On Sept. 18, 2003, Hurricane Isabel slammed into the North Carolina coast, causing nearly 40 deaths and inflicting property damage estimated at $4 billion.

Residents brave the floodwaters in the streets of Alexandria, Va., on September 19, 2003, after Hurricane Isabel slammed the East Coast. The storm made landfall September 18. File Photo by Roger L. Wollenberg/UPI UPI "Yes" campaigners carry flags on the day Scottish residents decide the future political direction their country will take in Glasgow, Scotland, on September 18, 2014. File Photo by Hugo Philpott/UPI UPI A Chinese soldier stands guard in front of a giant portrait of China's former helmsan Mao Zedong hanging in Tiananmen Square's north gate in Beijing on China's National Day, October 1, 2006. Mao's funeral was held in the square on September 18, 1976. File Photo by Stephen Shaver/UPI UPI On September 18, 1961, U.N. Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjold, pictured in June 1959, died when his plane crashed under mysterious circumstances near Ndola in Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia). File Photo courtesy United Nations UPI On September 18, 1996, the shuttle Atlantis docked with the Mir space station to pick up U.S. astronaut Shannon Lucid, who had set a U.S. record for time spent in space. File Photo courtesy NASA UPI Afghan women cast their ballots for the parliamentary elections in Kabul, Afghanistan, on, September 18, 2010. Militants struck throughout the country trying to stop the voting. File Photo by Hossein Fatemi/UPI UPI

Sept. 18 (UPI) -- On this date in history:

In 1850, the U.S. Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Act, allowing slave owners to reclaim slaves who escaped into another state.

In 1927, the Columbia Broadcasting System was born. Originally known as the Tiffany Network, its first program was an opera, The King's Henchman.

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In 1928, a hurricane that lashed Florida and Caribbean islands for several days left an estimated 4,000 people dead and $30 million in damage.

In 1961, U.N. Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjold died when his plane crashed under mysterious circumstances near Ndola in Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia).

In 1970, rock star Jimi Hendrix died at the age of 27 following a drug overdose in London.

In 1975, FBI agents in San Francisco captured former hostage Patricia Hearst along with two members of a group called the Symbionese Liberation Army. Hearst was convicted in an SLA bank robbery and served 22 months in prison before her sentence was commuted. She later was granted a full pardon by U.S. President Bill Clinton.

In 1976, Chinese leader Mao Zedong's public funeral took place in Tiananmen Square in Beijing. He was permanently interred in a mausoleum.

In 1983, British adventurer George Meegan finished a 19,021-mile, six-year walk from the tip of South America to the Arctic Ocean at Prudhoe Bay, Alaska.

In 1984, Joe Kittinger, 56, crash-landed in Nice, France, days after leaving Caribou, Maine, in a 10-story-tall helium balloon. He became the first person to cross the Atlantic Ocean solo in a balloon.

In 1996, the shuttle Atlantis docked with the Mir space station to pick up U.S. astronaut Shannon Lucid, who had set a U.S. record for time spent in space.

In 2003, Hurricane Isabel slammed into the North Carolina coast, causing nearly 40 deaths and inflicting property damage estimated at $4 billion.

In 2005, Afghanistan had its first free election in 25 years, drawing millions of voters despite Taliban threats.

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In 2009, the final episode of The Guiding Light was broadcast. The soap opera had run on radio and television for 72 years.

In 2010, violence and threats of violence during Afghanistan's parliamentary elections kept 60 percent of eligible voters from polls and left at least 14 people dead. A total of 2,514 candidates vied for seats in the 249-member Parliament.

In 2014, Scotland chose to remain in the United Kingdom, rejecting independence in a historic national referendum that had a voter turnout of 84 percent. More than 55 percent of voters were against leaving the U.K.

In 2022, a 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck Taiwan less than one day after a 6.5-magnitude temblor hit the same area. Collectively, the quakes killed one person and injured some 170.