List of Missing/Dead Scientists Linked to American Secrets Grows

The ominous web of U.S. scientists and lab employees who have died or gone missing continues to grow as two more cases have been linked to the disturbing trend. 

NASA scientist Frank Maiwald died on July 4, 2024 in Los Angeles at the age of 61, but the cause of death has never been made public and officials confirmed that an autopsy was never performed.  Maiwald had been a prominent researcher at the space agency's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) since 1999 and worked on multiple projects tied to advanced satellite technology that could scan Earth and other planets.

In June 2023, just 13 months before his death, Maiwald was the lead researcher on a breakthrough that could help future space missions detect clear signs of life on other worlds, including Jupiter's moon Europa, Saturn’s moon Enceladus, or the dwarf planet Ceres.  Despite Maiwald being a JPL Principal, an award given to scientists 'making outstanding individual contributions' in their fields, NASA has never commented publicly on the scientist's death, and the only public record marking his passing was an obituary posted online.  The online obituary set up for Maiwald did not mention any health issues before the 61-year-old's death, and NASA JPL would neither confirm nor deny that Maiwald had been employed there for decades despite records of his achievements listed on their website. 

Mutant "Blobs" in Waterways Sparking Fear and Panic

A wave of floating blobs has appeared throughout waterways in the U.S., leaving some swimmers and boaters fearful that these could be giant marine parasites. The gelatinous objects have been called "cursed gummy bears," "mutant brains," and even "sci-fi nightmares," as more and more people came across them in freshwater ponds, lakes, and rivers this summer. 

They've been spotted in places like the Pacific Northwest, including the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge Complex in Washington, but they're common in many other areas, including the Midwest, Northeast, Southeast, and the Great Lakes region.  USFWS  recently shared a close-up picture of a large bryozoan discovered in Lake Huron near Michigan. 

Scientists Discover Spiders with Big Dick Energy

A new genus of tarantula has been announced, whose males are so well-endowed that scientists essentially named them the 'genital king.'  The new genus, Satyrex, is named after Satyrs (male nature spirits from ancient Greek mythology known for their bawdy behavior and prominent packages) and Rex, which is Latin for "king."

Spiders don't really have penises, in the traditional sense. Instead, they use arm-like structures called palps to grab sperm from ducts in their abdomen, which is then inserted into the genital opening of a female. It doesn't sounds very romantic, but it gets the job done.  And given the fact that many females spiders attempt to kill (and eat) their male suitors after sex, it's quite understandable that the males would want to keep their distance.

Males of the newly described species boast the longest "penises" of all known tarantulas. The largest gets up to 2 inches long – almost as long as its legs, and nearly 4 times longer than its torso/carapace. By comparison, most tarantula species sport penises merely twice as long as their carapace. Finnish arachnologist Alireza Zamani explained that the reason the spiders are proudly packing might be a matter of self-preservation.  "We have tentatively suggested that the long palps might allow the male to keep a safer distance during mating and help him avoid being attacked and devoured by the highly aggressive female," says Zamani.

 

German Zoo Kills Baboons Due to Overcrowding and Feeds the Carcasses to the Lions

After shooting dead twelve Guinea baboons to alleviate overcrowding, Nuremberg Zoo faces fresh controversy as visitors were shocked to see the primates’ carcasses being fed to the lions.

Local media reported that the headless, limbless cadavers were served to the big cats in full view of the public. “They were presented like on a butcher’s bench, it was really awful,” one female visitor told the Nürnberger Nachrichten. The zoo’s management said the feeding times were clearly signposted and visitors could have avoided them. The heads had been removed so that the brains could be examined for research purposes.

More than 300 complaints have been lodged against the cull, which the zoo insisted was inevitable, after it had spent years trying and failing to find alternative accommodation for the primates and to control their population through contraception. 

