I hope you have a healthy and successful one.
Thursday, January 01, 2015
Too much salt and not enough wall blamed for cars being buried under tons of sodium chloride
Tons of salt buried cars parked outside the McGrath Acura dealership in Chicago on Tuesday when portions of the wall of the adjacent Morton Salt storage facility collapsed.
No one was hurt and no extrications were necessary because of the spill.
The Chicago Fire Department, Chicago Dept. of Buildings and Morton Salt all said it appears that salt was merely piled too high in the storage building, causing the wall to give way. “It appears to be a case of too much salt and too little wall,” said Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford said. First responders quickly determined that all employees of the Morton facility and of the adjacent McGrath Acura dealership were accounted for and unhurt, and that no one else was buried in the salt.
A manager for McGrath said the salt damaged 11 cars. General Manager Noble Jones. said: “New Year’s is a busy time for us as you can see and we’re worried about selling cars and not saving cars and it seems like right now we’ve got to dig some cars out from the salt and make sure that the customers are happy with our service work and they find out that they might have to replace their cars they currently have.”
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Building inspectors blocked off the immediate area where the wall gave way to guard against injury if additional salt or bricks fall. The department said, in a statement, that Morton employees are working with a structural engineer to see that the remaining structure is safe and supported.
The Chicago Fire Department, Chicago Dept. of Buildings and Morton Salt all said it appears that salt was merely piled too high in the storage building, causing the wall to give way. “It appears to be a case of too much salt and too little wall,” said Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford said. First responders quickly determined that all employees of the Morton facility and of the adjacent McGrath Acura dealership were accounted for and unhurt, and that no one else was buried in the salt.
A manager for McGrath said the salt damaged 11 cars. General Manager Noble Jones. said: “New Year’s is a busy time for us as you can see and we’re worried about selling cars and not saving cars and it seems like right now we’ve got to dig some cars out from the salt and make sure that the customers are happy with our service work and they find out that they might have to replace their cars they currently have.”
YouTube link.
Building inspectors blocked off the immediate area where the wall gave way to guard against injury if additional salt or bricks fall. The department said, in a statement, that Morton employees are working with a structural engineer to see that the remaining structure is safe and supported.
Man who stole over $7,500 worth of booze and then passed out jailed for one month
A man found passed out on the footpath after stealing thousands of dollars worth of beer and spirits from a restaurant in Darwin in Australia's Northern Territory has been sentenced to one month in prison.
On Monday night Warren Argall, 44, and another man broke into the Char restaurant cool room, got drunk and then filled a wheelie bin with bottles and cans of stolen alcohol.
When police woke Argall on the adjacent footpath the next morning, surrounded by bottles and empty cans, he said he could not remember anything that had happened that night. The wheelie bin was nearby. The two men stole 151 bottles of spirits and 216 stubbies of beer valued at AU$7,507 (£3,950, US$6,150), the court heard. He appeared before the Darwin Magistrates Court on Wednesday and pleaded guilty to all charges.
CCTV footage showed Argall and another man entered the property at about 11:00pm on December 29 through an unlocked rear gate and forced the door on the cool room. CCTV then showed them drinking stolen beer on the restaurant's step, the court heard. After the pair left the property with their wheelie bin haul of booze several other men then took advantage of the open premises and helped themselves, the court heard. Argall and the other man also returned several times to pick up more beer.
The group of men, including Argall, entered the property at least eight times in eight hours, from 11:00pm to 7:05am, when police found Argall sleeping outside. The upmarket waterfront restaurant had been closed for renovations and its stock of beer and spirits had been stored in the locked cool room. A bag containing the ID of the other man who allegedly broke into the cool room was also found on the restaurant's grounds. He was arrested a short time later.
When police woke Argall on the adjacent footpath the next morning, surrounded by bottles and empty cans, he said he could not remember anything that had happened that night. The wheelie bin was nearby. The two men stole 151 bottles of spirits and 216 stubbies of beer valued at AU$7,507 (£3,950, US$6,150), the court heard. He appeared before the Darwin Magistrates Court on Wednesday and pleaded guilty to all charges.
CCTV footage showed Argall and another man entered the property at about 11:00pm on December 29 through an unlocked rear gate and forced the door on the cool room. CCTV then showed them drinking stolen beer on the restaurant's step, the court heard. After the pair left the property with their wheelie bin haul of booze several other men then took advantage of the open premises and helped themselves, the court heard. Argall and the other man also returned several times to pick up more beer.
