Monday, June 01, 2015
Motorist cited for driving with car full of bees
A motorist was pulled over on Interstate 90 near Missoula, Montana, recently with thousands of bees in his car.
The Montana Highway Patrol received a call on May 22 from another motorist who stated the inside of the car had bees all over the windows and flying throughout.
The vehicle was driving all over the road. When troopers stopped the car, the driver told them that they were “Russian Honey Bees” and harmless. There were five hives and thousands of bees inside the car.
The state Apiarist was contacted and troopers learned that although a very unsafe way to transport bees, the driver needed no permits to transport the bees through the state. The driver was issued with a citation for careless driving.
The Montana Highway Patrol received a call on May 22 from another motorist who stated the inside of the car had bees all over the windows and flying throughout.
The vehicle was driving all over the road. When troopers stopped the car, the driver told them that they were “Russian Honey Bees” and harmless. There were five hives and thousands of bees inside the car.
The state Apiarist was contacted and troopers learned that although a very unsafe way to transport bees, the driver needed no permits to transport the bees through the state. The driver was issued with a citation for careless driving.
Swimming pools ban long breath-holding after deaths
New York City is putting up warning signs at all public swimming pools prohibiting prolonged breath holding due to a little known hazard called shallow-water blackout or hypoxic blackout.
It is part of a movement to raise awareness of the peril that has killed accomplished swimmers and to stop it by banning lengthy breath holding in America's estimated 300,000 public pools.
Shallow-water blackout occurs when a person tries to swim underwater for an extraordinarily long time, typically to build endurance.
Swimmers often start by taking multiple deep breaths to go a longer distance underwater, causing their blood levels of carbon dioxide to plunge. Once underwater, carbon dioxide levels fail to rise quickly enough to signal the brain to breathe, oxygen levels fall rapidly, and the swimmer faints underwater and drowns. "Because the swimmer has a low oxygen level at the time of the fainting, brain damage occurs within a couple of minutes, and death is very likely," a doctor warned in a recent public service announcement.
New York City and Santa Barbara, California are among the first US cities to outlaw long breath holding in public pools. The push to ban breath holding is largely driven by families who have lost loved ones and were stunned to learn about the deadly phenomenon still unknown to many lifeguards, swim coaches and even coroners. There are no nationwide statistics on fatalities from shallow-water blackout.
But in New York state alone, four people aged 17 to 22 and "known to be advanced to expert swimmers" died in breath holding incidents from 1988 to 2011, according to a New York City health department study. Critics say the bans won't work because it is virtually impossible for lifeguards in busy public pools to detect such subtle but potentially fatal behaviour. But Santa Barbara lifeguards twice in the past year have stopped the behaviour, said Rich Hanna, manager of Santa Barbara's Parks and Recreation Department.
Swimmers often start by taking multiple deep breaths to go a longer distance underwater, causing their blood levels of carbon dioxide to plunge. Once underwater, carbon dioxide levels fail to rise quickly enough to signal the brain to breathe, oxygen levels fall rapidly, and the swimmer faints underwater and drowns. "Because the swimmer has a low oxygen level at the time of the fainting, brain damage occurs within a couple of minutes, and death is very likely," a doctor warned in a recent public service announcement.
New York City and Santa Barbara, California are among the first US cities to outlaw long breath holding in public pools. The push to ban breath holding is largely driven by families who have lost loved ones and were stunned to learn about the deadly phenomenon still unknown to many lifeguards, swim coaches and even coroners. There are no nationwide statistics on fatalities from shallow-water blackout.
But in New York state alone, four people aged 17 to 22 and "known to be advanced to expert swimmers" died in breath holding incidents from 1988 to 2011, according to a New York City health department study. Critics say the bans won't work because it is virtually impossible for lifeguards in busy public pools to detect such subtle but potentially fatal behaviour. But Santa Barbara lifeguards twice in the past year have stopped the behaviour, said Rich Hanna, manager of Santa Barbara's Parks and Recreation Department.
Deer relaxing in pool rescued and returned to its more natural habitat
An adult deer was recently spotted in a swimming pool at a villa on the outskirts of Pistoia in Tuscany, Italy.
Animal experts and firefighters were alerted in order to achieve a successful rescue in a delicate operation.
YouTube link.
After first being shot with a tranquiliser dart, in order to prevent the animal hurting itself or its rescuers, the deer was lifted out of the pool.
After about half an hour, the deer was awakened and set free in nearby woods.
Animal experts and firefighters were alerted in order to achieve a successful rescue in a delicate operation.
YouTube link.
After first being shot with a tranquiliser dart, in order to prevent the animal hurting itself or its rescuers, the deer was lifted out of the pool.
After about half an hour, the deer was awakened and set free in nearby woods.
Woman says police didn't take her claims of being sexually assaulted by apes seriously
A British tourist claims to have been sexually assaulted by apes while visiting Gibraltar.
