2 miles (3.2 km) off Miami Beach, Florida, 52-year-old American attorney Hope Root died in an attempt to set a new deep diving record of 410 feet (120 m). Root descended to 500 feet (150 m) and did not resurface.[1]
December 4, 1953 (Friday)
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With the NBC Symphony Orchestra, conductor Arturo Toscanini performed what he claimed to be his favorite Beethoven symphony, the Eroica, for the last time. The live performance was broadcast nationwide on radio, and later released on records and CD.
Tangiwai disaster: A railway bridge collapsed at Tangiwai, New Zealand, sending a fully loaded passenger train into the Whangaehu River; 151 were killed.
December 25, 1953 (Friday)
The Amami Islands were returned to Japan after 8 years of United States military occupation.