The zoo said that the cull, in which the animals were anesthetized and then shot, was agreed after consulting veterinary and environmental authorities, as well as the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria.  The zoo insisted that the reduction in the size of the group was unavoidable because the 43 baboons had far exceeded the enclosure’s capacity of 25. The overcrowding had led to conflicts between inmates, leaving several injured. 

While other German zoos defended Nuremberg’s course of action, they said they had managed their primate population by sterilizing the animals, or finding alternative accommodation. The German Animal Welfare Association said the killing of supposedly surplus animals has become a common practice in zoos in recent years, but that the killing of primates due to overcrowding was a new development. Anna Ritzinger, an animal rights activist, said: “Primates are very similar to us, which is why it affects so many people.”

 

Death by MRI Machine

A man was killed after being sucked into an MRI machine when he walked into a room where a scan was in progress while wearing a metal chain, authorities say.

According to investigators, officers responding to a 911 call in Westbury, Long Island NY were told that a 61-year-old man had entered an MRI room where a scan was underway.  The man was identified as Keith McAllister, and had accompanied his wife for her knee scan. His wife, Adrienne told officials that she called him in to help her off the table after her scan.  However, he was wearing a 20-pound chain for weight training.  Even though after scans are complete, MRI machines still run power to their large magnets so they are ready for the next scan.  The 20-pound chain was pulled towards the machine, causing him to be drawn into i unexpectedly.

In 2001, a 6-year-old boy was killed during an MRI at a hospital in Valhalla, New York, after a metal oxygen tank flew across the room when the machine’s electromagnet turned on. The magnetized tank struck the child, who died of blunt force trauma injuries. 

 

You Show Me Yours, I'll Show You Mine!

The prime minister of Armenia has vowed to prove his 'member'-ship in the Christian faith by dropping his trousers to the head of the church.  Why?  Well, it seems that Nikol Pashinyan was challenged to "prove" his penis is uncircumcised in a bitter feud played out over social media.

An Armenian priest accused Pashinyan of being snipped, implying he was not Christian in the deeply religious west Asian country.  The curious priest, Father Zareh Ashuryan, said: "I believe that our Apostolic Holy Church must immediately cleanse itself of those false “believers” who are traitors to the nation, have dishonored the memory of their ancestors, broken the vow of baptism, and replaced the seal of the Holy Cross with the sign of circumcision."

This "pissed off" the country’s leader, who shot back with a fiery Facebook post, saying he’d be willing to whip it out in front of the Church’s supreme leader Karekin II.  He addressed Karekin II by his birth name Ktrij Nersisyan, saying he was "ready to accept Ktrij Nersisyan and his spokesperson [father Ashuryan] and prove the opposite" about being circumcised.

Pashinyan also stood firm, shooting back at the church’s leader, asking:  ‘And let him finally answer the question of whether he has broken his vow of celibacy or not. Does he have a child or not?’

The extraordinary war of words comes as tensions rocket between Armenia’s PM and the powerful clergy. In late May, Pashinyan claimed that churches had become ‘storerooms’ and that priests were breaking their celibacy vows, according to OC Media.

The Armenian Church responded, saying Pashinyan’s language was "unbecoming of a statesman."  They added: "Political motives drive this anti-Church and represent an attempt to erode the standing of the Armenian Church and its clergy."  Pashinyan responded by saying law enforcement had prevented a large and sinister plan by the "criminal oligarchic clergy" to "destabilize the Republic."  

 

California Model Killed, Castrated, Cooked and Then Ate Her Husband

A model from California met her future husband, Bill Nelson, and three days later the couple were married.  But according to Omaiama Nelson, a model and a nanny who had moved from Egypt to the US, their marriage was far from a happy one. he claimed her husband showed his violent side almost as soon as they were married and says he would regularly physically and sexually abuse her.

Omaiama Nelson, claiming she had been pushed to a state of traumatic distress because of her husband's actions, carried out the most gruesome murder. She castrated Bill, bludgeoned him to death with a clothes iron, put his hands in a deep fryer and ate his finger saying "I'm glad I lived".

