Keeping it Current - News Roundup - 10/7/11

Hope you are enjoying your weekend! Check out some of the stories you may have missed from the community!

Regina's Picks of the Week

Worst Cambodian flood in a decade kills 167 added by JanforGore

Cambodia has been devastated by the worst floods in over a decade. The disaster killed 167 people, amongst those sixty-eight children. More than 23,000 families had to be evacuated to higher ground in provinces across the country.

"The government and the Red Cross are giving the necessary help to those affected," Keo Vy, a spokesman for the National Committee for Disaster Management said, adding that aid, including food deliveries, had so far reached 40,000 families. He estimated that nearly 230,000 families across the impoverished nation had been affected by the unusually severe floods but he indicated the situation was under control.

Plane Flies Into Ferris Wheel added by EthicalVegan

Those with a fear of heights will avoid riding Ferris wheels at all costs. Now add the possibility of a plane crashing into one. Festival goers in eastern Australia witnessed a light plane crash into a Ferris wheel. Luckily, there were no serious injuries reported.  

The 52-year-old pilot and his 32-year-old passenger were trapped inside the mangled aircraft more than 30 feet (10 meters) above ground for almost three hours, police said. Shepherd said rescuers used a crane to free the four. "Thankfully, everyone was taken down and were able to walk away from it," Shepherd said. The pilot, Paul Cox, said he did not see the Ferris wheel before his plane hit it. "The next thing I knew, I was stopped inside the Ferris wheel," he said. "I had no idea for a few minutes and I was just hoping no one got hurt."

Oktoberfest Tallies (a record) 7.5 Million Liters Of Beer added by pjacobs51

If you participated in this year's Oktoberfest, chances are, you won't remember participating in it. Munich's much celebrated tradition hosted 6.9 million visitors this year, as a record of 7.5 million liters of beer was consumed!

To the rousing strains of oompah bands, partygoers devoured 118 oxen and 53 calves. But, as usual, the most popular fare to help soak up a "Mass", or litre mug, of beer was roast chicken — hundreds of thousands of which were consumed, along with pork sausages. "The atmosphere at the Oktoberfest was, until the last day, absolutely excellent," said Munich mayor Christian Ude, who described it as a "Dream Oktoberfest".

That's all for this week! If you saw some stories you'd like to share, please do so in the comments. Of course, if you have a story that you think should be included in our weekly updates, feel free to PM either Robyn or me and let us know.