Melissa Hart, 23, travelled to the Rock on a day trip from Marbella in Spain, excited to see the famous Barbary Macaques.
But when two began to pull at her clothes and hair on top of the Rock, she began to panic while other tourists close to her laughed. “I felt totally helpless as these two monkeys grabbed and pawed me in my most intimate areas,” she revealed. “Then, with a yank, one of them pulled my bikini top straight off.”
Hart, a baker from Macclesfield, continued: “I was being sexually assaulted and these people all thought it was a great joke.” Her screams quickly attracted the attention of a warden, who ran in and freed her. However, she was so angry she insisted in filing a police report, which also failed to go to plan.
When she revealed to the policemen on duty she had been attacked by the monkeys, they were unable to take her claim seriously. While a policeman told her he was ‘sorry’ for her ordeal, he added that apes are ‘wild animals’ and cannot legally commit a crime. “And if they could, do you think you could pick out your attacker in a line-up?” added the officer, evidently struggling not to laugh.
But when two began to pull at her clothes and hair on top of the Rock, she began to panic while other tourists close to her laughed. “I felt totally helpless as these two monkeys grabbed and pawed me in my most intimate areas,” she revealed. “Then, with a yank, one of them pulled my bikini top straight off.”
Hart, a baker from Macclesfield, continued: “I was being sexually assaulted and these people all thought it was a great joke.” Her screams quickly attracted the attention of a warden, who ran in and freed her. However, she was so angry she insisted in filing a police report, which also failed to go to plan.
When she revealed to the policemen on duty she had been attacked by the monkeys, they were unable to take her claim seriously. While a policeman told her he was ‘sorry’ for her ordeal, he added that apes are ‘wild animals’ and cannot legally commit a crime. “And if they could, do you think you could pick out your attacker in a line-up?” added the officer, evidently struggling not to laugh.
Cat gave birth to kittens in bird's nest
Four kittens who were born in a bird’s nest have been found by a man in Co Louth, Ireland.
The nest, made of twigs and leaves, is precariously balanced among ivy branches some 8ft above the ground.
The discovery was made by animal lover Henry McGauley, who with his wife Fiona, runs Ardee Pet Supplies.
Fiona says Henry, who has lots of bird feeders in their back garden, heard “squawking and went to have a look and instead of finding little birds, he found four kittens”. Three are ginger and white and one is a tabby. Their mum is a white stray cat Fiona has fed and wormed and who is now calling more regularly as she is feeding her own brood.
“The nest is some distance off the ground and one of the kittens fell out of it a short time ago. I was able to get it easily and put it back but we will have to put them somewhere safer,” said Fiona. “I am sure they are only a few days old because the mother cat was definitely still pregnant last week. “I couldn’t believe it when Henry rang me to say ‘guess what I found in the trees’. It was a bit of a shock but a nice one,” she said.
The couple think the nest may have belonged to a pair of wood pigeons who left it a few days ago and now it has furry, not feathered, squatters. Fiona said she will be moving the happy family onto terra firma as the kittens do not have the required wings to ensure a safe landing if they fall. Henry chuckled as he said: “I always thought the cat was a bit bird-brained but I never expected her to move into a nest.”
Fiona says Henry, who has lots of bird feeders in their back garden, heard “squawking and went to have a look and instead of finding little birds, he found four kittens”. Three are ginger and white and one is a tabby. Their mum is a white stray cat Fiona has fed and wormed and who is now calling more regularly as she is feeding her own brood.
“The nest is some distance off the ground and one of the kittens fell out of it a short time ago. I was able to get it easily and put it back but we will have to put them somewhere safer,” said Fiona. “I am sure they are only a few days old because the mother cat was definitely still pregnant last week. “I couldn’t believe it when Henry rang me to say ‘guess what I found in the trees’. It was a bit of a shock but a nice one,” she said.
The couple think the nest may have belonged to a pair of wood pigeons who left it a few days ago and now it has furry, not feathered, squatters. Fiona said she will be moving the happy family onto terra firma as the kittens do not have the required wings to ensure a safe landing if they fall. Henry chuckled as he said: “I always thought the cat was a bit bird-brained but I never expected her to move into a nest.”
Traffic disrupted by human traffic cones
A collection of human traffic cones temporarily caused a stir amongst motorists in Newquay, Cornwall, at around around 5pm on Friday.
The group, said to be on a stag-do, briefly brought traffic to a halt. Although their actions were generally well received, one cone either appeared to be hit by a car or had jumped on its bonnet.
Leanne King said: "To be fair they were hilarious and quite polite to me when I tried to drive off." However, the antics of the group didn't go down as well with other members of the public.
Mike Lyon said: "They prevented a lorry from passing through by acting out their cone costumes." Chris Woodfinden added: "I saw these guys blocking the road including lying in the middle of it while the other 15 or so swayed across. I don't think the guys sat in congested traffic thought it was much fun."