The group of men, including Argall, entered the property at least eight times in eight hours, from 11:00pm to 7:05am, when police found Argall sleeping outside. The upmarket waterfront restaurant had been closed for renovations and its stock of beer and spirits had been stored in the locked cool room. A bag containing the ID of the other man who allegedly broke into the cool room was also found on the restaurant's grounds. He was arrested a short time later.
Mystery over water heating element found wedged in man's throat
Baffled doctors discovered a water heating element inside a man's throat after he turned up complaining of a pain in the neck.
After noting that the man's throat seemed to be swollen, with what appeared to be a hard and regular ridge, they decided to carry out an x-ray at the hospital in the city of Krasnoyarsk in Central Russia’s Krasnoyarsk Krai region.
And they were amazed to find the water heating element possibly from a boiler wedged in the man's throat.
Doctor Oles Kalinin said: "The man was brought in by ambulance suffering from a difficulty in breathing. We were absolutely amazed when we did the X-ray and saw what was blocking his throat. Given that the diameter of the oesophagus in a relaxed state is about 2 to 3 centimetres, it had been stretched to 4 or five times its usual size by the water heating element." He said that as a doctor it was not part of their remit to demand to know how the water heating element had got inside the man's throat, and he said the man had not volunteered the information.
He said: "It was a critical situation, there was a risk at any stage that he might suffocate and die. His oesophagus was completely blocked by the foreign object." Doctors said that they had tried several methods to remove the water heating element which was almost impossible to remove they had been forced to extract it using full forceps, running the risk that they might breach the oesophagus but deciding there was no other possibility. Doctor Kalinin added: "It took about 20 minutes to slowly ease it out, and it's not an operation I've ever had to do before or am I ever likely to do it again.
"I have no idea how on earth they managed to be forced in there, but it must have been difficult given that the natural urge of the human throat is to gag if something foreign is placed inside it." But he added that the young man who recovered quickly once the object removed had simply dressed himself after the operation, politely thanked the doctors, and then left. Doctor Kalinin added: "He told one of the nurses it was an accident, and had noticed it while tucking into his lunch. An unlikely story, but one that will have to remain a mystery it seems."
Doctor Oles Kalinin said: "The man was brought in by ambulance suffering from a difficulty in breathing. We were absolutely amazed when we did the X-ray and saw what was blocking his throat. Given that the diameter of the oesophagus in a relaxed state is about 2 to 3 centimetres, it had been stretched to 4 or five times its usual size by the water heating element." He said that as a doctor it was not part of their remit to demand to know how the water heating element had got inside the man's throat, and he said the man had not volunteered the information.
He said: "It was a critical situation, there was a risk at any stage that he might suffocate and die. His oesophagus was completely blocked by the foreign object." Doctors said that they had tried several methods to remove the water heating element which was almost impossible to remove they had been forced to extract it using full forceps, running the risk that they might breach the oesophagus but deciding there was no other possibility. Doctor Kalinin added: "It took about 20 minutes to slowly ease it out, and it's not an operation I've ever had to do before or am I ever likely to do it again.
"I have no idea how on earth they managed to be forced in there, but it must have been difficult given that the natural urge of the human throat is to gag if something foreign is placed inside it." But he added that the young man who recovered quickly once the object removed had simply dressed himself after the operation, politely thanked the doctors, and then left. Doctor Kalinin added: "He told one of the nurses it was an accident, and had noticed it while tucking into his lunch. An unlikely story, but one that will have to remain a mystery it seems."
Chinese man jailed for 13 years for eating three tigers and making alcohol from their blood
A Chinese businessman who bought and ate three tigers has been sentenced to 13 years in prison.
During the trial the wealthy real estate developer, identified only by his surname Xu, had "a special hobby of grilling tiger bones, boning tiger paws, storing tiger penis, eating tiger meat and drinking tiger blood alcohol".
Xu organised three separate trips last year for a total of 15 people, including himself, to Leizhou in the southern province of Guangdong, where they bought tigers for a "huge amount of money" that were killed and dismembered as they watched.
One of the party filmed the entire process of a tiger slaughter on his mobile phone. That footage was later obtained by police. Police also seized eight pieces of animal meat and bones from a refrigerator in Xu's home, some of which were later identified as tiger parts, adding that 16 geckos and a cobra were also found. Earlier this year a court in Guangxi convicted the group of 15 of "illegally transporting precious and endangered wild animal products", but the conviction was not reported at the time.
