Event:
Residents of the West Point shantytown in Monrovia, Nigeria loot an Ebola quarantine center, stealing items that include contaminated bedsheets; patients flee during the raid, raising the risk of spreading the virus among the 50,000 slum inhabitants
More Notable Events on August 17:
1988 Republicans nominate George H. W. Bush for president
1962 Beatles replaces Pete Best with Ringo Starr
1959 7.1 quake strikes Yellowstone National Park
1945 Koreas divided on 38th parallel with U.S. occupying the southern area
1870 1st ascent of Mount Rainier, Washington