Florida Mom Kills 6-Year-Old Son, Saying God Told Her to Force Demons Out of Him

A sick mom accused of murdering her 6-year-old son said God was ordering her to "exorcise" his demons after she was arrested.  Little Ra'myl Pierre was found dead and wrapped in cloth inside his mom's house after he disappeared from school for two weeks.

Deputies visited the home last Friday and were greeted by his mom, 31-year-old Rhonda Paulynice. She took cops to her little boy's bedroom, and they discovered his body wrapped in cloth with only his face exposed.  Investigators believe he died on May 18 and that only his mother had been inside the room.

Paulynice told investigators she put her hand over her little boy's mouth and started suffocating him as he kicked and screamed in bed, according to an affidavit seen by Treasure Coast News.  She thought if she kept restraining him, the "demons" would go away and he would come back to life, police said.  The mom repeatedly went into her son's room and blew warm air on his face, looking for signs of life.  She was aware Ra’Myl Pierre had died but believed she “freed him of a spirit he had in him," her arrest records showed.

The St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office in Florida said on social media that deputies visited her home in Fort Pierce on May 30 to conduct a welfare check.  This was due to a request by a school resource deputy after the child was absent from school since May 14.   Body camera footage revealed the moments before cops found Ra’myl’s body.  Paulynice was filmed using lip gloss while answering deputies' questions about her son’s lengthy absence from school, ABC affiliate WPTV reported.  In the clip, she told a deputy, “He’s going to go back to school. I’ll give them a call"

Paulynice later told investigators she was not in control of her “vessel” - referring to her body. She claimed that “God/Father” had told her what to do.  “Paulynice stated she would be kept awake at night by dreams from God/Father detailing events which were going to occur,” added the affidavit.  She reported noticing changes in her boy's behavior “and believed him to be controlled by a ‘spirit’ and by an ‘enemy.’”

"The mother believed she was being told by God to basically exorcise demons out of the child's body," said St. Lucie County Sheriff Richard Del Toro.  "When the child had stopped moving and basically passed away, at that point, she felt the child had been released of those demons and was waiting for him to basically come back at that time."

Del Toro said, "From what I understand, this kid just lit the room up, and was loved by everybody."  A spokesperson for the St. Lucie County school district said students and staff will be offered grief counseling and support services.  "Our hearts are with the student's family, friends, classmates, and all who loved and cared for him during this incredibly difficult time," St. Lucie Public Schools said in a statement.

 

New York Times Sued by So-called "Porn Addicted" Brazilian Tribe

Last year, the Marubo Tribe, a 2,000-member Indigenous group in the Brazilian Amazon, was the subject of countless news stories around the world falsely accusing its people of becoming addicted to porn after being given Internet access. According to the Marubo, the spread of this false narrative is all The New York Times’ fault—and it’s suing.

The tribe was the subject of a 2024 story by the Times, which profiled the group’s first exposure to the Internet via Elon Musk’s Starlink, along with the technology’s benefits and challenges. For instance, the story said that while the Internet allowed the Marubo to video chat with loved ones who live far away and call for help during emergencies, it also affected the youth.  “Young people have gotten lazy because of the internet,” Tsainama Marubo, a 73-year-old woman, said. She explained that the tribe’s younger members are less interested in traditional activities, such as making jewelry out of snail shells. “They’re learning the ways of the white people.”

But the Internet also brought the tribe access to porn. The Times story says that minors were now watching porn, which had unsettled some in the tribe. It quoted Alfredo Marubo, leader of a Marubo association of villages and the biggest critic of the tribe’s new access to the Internet.  According to the Times, Alfredo Marubo said that young men were sharing mature adult content in group chats. The spreading of that type of content marked a strong contrast with the tribe’s culture, which disapproves of kissing in public.  “We’re worried young people are going to want to try it,” Alfredo Marubo said, referring to the graphic sex shown in the videos being shared.  Alfredo Marubo added that some tribal leaders had told him of young men displaying more aggressive sexual behavior.

