Bluey wins an International Emmy Kids Award celebrating the world’s best content for young viewers.
April 2: The Federal Government announces free childcare as a temporary measure to support families amid the pandemic.
April 5: A criminal investigation is launched into whether the operator of Ruby Princess, Carnival Australia deliberately concealed COVID-19 cases on board.
April 7: Officials in Wuhan lift the citywide lockdown after 76 days. Cardinal George Pell’s sexual abuse conviction is unanimously quashed by High Court.
April 8: Senator Bernie Sanders drops out of the 2020 US Presidential race. Joe Biden becomes the presumptive Democratic nominee in the race against President Donald Trump.
April 9: Indians in Punjab get their first clear view of the Himalayan peaks in 30 years after a huge drop in air pollution caused by the country’s lockdown.
April 10: The death toll from COVID-19 exceeds 100,000 globally.
April 11: A staff member is diagnosed with COVID-19 at Newmarch House aged care facility in Sydney. The outbreak will later affect 71 staff and residents, 19 of whom will die.
April 12: Pope Francis live streams his Easter blessing.
April 20: US crude oil prices hit record low as pandemic impacts demand.
April 25: Australia marks an ANZAC DAY like no other with dawn driveway services as marches are cancelled.
April 30: The ACT becomes the first Australian jurisdiction to declare itself virus free.
MAY
May 6: Astronomers discover the first black hole in a star system visible to the naked eye.
May 13: Alan Jones quits 2GB, handing the breakfast radio torch to stablemate Ben Fordham.
May 15: NSW eases some restrictions on restaurants, licences venues and public gatherings.
May 25: African American man George Floyd dies after a white police officer knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes during an arrest. A video capturing the incident outrages and distresses people around the world. Protests over police brutality, especially toward black people, erupt in the United States.
May 26: Trouble in Victoria’s hotel quarantine system surfaces after a staff member at Rydges on Swanston contracts COVID-19. Five contracted security guards will also test positive.
May 27: Health authorities officially identify the Melbourne’s Rydges on Swanston outbreak. By June, it will grow to 46 people who worked at the hotel, or were family or social contacts. The state’s coming second wave will be traced back to outbreaks transmitted from the hotels housing returned travellers and monitored by contracted security guards.
May 23: China reports no new COVID-19 cases for the first time since the pandemic began.
May 24: Mining corporation Rio Tinto admits to blowing up the 46,000-year-old Juukan Gorge caves in the Pilbara area of Western Australia.
May 26: Protests over the killing of George Floyd break out across hundreds of cities in the US and around the world against racism and police brutality.
May 27: China votes for Hong Kong security legislation. US COVID deaths pass 100,000.
May 28: The 2020 NRL season resumes.
May 30: The first manned spacecraft to take off from US soil since 2011, SpaceX Dragon 2 is launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
JUNE
June 1: Amid Black Lives Matter protests in the US capital, police and security personnel use tear gas and other riot control tactics to forcefully clear peaceful protesters from Lafayette Square so President Donald Trump and senior administration officials can walk from the White House to St. John’s Episcopal Church for a photo op.
June 6: Black Lives Matter protests erupt across Australian cities, part of a series of George Floyd protests around the world, with Aboriginal deaths in custody as a focus.
June 8: New Zealand declares itself COVID-19 free.
June 9: Hong Kong protests escalate over plans to allow extradition to mainland China.
June 10: The number of coronavirus cases pass 10 million worldwide.
June 11 The 2020 AFL season resumes.
June 19: A large-scale cyber attack against the Australian government is believed to have occurred; Scott Morrison holds a press conference at the Parliament House.
June 25: Liverpool win their first EPL in 30 years.
June 26: ASIO and federal police raid the home and office of NSW Labor MP Shaoquett Moselmane in investigation into Chinese Communist Party influence on Australian politics.
June 30: After weeks of simmering outbreaks, the Victorian Government re-enforces stay home lockdowns across 10 different Melbourne postcodes.
