Yahoo! News - Meteorite smashes into house: "Sun Jun 13, 1:19 AM ET
WELLINGTON (Reuters) - A grapefruit-sized meteorite has smashed through the roof of a New Zealand house, hitting a couch and bouncing off the ceiling before coming to rest under a computer.
The 1.3 kg (2.9 lb) chunk of space debris dropped out of the sky and plummeted through the tiled roof of the Auckland home on Saturday.
'I was in the kitchen doing breakfast and there was this almighty explosion,' owner Brenda Archer told the Sunday Star-Times newspaper.
'It was like a bomb had gone off. I couldn't see anything, there was just dust.'
Archer's one-year-old grandson had been playing nearby minutes before it hit.
It is only the ninth meteorite found in New Zealand and the first to hit a home.
The Archers, who are following expert advice by drying the rock out in their oven, plan to sell it or give it to a museum.
Experts believe the meteorite, a chunk of an asteroid, could be worth more than NZ$10,000 (3,500 pounds), the newspaper said. "
22:05 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Parents charged for chaining teenage son: "Mon Jun 14,12:31 PM ET
BERLIN (Reuters) - A couple who fixed a heavy chain to their 14-year-old son's ankle as an 'educational measure' have been charged with criminal assault and maltreatment of children, German police say.
Passers-by alerted police after seeing the parents beating the boy on the balcony of their apartment in the west German town of Arnsberg, local police said on Monday.
When the police arrived they found the boy in tears with a heavy, one-metre-long (yard) metal chain on his ankle. The Lebanese couple denied beating their son, but admitted chaining him.
'The parents saw the chain on their son's foot as a necessary educational measure and could only be convinced to take the chain off after being asked to do so repeatedly,' police said. "
22:04 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Utah Thief Arrested After ApologizingTue Jun 15, 8:51 PM ET
PEACHTREE CITY, Ga. - A blind man drove a golf cart for two miles through the winding streets of Peachtree City, accompanied by his guide dog — and an inebriated friend giving instructions — before running into a parked car, police said.
Nobody was hurt, but Samuel McClain, 35, of Stockbridge and Michael Johnston, 47, of Peachtree City were charged with reckless conduct "due to the blatant disregard for public safety," a police report said.
The report said McClain was driving the cart Saturday while Johnston gave directions after having six or seven beers and "admittedly under the influence of alcoholic beverage." Also on the cart was McClain's golden retriever guide dog.
The city of 34,000 about 25 miles south of Atlanta has about 80 miles of paved cart paths and 9,000 registered carts that residents use for daily tasks like going to the grocery or taking children to school.
21:58 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Docs Remove Metal Rods From Man's Stomach: "Tue Jun 15, 1:22 PM ET
HANOI, Vietnam - Vietnamese doctors removed three metal construction rods from a man's stomach about a month after he swallowed them in a rice whiskey drinking challenge, an official said Monday.
Huynh Ngoc Son, 22, swallowed the rods, which were 6.7 inches long and 0.2 inches thick, after being dared by his drinking buddies in mid-May, said Dr. Le Quang Nghia of Binh Dan Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City.
Son went to the hospital last week complaining of serious stomach pains, and X-rays revealed the construction bars were lodged in his stomach, Nghia said.
The rods were removed during a 30-minute operation, and Son's stomach was not seriously damaged by the ordeal, Nghia said.
Son was in stable condition Monday and was expected to be discharged from the hospital this week, he said. "
21:56 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Police Say Bank Robbery Only Yields $50: "Tue Jun 15, 8:42 PM ET
NORRISTOWN, Pa. - The robbery of a Plymouth Township bank yielded only a single $50 bill, a Montgomery County detective said Monday.
Detective Jeff McGee said a man entered a Madison Bank branch on Friday and handed a note to a teller that read, 'Give me all your hundreds and fifties FAST.' That man left the bank with one $50 bill and got into a car driven by a woman.
A witness took note of the license plate number, leading to the arrest of two people in Philadelphia: Andre Lamar Henderson, 30, and Lisa Terry Hanna, 41.
'Philadelphia police detained both suspects,' McGee said. 'I watched the videotape from the bank's surveillance system and positively identified Henderson as the robber.'
Henderson had $336 in his possession when arrested, including the $50 bill stolen from the bank on Friday, authorities said. McGee said Henderson is also a suspect in bank robberies in Harrisburg, York and Manheim Township, Lancaster County.
Henderson and Hanna were both in custody Monday night; it was not immediately clear if they were represented by lawyers.
___
Information from: The Times Herald, http://www.timesherald.com/ "
21:53 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Police think blow-dry excuse is hot air: "WELLINGTON (Reuters) - A New Zealand man caught driving at more than twice the legal speed limit claimed he needed to step on the gas in order to blow dry his car.
Roger Daniel, 37, made the novel excuse after he was nabbed travelling at more than 120 kph (75 mph) in a 50 kph (30 mph) zone in the northern town of Whangarei, the Dominion Post newspaper reported on Wednesday.
'I have a bad back and just thought I would do that to dry the car instead of having to chamois it dry,' he told police.