The references to porn and sex in the story were limited to five sentences. Nowhere did the Times story call the Marubo people porn addicts or suggest it was a huge problem.  But that wasn’t the story heard round the world, though. Instead, countless media outlets ran pieces about how the Internet had caused the tribe to become addicted to porn, a claim that was untrue. TMZ ran a story with the headline, “Elon Musk’s Starlink Hookup Leaves A Remote Tribe Addicted To Porn.”

The New York Post also had a headline in the same vein: “Remote Amazon tribe finally connects to internet — only to wind up hooked on porn, social media.”   A little more than week later, the “porn addict” framing had become so widespread that the Times published a follow-up story. In the story, the outlet said that more than 100 websites worldwide had published the false claim.  “The Marubo people are not addicted to pornography. There was no hint of this in the forest, and there was no suggestion of it in The New York Times’s article,” Jack Micas, the author of the piece, wrote.

But in the eyes of the Marubo people, the damage had already been done. This week, the tribe filed a defamation lawsuit against the Times, TMZ, and Yahoo News in Los Angeles Superior Court, Courthouse News reported. The suit says that TMZ and Yahoo News are also defendants because their stories amplified and misrepresented the original. The tribe is seeking $180 million from each of the media outlets.

 

Missing Arizona Toddler Is Led Seven Miles to Safety by Ranch Dog

A 2-year-old who wandered away from his Arizona home is safe thanks to a loyal ranch dog who guided him to safety, officials said.  The rancher who owns the dog said he was leaving his property to go into town when he spotted his dog sitting by the entrance — “and a little kid’s standing there with my dog,” the rancher told Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office deputies. 

The toddler had wandered off from his home in Seligman (80 miles northwest of Flagstaff) sometime before 5 pm.  More than 40 search and rescue members, deputies and rangers searched for the child overnight, the department said.  “After 16 hours of searching, a rancher approximately 7 miles away reported that a young child had walked onto his property,” the department said. “Upon arrival at the ranch, deputies confirmed this was indeed the missing boy.”

The rancher told deputies he had heard about the missing boy and figured his dog Buford had found him while patrolling the property and likely brought him back to the ranch, the department said.  “He’s an Anatolian Pyrenees so he’s a guardian dog, so he just kind of patrols within a half mile of the house all night and keeps coyotes away and stuff like that,” the rancher told deputies. “I’m guessing he found him over here in the horse pasture somewhere under a tree and just brought him home. So that’s what he does. He loves kids so I can imagine he wouldn’t leave him when he found him.” 

The rancher said he brought the boy inside, gave him some water and food and got him to calm down enough to describe what had happened.  “I said ‘did you walk all night?’ and he said no,” the rancher told deputies. “He said ‘I laid up under a tree’ and I said ‘well, did my dog find you?’ and he goes ‘yep.’

How the toddler made it through seven miles of rough, dangerous high desert terrain on his own is a mystery.  During the search, a ranger said they spotted two mountain lions from a rescue helicopter among the terrain where the boy would have traveled. There were also three mountain ranges with large valleys) between the boy's house and the ranch where he was eventually found.

“So I was, you know, ecstatic that he was okay and my dog found him,” the rancher said.  Several people in the comments said they had a hard time believing it themselves. But those familiar with the Arizona countryside seemed familiar with the concept of a kid wandering off to explore.  “Country kids do as country kids do,” someone said.

Several people also praised Buford the dog for his heroic effort. “I hope he gets a really big huge bone,” someone said.  The rancher rewarded the dog with a steak dinner, he told AZFamily. 