The group, said to be on a stag-do, briefly brought traffic to a halt. Although their actions were generally well received, one cone either appeared to be hit by a car or had jumped on its bonnet.
Leanne King said: "To be fair they were hilarious and quite polite to me when I tried to drive off." However, the antics of the group didn't go down as well with other members of the public.
Mike Lyon said: "They prevented a lorry from passing through by acting out their cone costumes." Chris Woodfinden added: "I saw these guys blocking the road including lying in the middle of it while the other 15 or so swayed across. I don't think the guys sat in congested traffic thought it was much fun."
Student spent 375 hours knitting 4,000ft-long art work with her arms
A student knitted almost 4,000 ft (1.2km) of waste material using her arms as needles for for her final year degree show at Nottingham Trent University's School of Art & Design.
Sandra Charles spent 375 hours, the equivalent of more than two weeks day and night, knitting 350 strands out of thousands of recycled label transfers Ms Charles, 22, from Yeovil in Somerset, got the idea while at a recycling centre.
BA (Hons) Fine Art student Ms Charles said: "I wanted to develop my sculpture work and my knitting. I looked at different techniques and saw arm knitting. It's very difficult to describe but basically uses your arms as needles. It took three hours to make each strand at first.
"I got repetitive strain injury at one point and couldn't do any more for a couple of days." Her piece, named Material Disposition, is now on public display alongside a host of other student design works during the 2015 NTU Degree Show at the university's City site, which runs from 29 May to 6 June.
Sandra Charles spent 375 hours, the equivalent of more than two weeks day and night, knitting 350 strands out of thousands of recycled label transfers Ms Charles, 22, from Yeovil in Somerset, got the idea while at a recycling centre.
BA (Hons) Fine Art student Ms Charles said: "I wanted to develop my sculpture work and my knitting. I looked at different techniques and saw arm knitting. It's very difficult to describe but basically uses your arms as needles. It took three hours to make each strand at first.
"I got repetitive strain injury at one point and couldn't do any more for a couple of days." Her piece, named Material Disposition, is now on public display alongside a host of other student design works during the 2015 NTU Degree Show at the university's City site, which runs from 29 May to 6 June.
Ducklings rescued from sewer using a recording of their quacking mother
Two ducklings who became stuck in a sewer were rescued when quick-thinking workers coaxed them back into daylight by using an iPad recording of their mother's quack.
Mark Hyde said he raised the alarm after a duck came to the door of their holiday home last week in Dorset quacking for help.
He said: “My wife and I were staying in Burton Bradstock for a week’s holiday and we were made aware of the impending tragedy by the mother duck quacking loudly at our cottage door.
“We went out to investigate and saw the mother with eight ducklings which were only a few days old. The mother wouldn’t leave the area. We heard a squeaking noise coming from a nearby drain cover and it became apparent a duckling was trapped in the storm drain.” Mr Hyde said they couldn’t move the drain cover so he contacted Wessex Water, hoping someone could use a key to remove it. Within an hour, Wessex Water sewerage technicians Brendan Sutcliffe and Keith Carter were on the scene.
When they looked inside the manhole, they found the two ducklings had already crept away from the manhole and down the drain. But they cleverly lured the pair back towards the exit using their high-tech equipment to record the mother's quacking, lowering the tablet into the drain so the youngsters could hear it properly. As they ventured near, they were then caught using a plastic kitchen colander and a badminton racket.
Mr Hyde said: “The mother duck and the other ducklings were relaxing in the rear garden when this was happening, but when the two siblings were reunited with them the excitement was incredible and was actually very touching. The ducklings were scooped into a cardboard box and taken down to the nearby stream with the mother in tow, before they all swam away,” he said. “It was a very happy ending and a great story of a community coming together to reunite a lovely little family.”
“We went out to investigate and saw the mother with eight ducklings which were only a few days old. The mother wouldn’t leave the area. We heard a squeaking noise coming from a nearby drain cover and it became apparent a duckling was trapped in the storm drain.” Mr Hyde said they couldn’t move the drain cover so he contacted Wessex Water, hoping someone could use a key to remove it. Within an hour, Wessex Water sewerage technicians Brendan Sutcliffe and Keith Carter were on the scene.
When they looked inside the manhole, they found the two ducklings had already crept away from the manhole and down the drain. But they cleverly lured the pair back towards the exit using their high-tech equipment to record the mother's quacking, lowering the tablet into the drain so the youngsters could hear it properly. As they ventured near, they were then caught using a plastic kitchen colander and a badminton racket.
Mr Hyde said: “The mother duck and the other ducklings were relaxing in the rear garden when this was happening, but when the two siblings were reunited with them the excitement was incredible and was actually very touching. The ducklings were scooped into a cardboard box and taken down to the nearby stream with the mother in tow, before they all swam away,” he said. “It was a very happy ending and a great story of a community coming together to reunite a lovely little family.”
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)