JULY
July 4: Close to 3000 residents in nine public housing estates in Flemington and North Melbourne go into immediate hard lockdown as Victoria records 108 new cases. Kanye West announces he will run for US President.
July 4: The bitterly-fought Eden-Monaro by-election is won by Labor after Kristy McBain claims victory. The election was coloured by bickering between the Liberals and Nationals over which candidate will run for the seat, with both John Barilaro and NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance flagging then withdrawing a tilt at the seat.
July 8: For the first time since the 1918-19 Spanish flu pandemic, the NSW-Victoria border shuts creating chaos for those living and working in border towns.
July 9: Mobile devices numbers revealed that the number of people coming into Sydney CBD in the first week of July was down to just 53% of what it had been in January and February.
July 15: Elon Musk is among the prominent Twitter accounts hacked in a bitcoin scam.
July 15: A COVID outbreak linked to the Crossroads Hotel in Casula is traced back to a resident of Melbourne who visited before stage 3 restrictions came into effect.
July 16: Indigenous writer Tara June Winch wins the 2020 Miles Franklin Literary Award for her novel The Yield.
July 19: Masks are mandated in Victoria as cases continue to surge.
July 23: Leonard Warwick is found guilty of carrying out the Family Court of Australia attacks in the early 1980s.
July 29: CSIRO gave scientific names to 165 new species this year.
July 20: Victoria’s Hotel Quarantine Inquiry begins as the state’s daily case numbers continue to break records.
AUGUST
August 2: Stage 4 lockdowns begin in Victoria in response to a second wave of infections.
August 4: Beirut is rocked by a massive explosion at its port as a result of the accidental detonation of almost 3000 tonnes of ammonium nitrate. Close to 200 people die, thousands are injured. The explosion causes $10–15 billion in damage and laves 300,000 homeless.
August 8: Queensland-NSW border wars heat up with the Queensland government implemented a ‘hard border closure’, adding NSW and the ACT to the entry ban.
The nation’s unemployment rate increases to 7.5 per cent.
August 11: Kamala Harris becomes the first black woman and the first Asian woman on a major US party’s presidential ticket.
August 11: Russia approves the world’s first COVID-19 vaccine.
August 17: NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian apologises “unreservedly” for mistakes made by NSW Health in allowing infected Ruby Princess cruise ship passengers to disembark.
Australia’s push for an international probe into the coronavirus wins support from more than 110 countries at the World Health Assembly. China will hit back within days.
August 18: California’ declares state of emergency as catastrophic wildfires worsen.
August 23: Mental health impacts from the pandemic emerge as a critical issueas school communities on Sydney’s north shore reel after a cluster of student suicides.
August 28: Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman dies age 43 from cancer.
August 30: Sydney FC players celebrate victory in the 2020 A-League Grand Final against Melbourne City.
SEPTEMBER
September 2: Australia’s GDP falls 7 per cent in the June quarter and the economy goes into recession for the first time in nearly three decades.
September 10: After deliberating for five days, a NSW Supreme Court jury finds two Sydney men accused of the notorious 2018 hit on bikie Mick Hawi not guilty of murder.
September 18: Ruth Bader Ginsburg dies
September 21: Department of Health statistics report Australia now has had 26,898 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in total, of which 89 per cent have recovered. There have been 851 deaths, 763 of them in Victoria of which 604 were people in aged care.
September 25: Vincent Namatjira becomes the first Indigenous artist to win in the Archibald Prise its 99-year history for a self-portrait with Adam Goodes.
September 27: Penrith Panthers win their first minor premiership since 2003. Brisbane Broncos claiming their first wooden spoon since 1988.
September 29: The global death toll from COVID-19 exceeds one million.
OCTOBER
October 2: President Trump and first lady Melania Trump contract coronavirus.
October 4: A bombshell investigation by The Australian alleges NRL powerhouse club South Sydney Rabbitohs covered up alleged drug use, domestic violence and harassment to protect star player Sam Burgess.
October 12: Gladys Berejiklian vows to continue as NSW Premier despite a humiliating appearance at an ICAC hearing in which her secret five-year relationship with a disgraced former Liberal MP Daryl Maguire is revealed. The appearance plunges Ms Berejiklian’s government into crisis, with the “very private” Premier forced to concede that she had “stuffed up” her personal life.
