Milestones

Ten years ago: Two men became the first hot-air balloon travelers to cross the Atlantic. British millionaire Richard Branson and Swedish-born Per Lindstrand, the balloon’s designer, were forced to jump into the sea as their craft went down off the coast of Scotland.

Five years ago: The president of Czechoslovakia, Vaclav Havel, was voted out of office as lawmakers from Slovakia blocked his re-election in Parliament.

One year ago: Russians went to the polls to re-elect Boris Yeltsin as president over his Communist challenger, Gennady Zyuganov. Also, a blaze destroyed a fireworks store in Scottown, Ohio, killing nine people and injuring 11.