The explanation failed to impress and Daniel was fined NZ$300 (104 pounds) and had his licence suspended for six months. "
21:52 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Blind Man Drives Golf Cart in Ga. CityTue Jun 15, 8:51 PM ET
PEACHTREE CITY, Ga. - A blind man drove a golf cart for two miles through the winding streets of Peachtree City, accompanied by his guide dog — and an inebriated friend giving instructions — before running into a parked car, police said.
Nobody was hurt, but Samuel McClain, 35, of Stockbridge and Michael Johnston, 47, of Peachtree City were charged with reckless conduct "due to the blatant disregard for public safety," a police report said.
The report said McClain was driving the cart Saturday while Johnston gave directions after having six or seven beers and "admittedly under the influence of alcoholic beverage." Also on the cart was McClain's golden retriever guide dog.
The city of 34,000 about 25 miles south of Atlanta has about 80 miles of paved cart paths and 9,000 registered carts that residents use for daily tasks like going to the grocery or taking children to school.
21:49 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - South African Man Kills Designer for Criticizing Home: "Tue Jun 15, 7:20 AM ET
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - A South African man told a court how he hacked to death his interior designer because she criticized his decor, local newspapers reported on Tuesday.
Jose da Silva, 37, pleaded guilty to murdering 47-year-old Beatrice Harrowyn in 2001 after inviting her to his new house in a classy suburb north of Johannesburg.
'We went through the house and I told her what I wanted. She did not make any nice comments about my place so I went to my garage and fetched an axe,' the Star newspaper reported him as saying.
'I killed her because she reminded me of an old school teacher whom I hated very much.'
Da Silva told the Pretoria High Court that voices in his head had instructed him to become a serial killer, the Star said.
He said he wanted to be caught before killing any more people and could not understand why it took police six weeks to catch him after he left clues for them to follow 'like Hansel and Gretel.'
'It should have taken police two days. It was their job to arrest me. I pay taxes and their salary,' the newspaper reported him as saying.
Da Silva is due to be sentenced on Tuesday, newspapers said. "
22:34 Posted by David
Naked man arrested bathing in car wash
: "June 2, 2004, 05:37:00 PM PDT
WOODSTOCK, Ontario (AP) - A 39-year-old man was arrested after stripping off his clothes and entering a car wash for an impromptu shower.
Police say a cab stopped to fill up at a gas station about 10 p.m. Tuesday when the passenger from Thamesford, Ontario, got out and decided to have a wash before going home, the Woodstock Sentinel-Review reported. The man's name wasn't released.
Police found the man naked and intoxicated.
He has been charged with being intoxicated in a public place."
12:37 Posted by David
NBCSandiego.com - News - Peeping Up Skirts May Be Dangerous To Your Health: "POSTED: 12:28 pm EDT June 1, 2004
HAMILTON, Ontario -- Peeping can be dangerous to your health -- and your teeth, too.
A Canadian man got his front teeth knocked out, after he was allegedly caught peeking up a woman's skirt. Police in Hamilton, Ontario, say a 22-year-old woman was shopping when she noticed a man standing next to her. The guy had a mirror on a key chain and was angling it to look up her skirt.
According to police, the woman ran to get her boyfriend -- who punched the alleged peeper in the face, knocking out his two front teeth.
Police have charged Alan Kennedy with mischief. But no charges were filed against the boyfriend.
Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. "
08:15 Posted by David
There might be some new pictures of me breaking things at my job, and some pictures of what happens when you unload a cargo plane incorrectly!! Click the Pictures link on the side.
21:44 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - 'Killer' swans on the loose in central England: "Tue May 25, 4:50 PM ET
LONDON (AFP) - Dog owners in a town in central England were urged to beware of killer swans after two of their canine friends were drowned by enraged birds.
Mansfield district council reported that a male swan had fatally attacked a dog that had dived into a pond at a local park, with an animal rights activist describing the behavior as 'highly unusual.'
The council said the swan, a bird known by animal experts to be fiercely protective of their territory and family, had merely sought to protect its offspring.
It was the second such deadly incident in as many weeks.
Earlier this week, a third dog was also badly injured by a swan at another Mansfield park.
'These are quite frightening incidents and we are keen to warn dog owners that it is important in any public space to keep your dog under control,' said a council spokesman.
'We do sympathize with the dog owners in the first two cases but we also need to protect the wildlife in our parks,' he added. "
21:40 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Women Who Dressed As Easter Bunny Charged: "Tue Jun 1, 5:15 PM ET
NASHUA, N.H. - Three women who took turns dressing as the Easter Bunny to pose for photos with kids at a mall have been charged with stealing money from the portrait company.
Police say the women, who were arrested over the Memorial Day weekend, stole more than $3,500 in payments in late March at the Pheasant Lane Mall. They worked for a company called the Noerr Programs.
Police Sgt. Andrew Lavoie said at one point, the women unplugged their credit card machine so customers would have to pay in cash.
Arrested were Kari Zeger, 20, and Dyanna Seavey and Julie Carder, both 19. They are from Nashua.
The company called police when an audit revealed the missing money."