 

Canadian Hiker Called Out on Her Privilege by Local Innuit

An adventurer who claimed to be the first woman to solo traverse Canada's largest island has been criticized for her "privilege and ignorance".  Camilla Hempleman-Adams, from Wiltshire, covered 150 miles on foot and by ski across Baffin Island, Nunavut. The solo trek across Baffin Island took  Hempleman-Adams from Qikiqtarjuaq to Pangnirtung, crossing through Auyuittuq National Park. Ahead of departure, she wrote on her expedition website: "Parks Canada has confirmed that there are no historical records of a female solo attempt from Qikiqtarjuaq to Pangnirtung."

However, members of the native Inuit population said her claim was incorrect and came from a "dangerous colonial attitude", with people there having traveled the same route for generations.  Gayle Uyagaqi Kabloona, who is Inuit and based in Ottawa, said this was because crossing the terrain is considered "a normal way of life" for them.

“The article hit people really hard in a very sensitive spot, because of our history and the difficulties we face every day in combating Western colonialism," she said.   "This woman is coming here from such a place of privilege and ignorance that it seems dangerous.  It was almost like she was bringing back news of a new continent to Europe and saying 'there's nobody here!' We were and still are.  It's such a clear example of how colonialism benefits from dispossessing indigenous people of their land and writing us out of history."

Kabloona said the matter had affected the community because many people who lived traditional nomadic lifestyles had now passed away-- raising concerns that cultural practices will gradually be lost to time.  She is now in the process of mapping out the route her family has taken for generations while migrating south in spring, towards the caribou hunting grounds.  On one of these annual 186-mile journeys, Kabloona's grandmother went into labor and gave birth to her father in a tent along the way.  "Two days later, she got up and carried on walking," Kabloona said.  "She did that in every single one of her pregnancies, traversed our land, because that is our way of life and always has been."

Kabloona said she welcomed visitors to the region but disapproved of the "outdated" term "explorer", as it carried with it connotations of imperialist expansion.  "If you want to come and enjoy the outdoors, please do so," she said.   "The danger is going back with this colonial attitude and disseminating information like the Inuit don't have history there.  Saying you're the 'first person' to do anything in an indigenous country is insulting.  Show respect to the land and the people who have kept it pristine for your adventures."

 

"Demon" Sea Lions Attack Surfer

California surfer RJ LaMendola said he was surfing recently, when he was attacked at Oxnard State Beach in Ventura County, California, by a "demonic" sea lion that bit him and dragged him off his board, he wrote on Facebook.  LaMendola described the sea lion as "feral" and "almost demonic." The surfer was struck that the mammal was "devoid of the curiosity or playfulness" he usually associates with sea lions. "This isn’t normal sea lion behavior -- it’s something darker, something dangerous," he wrote, saying he won't be surfing again "anytime soon."

Marine researchers are saying that sea lions on the California coast are displaying strange behavior, likely due to a harmful algae bloom impacting the region.  The sea lions are likely being poisoned by domoic acid, a neurotoxin within the algae blooms, which they ingest through the fish they eat, according to marine experts. Ingesting domoic acid can cause amnesic shellfish poisoning in humans and marine mammals, according to the Marine Mammal Care Center.

There have been reports of the marine mammals acting aggressively in some cases, and in others, they appear lethargic, Jeni Smith, rescue supervisor at SeaWorld San Diego, told ABC San Diego affiliate KGTV. Smith described one sea lion who appeared to be "star-gazing."  "Some animals seem very, very sleepy, maybe right after having a seizure," Smith said. "They may be abnormally aggressive."

Harmful algal blooms occur when colonies of algae grow out of control and produce toxic or harmful affects on people, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Some blooms produce toxins that can kill fish, mammals and birds. In some cases, the algal blooms can cause illness or death in humans, according to NOAA. 

Researchers are now seeing multiple consecutive years of harmful algal blooms, Dave Bader, chief operations and education officer at the Marine Mammal Care Center in San Pedro, told KGTV.  The Marine Mammal Care Center has taken in nearly 150 sea lions since February, Bader said. There have been reports of dolphins and seabirds falling ill as well, and this event could be worse than the bloom that occurred in 2023, which killed 1,000 sea lions, according to the marine conservation group.

