Weird News: Fish Flambe
Fish Flambe
Fire investigators in British Columbia, Canada, discovered an unlikely culprit in a brush fire that knocked out power in the town of Ashcroft on July 30: a hungry osprey. Ashcroft Fire Rescue posted on social media that the peckish avian pulled a large fish from a river about two miles away, but as it labored to fly with its super-sized meal in the July heat, it became tired and eventually dropped the fish ... directly onto a power line, which sparked the blaze in the dry grass below. NBC Bay Area reported that it took about 4,800 gallons of water to stop the fire -- quite a lot of trouble over a bird whose eyes were bigger than its stomach. “Another suspicion could be that it’s tired of raw fish and wanted to give cooked a try,” the post from Ashcroft Fire Rescue said.
Easy There, Leadfoot
A driver on Germany’s famed Autobahn was issued a $1,000 fine and had his license suspended for three months, CNN reported, after he exceeded the speed limit by 124 mph on July 28. Speed limit? On the Autobahn? Yes, while the motorway is known worldwide as a de facto raceway where drivers can go as fast as they please, it has stretches where speed limits are posted and enforced. German police said the motorist was clocked at over 199 mph on the A2 highway near Burg, a portion of the Autobahn where the limit is 74.5 mph.
Sports Whiplash
On July 31, as the Tampa Bay Rays battled the New York Yankees in the Bronx, one player ended up “winning today regardless,” the Associated Press reported. Jose Caballero, 28, started the game with the Rays and played through the sixth inning. But during the seventh-inning stretch, he was traded to the Yankees. The deal was announced after the rain-delayed game, which the Yankees won. Caballero reportedly hugged his Tampa teammates in the dugout, then turned up in the Yankees clubhouse to conduct his post-game interview.
Results of Squatting
In the Hautes-Vosges region of France, farmers have become discouraged with the lack of help from the law regarding squatters who appear in camping vans and park illegally on private property. So, The Economic Times reported on Aug. 4, the farmers unleashed the power of the poo on the interlopers. Six tractors circled around the campers and released slurry -- a mixture of manure and water -- that’s used to fertilize the soil. “We’ve had enough,” one farmer said. “If no one listens, we make ourselves heard another way.”
A Jarring Situation
For more than a week, residents of northwest Wisconsin had been riveted by sightings of a hapless yet elusive bear with a jar stuck on her head. “The bear had been identified plenty of times ... but by the time anyone got there that could help, she was gone,” said Erik Donley of Duluth. Donley and his nieces were arriving at their family cabin when the bear came out of the woods near them. Understandably scared, the youngest niece locked the cabin doors -- briefly leaving her poor uncle outside. The family called wildlife authorities, then Donley went back outside to follow the bear from a safe distance and prevent her from disappearing again. The USDA soon arrived, tranquilized the bear and finally -- finally -- removed that stubborn jar. Authorities said the creature was underweight for this time of year, but has been safely relocated and is expected to recover.