24 August

24 August was a date.

In 79, (PROSE: Time Traveller's Diary) which both Jack Harkness (TV: The Doctor Dances) and the Tenth Doctor referred to as "Volcano Day", the Tenth Doctor and Donna Noble caused Mount Vesuvius to erupt to kill the Pyrovile. The whole population of Pompeii, excluding one family, died in the eruption. (TV: The Fires of Pompeii) The Seventh Doctor and Melanie Bush were in the city at the time of the eruption, but managed to escape unharmed. (AUDIO: The Fires of Vulcan) A time disruption briefly changed history so that Vesuvius took longer to erupt, allowing the city's populace to evacuate in their boats. (PROSE: The Algebra of Ice)

In 1572, another tragedy occurred. The First Doctor and Steven Taylor visited Paris just in time to witness the St Bartholomew's Day massacre. (TV: The Massacre, PROSE: The Massacre)