Paramedic bride works crash on way to her reception
When Sarah Ray’s father and grandparents were in a car crash on the way to her wedding reception, the off-duty Tennessee paramedic rushed to the scene in her wedding dress. “My dad called my husband and said there had been an accident,” Sarah Ray said. “All he told him was there had been a wreck, and the car was totaled. We didn’t know anything about injuries.”
Ray found her grandmother in an ambulance with injuries from the air bag and seat belt that were serious enough to send her to the hospital, but not life-threatening. “One of the first things she said to me was sorry she ruined my wedding day,” Ray said. Ray assured her grandmother she had done no such thing.
As she walked back to the car in the drizzling rain, holding her wedding dress off the ground, ambulance and fire truck behind her, Ray’s mother snapped a photograph.
The photo was posted to the Montgomery County Government’s Facebook page with the caption, “How dedicated are you to your jobIJ” The caption briefly explains the circumstances of the photo and concludes, “Thank you, Sarah, for loving what you do!”
(AP)
Overdue books returned to library, 52 years later
Portland State University librarians in Oregon finally got their hands on two overdue books — a half century after they were checked out. The Oregonian reports that someone put two books checked out in 1963 into a book drop, accompanied by an anonymous, handwritten note.
University librarian Joan Petit says the books are so old that staff members don’t know what to do with them. In the time since they were borrowed for a high-school speech class, card catalogs have been digitised and classification methods have changed. But the librarians, who no longer charge late fees, say they are thankful that someone returned Basic Principles of Speech and Preface to Critical Reading. The anonymous note acknowledges that the books are “outdated — yes — but I’ll let you decide their fate now.”
(AP)
Pesky owl at park doesn’t give a hoot about runners
Park officials are warning of an aggressive owl that is believed to have attacked runners on a popular trail in Bethesda, a Maryland suburb. At least three runners on the Capital Crescent Trail have reported being attacked by a large bird, one of them identified as a barred owl. The attacks occurred after nightfall or before dawn in the past two weeks. Officials say the runners suffered only minor scratches.
Montgomery Parks spokeswoman Melissa Chotiner says barred owls are typically active at night and are territorial. She suggests making noise as an owl approaches and tucking in any ponytails. Park staff put signs up on the trail reading, “Caution! An aggressive owl lives here!”
(AP)
Thieves break through walls in Ocean’s 11-style heist
Police say someone broke through the walls of two downtown Philadelphia businesses and escaped with about $250,000 in cash and merchandise from a jewellery store. Time & Gold owner Matena Kamara told Philly.com the burglar or burglars first gained access to the basement of a storefront two doors down before breaking through a wall into the basement of a dry cleaning business next door. From the dry cleaners, the burglars drilled through another wall into Time & Gold.
Kamara says she discovered the damage when she opened the store just after 8 am last Thursday. Police have confirmed the robbery at the location but couldn’t provide details. The owner of a restaurant located in one of the burglarised buildings described the heist as “totally Ocean’s 11-style”.
(Yahoo)
Missing: ‘Slightly sinister’ Ronald McDonald statue
A Massachusetts family has been searching in vain for its “slightly sinister” statue of Ronald McDonald, which was taken from their summer home during a teenage house party. Mary Ryan said the three-foot-high statue of the fast food pitchman was taken in August, when her daughter hosted an unauthorised party at the house in leverett.
Ryan says two boys put the statue in a tree at an athletic club. Someone later took it out of the tree and posted a photo of it on Instagram next to a trash bin. The statue hasn’t been seen since. Ryan and her husband, an artist, bought the statue years ago for $1,200. Ryan says it has a “slightly sinister quality”. They’re offering a $300 reward.
(AP)
Zambia seeks divine help to tackle its economic woes
Zambians took part in a national day of prayer recently seeking divine help for the country’s economic woes following a collapse in global copper prices. Zambia, Africa’s second biggest copper producer, has seen its kwacha currency tumble nearly 50 per cent against the dollar this year, driving up food prices.
Responding to an appeal from President Edgar lungu, churches across the southern African nation conducted prayer services. All Sunday soccer matches were postponed and bars and restaurants were encouraged to close in a bid to encourage more Zambians to join the prayer gatherings. “I believe that since we humbled ourselves and cried out to God, the lord has heard our cry,” lungu said in an address. “I appeal to all of you to do your best and leave the rest to God.”
Its 1996 Constitution designates Zambia officially as a Christian nation. Its economic woes have also caused power shortages. “The shortage of electricity has affected all of us. Companies are scaling down production and laying off workers,” Catholic priest Michael Mawelera said.
Zambia’s economy is expected to grow by less than 5 per cent this year, down from an earlier projection of around 6 per cent, Finance Minister Alexander Chikwanda said.
(Reuters)