Xu was sentenced to 13 years in prison and fined 1.55 million yuan (£160,000, $250,000). The others were jailed for terms ranging five and six-and-a-half years and given smaller fines. The group appealed and a higher court upheld the ruling on Monday. Tiger bones have long been an ingredient of traditional Chinese medicine, supposedly for a capacity to strengthen the human body, and while they have been removed from its official ingredient list, the belief persists among some.
It is a long-held belief across parts of Asia that penises of animals such as tigers and seals can boost men's sexual performance. However, there is no orthodox scientific evidence for such claims. Decades of trafficking and habitat destruction have slashed the tiger population from 100,000 a century ago to approximately 3,000, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's Red List of threatened species, where the tiger is classed as endangered.
One of the party filmed the entire process of a tiger slaughter on his mobile phone. That footage was later obtained by police. Police also seized eight pieces of animal meat and bones from a refrigerator in Xu's home, some of which were later identified as tiger parts, adding that 16 geckos and a cobra were also found. Earlier this year a court in Guangxi convicted the group of 15 of "illegally transporting precious and endangered wild animal products", but the conviction was not reported at the time.
Xu was sentenced to 13 years in prison and fined 1.55 million yuan (£160,000, $250,000). The others were jailed for terms ranging five and six-and-a-half years and given smaller fines. The group appealed and a higher court upheld the ruling on Monday. Tiger bones have long been an ingredient of traditional Chinese medicine, supposedly for a capacity to strengthen the human body, and while they have been removed from its official ingredient list, the belief persists among some.
It is a long-held belief across parts of Asia that penises of animals such as tigers and seals can boost men's sexual performance. However, there is no orthodox scientific evidence for such claims. Decades of trafficking and habitat destruction have slashed the tiger population from 100,000 a century ago to approximately 3,000, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's Red List of threatened species, where the tiger is classed as endangered.
Man escaped fine for his bear not sh*tting in the woods as law only applies to dogs
A Russian man who was fined when his bear pooed outside a newsagents and he left the mess on the floor escaped having to pay when he pointed out that the law only applied to dogs.
Robert Biryukov was walking his bear cub down Lomonosov Avenue in the capital Moscow when the bear stopped to relieve itself.
He said: "It had been snowing so I suppose it was a bit more obvious than usual, and I didnt have a bag with me when suddenly shop owner came out and started shouting. Then two policemen who were walking nearby came over and got involved, and told me I had to clean it up. When I pointed out I didn't have a bag, they tried to fine me."
But when the 27-year-old pointed out that law only applied to dogs, police officers let him off with a warning. He agreed to come back later and clean up the mess with a shovel. He said: "I have trained my bear to do all sorts of tricks as he is really smart, but I can't seem to train him not to do his business in inappropriate places."
He added that with the heavy snowfalls recently the bear would normally be asleep, but because it was staying in a warm room, it was sluggish and slow but still refusing to go into a winter sleep. He said: "He is completely safe and well trained apart from one small issue of where exactly he is allowed to relieve himself. I voluntarily keep him on a lead and make him wear a muzzle, but to be honest it is not really necessary but it makes people less nervous. But although he is pretty tall when he stands up he is still really only a baby."
He said: "It had been snowing so I suppose it was a bit more obvious than usual, and I didnt have a bag with me when suddenly shop owner came out and started shouting. Then two policemen who were walking nearby came over and got involved, and told me I had to clean it up. When I pointed out I didn't have a bag, they tried to fine me."
But when the 27-year-old pointed out that law only applied to dogs, police officers let him off with a warning. He agreed to come back later and clean up the mess with a shovel. He said: "I have trained my bear to do all sorts of tricks as he is really smart, but I can't seem to train him not to do his business in inappropriate places."
He added that with the heavy snowfalls recently the bear would normally be asleep, but because it was staying in a warm room, it was sluggish and slow but still refusing to go into a winter sleep. He said: "He is completely safe and well trained apart from one small issue of where exactly he is allowed to relieve himself. I voluntarily keep him on a lead and make him wear a muzzle, but to be honest it is not really necessary but it makes people less nervous. But although he is pretty tall when he stands up he is still really only a baby."
Beach nudists chased after naked Peeping Tom and made citizens arrest over hidden esky-cam
Up to 10 nudists chased down a naked man on South Australia's Maslin Beach after he was spotted with a camera hidden inside his esky.
