5 July 1417: Der Basler Stadtbrand von 1417. On this day, Basel was struck by the largest fire in its history, which broke out on Streitgasse and quickly spread, burning the area between Streitgasse and Rittergasse. See altbasel.ch for more information.

5 July 1986: Death of Albert Scherrer. Albert Scherrer was a Swiss racing driver born on 28 February 1908 in Riehen, a suburb of Basel. He competed in the 1953 Swiss Grand Prix, finishing unclassified and scoring no championship points, and died in Basel on this day, reflecting his lifelong connection to the city. See Wikipedia for more information.