The Marine Mammal Care Center has taken in nearly 150 sea lions since February, Bader said. There have been reports of dolphins and seabirds falling ill as well, and this event could be worse than the bloom that occurred in 2023, which killed 1,000 sea lions, according to the marine conservation group.  

SeaWorld's Jeni Smith urged the public to do their part to create a better environment for marine life and prevent pollution.  "Throwing away their trash, not allowing anything toxic to go down the storm drain, because everything goes back to the ocean," Smith said.

 

Mystery Seed Packages in Texas Stir Alarm

Mystery seed packets are back, according to Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller. Miller says that the Texas Department of Agriculture recently was alerted to a mystery package containing unidentified seeds and a liquid container sent unsolicited from China. The package was sent to Clute, Texas, south of Houston. 

The TDA forwarded the package and its contents to USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) division for thorough identification and testing.  "Folks, please take this matter seriously. Receiving any unsolicited liquid or chemical at your doorstep poses a significant risk to the health of you and your family. We also cannot allow unidentified seeds to enter Texas. If planted, invasive plant species will substantially harm the Texas agriculture industry. The TDA will work diligently to identify these unknown seeds and liquids to protect Texas residents," said Commissioner Miller.

Mystery seed packets from China showed up in 2020, with Miller warning about them being mailed to multiple states and falsely labeled as jewelry or toys. The packages popped up in more than 30 states, including Texas.  Agriculture experts voiced concerns about the seeds, in particular about them being for invasive plant species.

Commissioner Miller says consumers should stay alert for any incoming unsolicited packages. If you receive a foreign package containing seeds, officials say do not open it.   Instead, keep the contents sealed in their original packaging, and immediately contact authorities.

 

Marijuana Made Her Do It

In 2018, 27-year-old Bryn Spejcher, an inexperienced marijuana smoke in California, killed her boyfriend Chad O'Melia by stabbing him 108 times, a crime the local district attorney described as "horrific" and "one of the worst our medical examiner has ever seen."  A jury found Spejcher guilty of involuntary manslaughter, but she received only probation at sentencing because of a compelling presentation by her defense team of cannabis-induced psychosis.  

Prior to the violent incident, Spejcher had taken two hits of legal marijuana from a bong, and claimed that she began "seeing things that weren't there" and lost touch with reality.  She also stabbed herself repeatedly in the neck, and stabbed her own dog.  Law enforcement agents called to the scene had to break her arm with a metal baton to get her to let go of the knife-- multiple uses of a taser had no effect on her.

Since her conviction, Spejcher has made the media rounds to tell her story and warn of the dangers of cannabis. Last year, she spoke with WGN News, a local television station in her native Chicago area, telling the station that she had expected a prison sentence.  She was  also the featured guest in an 80-minute, two-part episode of The Dr. Phil Podcast.  These appearances, as well as other media interviews, are part of her court-ordered community service, said Sally Patrone, Spejcher's attorney for the appeal.

Patrone said Spejcher is appealing, despite not getting any jail time, because she wants to clear her name. She is an audiologist and will have trouble finding work with a felony on her record, Patrone said.

 

Woman Dies Alone, Becomes Dog Chow

Anda and Sasha sizing up dinner prospects

A dog owner was eaten by her pet pugs after dying in her apartment and being left to rot for days.  The horrifying scene was discovered after Adriana Neagoe's family members raised the alarm when they had not heard from her in five days.

The 34-year-old, from Târgu Jiu, northwest of Bucharest, Romania, had not responded to any phone calls or messages and when concerned relatives visited the flat there was no response.

After alerting the police, officers and firefighters broke down the door to find Neagoe's lifeless half-eaten body on the floor. Her two beloved pugs were found beside their owner - who also went by the name of Anda and Sasha. The pugs had turned on their owner after her sudden death left them without food. According to police, they came across the shocking scene along with the person who had called them. 