It was claimed the man, thought to be in his 40s or 50s and wearing only an Akubra hat, was seen positioning his esky to face other unclad people on the nudist section of the iconic beach.
A woman reportedly walked past and saw a wooden contraption inside his esky with a video camera set up to film though holes.
He was confronted by nudists, only to walk further down the beach and position his esky to face another naked couple. A group of nudists then chased the man down the beach and made a citizens arrest until police arrived. Police have said there is insufficient evidence for a charge of indecent filming. They examined the camera and found no vision had been recorded, but cautioned the man and asked him to leave the beach.
The southern section of Maslin Beach was declared Australia's first official nudist beach in 1975. Pilwarren Maslin Beach Nude Games organiser Debbie Pillar said she was not surprised that a group of nudists had chased down the man. "All nudists are generally friendly people and they look out for each other," she said "If they happen to see someone down there doing the wrong thing, they will basically go up to them and ask them kindly not to film or photograph without their permission.
"If they continue doing what they're doing, then you're next resort is to contact police and get them to deal with the situation." She said there was a misconception about nudism among some people. "It's not us that are going around filming people," she said. "It's the perverts, the undesirables, who are going out there making it uncomfortable for the people who genuinely want to enjoy the lifestyle." Police said penalties for indecent filming could include a $10,000 fine or two years imprisonment. Penalties are much higher for incidents involving children, including up to 12 years jail for aggravated offences.
He was confronted by nudists, only to walk further down the beach and position his esky to face another naked couple. A group of nudists then chased the man down the beach and made a citizens arrest until police arrived. Police have said there is insufficient evidence for a charge of indecent filming. They examined the camera and found no vision had been recorded, but cautioned the man and asked him to leave the beach.
The southern section of Maslin Beach was declared Australia's first official nudist beach in 1975. Pilwarren Maslin Beach Nude Games organiser Debbie Pillar said she was not surprised that a group of nudists had chased down the man. "All nudists are generally friendly people and they look out for each other," she said "If they happen to see someone down there doing the wrong thing, they will basically go up to them and ask them kindly not to film or photograph without their permission.
"If they continue doing what they're doing, then you're next resort is to contact police and get them to deal with the situation." She said there was a misconception about nudism among some people. "It's not us that are going around filming people," she said. "It's the perverts, the undesirables, who are going out there making it uncomfortable for the people who genuinely want to enjoy the lifestyle." Police said penalties for indecent filming could include a $10,000 fine or two years imprisonment. Penalties are much higher for incidents involving children, including up to 12 years jail for aggravated offences.
Woman furious after her cat was bricked up inside cavity wall by council workmen
A cat was bricked inside a wall for 14 hours in a mistake by council workmen.
Four-month-old brown tabby Molly crawled inside a hole at her family's home in Rhymney, south Wales, as the builder carried out repairs.
When they left, Molly was nowhere to be seen, although her owner could hear her crying all night. Owner Ceri Thomas finally realised her cat's howls of distress came from inside the cavity wall which had been bricked up. She called 999 and firemen supervised the builders when they returned the next day to free the cat from the cavity by taking the wall apart.
Mrs Thomas, who has nine cats, said: "I'm furious with the council and the builders - this situation could have easily happened to a child. Molly was very frightened and dehydrated when she came out." The building work is part of a £4 million project where internal and external improvements are being made to buildings and homes in the area.
A spokeswoman for Caerphilly council said: "Our workmen were there on that day. There is a lot of building activity there now and the cat entered a cavity and was then stuck. They had to take great care to release the cat. It was unharmed and not distressed but they managed to get it out safe and sound."
When they left, Molly was nowhere to be seen, although her owner could hear her crying all night. Owner Ceri Thomas finally realised her cat's howls of distress came from inside the cavity wall which had been bricked up. She called 999 and firemen supervised the builders when they returned the next day to free the cat from the cavity by taking the wall apart.
Mrs Thomas, who has nine cats, said: "I'm furious with the council and the builders - this situation could have easily happened to a child. Molly was very frightened and dehydrated when she came out." The building work is part of a £4 million project where internal and external improvements are being made to buildings and homes in the area.
A spokeswoman for Caerphilly council said: "Our workmen were there on that day. There is a lot of building activity there now and the cat entered a cavity and was then stuck. They had to take great care to release the cat. It was unharmed and not distressed but they managed to get it out safe and sound."
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