October 15: Thai protests against government and royal corruption spark a severe state of emergency declared in Thailand as authorities clamp down on demonstrators and impose media censorship.
October 17: New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern wins a landslide second term in office
October 20: Underworld figure Mejid Hamzy — the brother of convicted murderer and gang boss Bassam Hamzy — is shot dead outside his home in Condell Park Sydney leading to fears of escalating gang wars.
October 25: Melbourne Storm defeat Penrith Panthers in the NRL 2020 grand final.
October 24: Richmond Tigers defeat Geelong Cats in the 2020 AFL Grand Final.
October 27: 5.5 million Melburnians are freed after enduring a 11-day or 15-week lockdown.
October 31: Annastacia Palaszczuk wins third term as Queensland’s Labor Premier.
NOVEMBER
November 1: Australia records zero cases of community COVID-19 transmission nationwide for the first time since June 9.
November 3: Twilight Paymentwins the 2020 Melbourne Cup in a punter-free race that stops the nation.
November 7: The US election iscalled for Democratic candidate Joe Biden and his running mate Kamala Harris. Donald Trump begins baseless claims that the result was fraudulent.
November 8: COVID-19 cases pass 50 million worldwide.
November 9: First successful phase III trial of a COVID-19 vaccine is announced by drug companies Pfizer and BioNTech
November 16: An outbreak in South Australia sees restrictions return. Days later a lockdown briefly imposed would be lifted due to misinformation from a confirmed case. Moderna’s mRNA vaccine is proven to be 94.5 per cent effective against the virus based on interim results.
November 18: Queensland win the 2020 State of Origin series.
November 18: Tensions between Australia and China escalate after Beijing issues an extraordinary attack on the Australian government, accusing it of “poisoning bilateral relations” in a deliberately leaked document.
November 19: A bombshell war crimes report finds “credible information’’ Australian SAS troops were involved in up to 39 unlawful killings including 23 murders between 2005 and 2016 during the war in Afghanistan.
November 23: NSW reopens its border with Victoria.
November 25: Argentina grieves as football legend Diego Maradona, 60, dies from a heart attack at his home in the outskirts of Buenos Aires
November 27: Victoria records 28 consecutive days with zero new cases.
DECEMBER
December 1: Prime Minister Scott Morrison condemnsa fake image of an Australian Digger threatening to slit the throat of an Afghan child, shared by Beijing’s foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian on Twitter. Political and trade tensions between the nations escalate.
December 2: UK becomes the first country to approve the Pfizer’s BNT162b2 vaccine.
December 4: COVID-19 cases passes 65 million worldwide.
December 5: Russia begins a mass roll out of Sputnik V vaccination against COVID-19.
December 8: UK inoculations against COVID begin.
December 9: US federal and state antitrust enforcers file a suit against Facebook claiming the social media giant abused its dominant position, seeking to unwind its acquisitions of messaging services Instagram and WhatsApp.
December 10: Brits are warned last-gasp talks for a Brexit trade deal with the European Union could fail. Lebanon’s lead investigator into the catastrophic Beirut port explosion charged outgoing premier Hassan Diab and three ex-ministers with negligence
December 11: US COVID-19 related deaths surpasses 3000 people a day.
December 14: Trade Minister Simon Birmingham urges China to explain reports it has black-listed Australia’s $14 billion coal export industry, warning such action is discriminatory.
Byron Bay’s famous main beach is washed away as storms hit the east coast of northern NSW and Queensland. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announces a quarantine-free travel bubble with Australia is likely in the first quarter of 2021.
December 15: Strict lockdowns are announced in the UK as a new fast-spreading COVID-19 strain emerges. The first Pfizer vaccines are given out in the US where the death toll has passed 300,000. Joe Biden is confirmed as the next US president as the Electoral College formalises his victory over Donald Trump, all but closing the door on the incumbent’s efforts to overturn the result of the 2020 election
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