21:40 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Ind. Man Survives 69,000-Volt Shock: "Wed Jun 2,12:04 PM ET
CLARKSVILLE, Ind. - A 22-year-old man who climbed an electrical tower survived a 69,000-volt shock that a utility official said was nearly always fatal.
Jason Grisham was in fair condition Wednesday in a hospital burn unit.
Police and a Cinergy/PSI employee found Grisham asking for help as he emerged Sunday from behind a building at a substation where the tower was scaled. Grisham 'appeared to have extensive burn marks on his chest and his pants appeared to have exploded,' police said.
Grisham, from New Albany, scaled the fence around the tower about 6:30 a.m. and then started to climb the tower itself, rising 12 to 15 feet before he 'received a dose of ... electricity and was knocked to the ground,' said police, who were seeking a toxicology report.
'Contact with that level of voltage is almost always fatal,' Cinergy/PSI spokeswoman Angeline Protogere said. She noted that household voltage is mostly 120 volts.
Protogere said the shock disrupted power to 6,800 customers.
The fence Grisham climbed is 7 feet tall and has three strands of barbed wire on top of it, and there are 'clearly visible signs' saying 'Danger/High Voltage,' Protogere said. "
21:39 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Man Said to Steal His Dad's Police Cruiser: "Wed Jun 2, 2:56 PM ET
AUBURNDALE, Fla. - A police officer's son stole his dad's cruiser in the middle of the night and used it to pull over his ex-girlfriend, authorities said.
Richard Melius, 20, first made more than a dozen harassing phone calls to the former girlfriend, then stole the cruiser's keys while his father, Lakeland Sgt. Mark Melius, was sleeping early Tuesday, officials said.
He later spotted the woman, Tabitha McKenzie, driving in Auburndale, turned on the cruiser's emergency lights and pulled her over, the Polk County sheriff's office said.
McKenzie, who is pregnant with Melius' child, called her family for help. McKenzie's stepfather arrived, and the younger Melius drove home, the report said.
He was arrested there on multiple charges, including stalking, falsely impersonating a law enforcement officer and grand theft auto, according to jail records. He also is charged with burglary, driving with a suspended license and violation of probation.
It could not be determined if he has an attorney. "
21:38 Posted by David
: "Wed Jun 2, 4:36 PM ET
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. - A city man was arrested Tuesday after police said he ordered his dog to bite a U.S. Postal Service carrier, who suffered puncture wounds in his leg.
Armindo Gomes, 67, was charged with second-degree assault, breach of peace and second-degree reckless endangerment. He was held on a $10,000 bond and was to be arraigned Wednesday in Bridgeport Superior Court.
Police said the carrier, whose name was not released, was delivering mail shortly after 2:30 p.m. when he was attacked by Gomes' Rottweiler. The carrier tried to run away, but the dog jumped a fence and grabbed his leg, the Connecticut Post reported.
When the carrier screamed for help, an off-duty city police officer ordered Gomes to call off the dog.
'She heard (Gomes) going, 'Sic him, sic him, sic him,'' said Bridgeport police Sgt. Raymond Masek.
Masek said the off-duty officer, whom police did not identify, then shot the dog once with her service weapon. The dog ran, but was caught nearby. The animal was being treated at a veterinary hospital for a wound to its hindquarter.
The mail carrier was treated at St. Vincent's Medical Center for puncture wounds to his leg.
Masek said it wasn't clear why Gomes allegedly ordered the dog to attack the carrier.
Police are investigating whether the off-duty officer violated any policies. "
21:37 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Naked Man Arrested Bathing in Car Wash: "WOODSTOCK, Ontario - A 39-year-old man was arrested after stripping off his clothes and entering a car wash for an impromptu shower. Police say a cab stopped to fill up at a gas station about 10 p.m. Tuesday when the passenger from Thamesford, Ontario, got out and decided to have a wash before going home, the Woodstock Sentinel-Review reported. The man's name wasn't released.
Police found the man naked and intoxicated.
He has been charged with being intoxicated in a public place. "
21:35 Posted by David
Yahoo! News - Teacher : "Wed Jun 2,11:05 AM ET
LIMA, Peru (Reuters) - A Peruvian school teacher blinded four of her pupils and left 20 suffering from severe eye irritation after she used a traditional hair shampoo to wash away hair lice, parents of the children and medical staff said Tuesday.
The state school teacher used a mixture of alcohol and seeds from the cherimoya fruit on the children, aged between 4 and 5 years old, Monday to rid a local bout of hair lice in the remote coastal town of Paijan, 355 miles north of Lima.
The mixture had run down into the children's eyes and 'has affected four children who cannot see. It has damaged their retinas,' an assistant nurse at a hospital in Paijan, who declined to be named, told Reuters.
The children were taken to a hospital in the provincial capital of Trujillo for treatment, the nurse said.
The four are totally blinded, but doctors have yet to determine whether this is permanent.
One parent, Natividad Mendoza, told RPP radio 20 other children had suffered serious eye irritation from the shampoo.
The anti-lice remedy is used along the impoverished coastal towns of northern Peru. Locals boil the cherimoya seeds, add them to alcohol and rub the mixture into children's hair.
Police said no action had been taken against the teacher. "