Ambulance crews confirmed Neagoe's death, noting that there were no apparent signs of violence.  With no clear cause of death, an autopsy was performed on the body at the Gorj Forensic Medicine.  A police investigation is ongoing.

Meanwhile, her two pugs were removed by workers from the local council and police put a shelter order in place for both dogs.  Friends and family members were shocked and saddened by the news, adding their own thoughts and tributes in the comments.  Others said how they "could not believe" the news.

 

The War on Santa

A British priest has been forced to apologize after telling a group of schoolchildren aged 10 and 11 that Father Christmas was not real. Pupils reportedly began to sob as Reverend Paul Chamberlain made comments during a Religious Education lesson at Lee-on-the-Solent Junior School in Hampshire.

One parent described his talk as "absolutely disgusting", while another said her daughter reckoned the priest was mistaken and had "lost the plot", The Times reported.  The Anglican Diocese of Portsmouth said Rev Chamberlain accepted it was an "error of judgement".

A 10-year-old pupil, quoted in The Times, said some children "gasped" during the lesson, in which they were also told that parents ate the cookies left out for Santa.  One parent told the newspaper: "I don't know how it can be undone, but I think it's absolutely disgusting. "I don't want him anywhere near my daughter. I hope he never comes into the school again."

In a statement, a diocese spokesperson said: "We understand that the vicar of St Faith's, Lee-on-the-Solent, the Rev Paul Chamberlain, was leading an RE lesson for 10 and 11-year-olds at Lee-on-Solent Junior School.  After talking about the Nativity story from the Bible, he made some comments about the existence of Father Christmas.  Paul has accepted that this was an error of judgement, and he should not have done so.  He apologized unreservedly to the school, to the parents and to the children, and the headteacher immediately wrote to all parents to explain this."

 

High-Flying Hamsters on the Rampage

A flight was grounded in the Azores after 130 hamsters escaped their cages during the flight from Portugal.  They were found roaming around the cargo area of the Airbus 320 after baggage handlers unloading luggage discovered their damaged cages.

Workers were desperately rounding up the power cable-eating rodents-- 16 critters were still missing after five days on the ground. The hamsters were part of a delivery for a pet shop on the island which also included ferrets and some birds. The mass break-out forced the flight to be grounded instead of continuing its journey back to Lisbon.

Sources told a local newspaper that the animals had been accepted on the flight after being turned away from an earlier one because the previous cages “didn’t meet accepted standards".  TAP Air Portugal, the airline operating the flight, has yet to make any official comment.

Hamsters like to munch on cables and wires which could potentially damage aircraft.  In 2016, hundreds of hamsters broke loose inside a Boeing jet that was forced out of service. The pilot of the Amsterdam-bound flight said at the time: "We came to the aircraft, and the mayhem just happened."

In 2006, a hamster secretly being carried by a passenger escaped and caused chaos on a plane to Austria. That flight, which originated in Mallorca, Spain was forced to make a stop in Innsbruck so officials could search for the hamster and make sure it didn’t cause any damage.

As If You Needed A Reason NOT to Go to Haiti

A Spirit Airlines plane flying from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, was struck by gunfire as it attempted to land in the Haitian capital, forcing it to divert and land elsewhere. A spokesperson for the airline said that a flight attendant onboard sustained “minor injuries” in the ordeal and is being evaluated.

According to the airline spokesperson, Flight 951 was diverted to Santiago in the Dominican Republic, where “an inspection revealed evidence of damage to the aircraft consistent with gunfire.” The spokesperson didn’t respond when asked if the plane was deliberately targeted. Screenshots taken from a video obtained by TMZ appear to show multiple bullet holes in the cabin.

The plane has been taken out of service, and Spirit Airlines has suspended all service to Haiti. American Airlines and JetBlue, which also fly to Haiti, have also canceled flights to the country. According to the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince, operations at the Toussaint Louverture airport are temporarily paused.

In recent years, violent gangs have besieged the country, which has struggled to sustain stable political leadership following the shock assassination of President Jovenel Moïse at his home in July 2021.  The U.S. Embassy warned Americans not to travel to Haiti, calling the security situation there “unpredictable and dangerous.”  Travelers should be prepared to encounter “gang-led efforts to block travel to and from Port-au-Prince which may include armed violence, and disruptions to roads, ports, and airports,” the embassy said in a security alert.

Guinea Residents Mob Research Center After Chimp Kills Baby

People living near a chimpanzee research center in Guinea attacked the facility after a woman said one of the animals had killed her infant, the center’s managers said. An angry crowd ransacked the building, destroying and setting fire to equipment including drones, computers and over 200 documents.

Eyewitnesses said the crowd was reacting to the news that the mutilated body of an infant had been found two miles from the Nimba Mountains Nature Reserve, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The child’s mother, Seny Zogba, said she was working in a cassava field when a chimpanzee came up from behind, bit her and pulled her baby into the forest.

Local ecologist Alidjiou Sylla said the dwindling supply of food in the reserve was pushing the animals to leave the protected area more frequently, increasingly the likelihood of attacks. The research center said it had recorded six chimpanzee attacks on humans within the reserve since the start of the year.

The forests of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone in West Africa are home to the largest population of the critically endangered western chimpanzee, estimated to have declined by 80% between 1990 and 2014, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. There are just seven left in Guinea’s Bossou forest, which forms part of the Nimba Mountains Nature Reserve, and is close to subsistence farming communities of the Nzerekore Region.  Chimpanzees are respected in Guinea and traditionally given gifts in the form of food, prompting  some to venture out of the protected area and into human settlements, where they can sometimes attack.

Argument Over Reclining Seat Gets Couple Banned From Airline

Cathay Pacific Airlines has banned a Hong Kong couple from its flights after their row with a mainland Chinese traveler over her reclining seat.  The Chinese woman had complained on social media that she was harassed by the couple seated behind her on a Cathay flight after reclining her seat.

The Asian carrier added the couple to its no-fly list, saying it has "a strict zero-tolerance policy" towards behaviors that disrespect fellow passengers.  The Chinese woman's post on social media platform Xiaohongshu, which captured part of the confrontation, had garnered 194,000 likes within 24 hours and drew mixed reactions online.

The incident took place on a flight from Hong Kong to London. In her post, the Chinese woman recalled how the middle-aged couple (a husband and wife) had accused her of obstructing their view of the in-flight television and asked her to straighten her seat. When she refused, the wife stretched her legs and put them on the armrests of her seat, then started scolding her in Cantonese and slapping her arm, the woman said. "When she realized I couldn't speak Cantonese, she started calling me 'mainland girl' in a derogatory tone," she said.

The husband, who was seated directly behind her, "frantically pushed" the back of her seat, the woman said. Her video showed the seat vibrating. Another scene showed the wife raising her middle finger at the woman. The woman then sought help from a flight attendant, who suggested that she straighten her seat. "I was shocked because it was not meal time, yet the flight attendant wanted me to compromise," the woman said. "I rejected the suggestion."

Several passengers who witnessed the incident criticized the Hong Kong couple's behavior. "Don't call yourself a Hong Konger, you bully," one passenger said. Another said, "This is too much. How old are you? Why are you bullying a young girl?"  The woman's post on Xiaohongshu sparked similar outrage. "If they want more space, they should have paid for first-class seats," one person wrote.  Several commenters were quick to defend Hong Kong's reputation, with one saying "Most people in Hong Kong are kind, this couple is an exception."   It has also triggered a debate on whether reclining one's airplane seat is an acceptable practice. Most users said that it should be acceptable, given that the ability to recline is a built-in function of the seats.