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Orangutan Drowns in German Zoo
Staff at a Hamburg zoo say one of their orangutans died needlessly after a visitor broke park rules against feeding animals. The animal, they claim, drowned in pursuit of a bread roll that had been lobbed into her enclosure.
An orangutan drowned in a German zoo on Wednesday after she fell into a water basin while trying to fish out a bread roll a visitor had thrown into her enclosure. Zookeepers at the Tierpark Hagenbeck in Hamburg rushed to Leila's aid, but by the time they had pulled her out of the water she was dead. Chief zookeeper Walter Wolters said a visitor was responsible for the drowning. "Leila wanted to get the roll, but instead fell into the water and drowned," he told German news agency DPA.
The orangutan, which was 10 years old, had lived in the Hamburg zoo since birth. Wolters said all the zoo's staff were very upset by Leila's death. "We are especially devastated by her death, because orangutans are a very endangered species and Leila was a valuable breeding animal," he told the Hamburger Abendblatt newspaper.
The visitor who threw the roll has not yet been identified. The zoo forbids the feeding of animals and has signs up that expressly remind visitors of the ban. Staff are now considering whether to file charges with police. Staff at a Hamburg zoo say one of their orangutans died needlessly after a visitor broke park rules against feeding animals. The anima... more -
4 swimmers dead, 3 missing in N.Y. ocean waters
Four swimmers drowned and three were missing Saturday in two days of treacherous ocean currents at Long Island and New York City beaches, authorities said. At least three more had been rescued.
The missing included a 10-year-old girl who had been playing in the waters off Coney Island. A 10-year-old boy who was with her was rescued, police said.
Some authorities said the spate of swimmers being swept away seemed unprecedented. In the Long Island community of Long Beach, where two people drowned and another disappeared, Police Lt. Bruce Meyer said he "cannot recall there ever being back-to-back situations like this."
You don't need a storm for rip currents to form. Though storms make them stronger, they really only need a steady, fresh breeze blowing perpendicular to the shore to stir them up.
The silent currents carry piled water away from shore in narrow channels at speeds even strong, experienced swimmers can't fight. Rarely more than 100 feet wide, the best way to escape a rip current is to swim parallel to the shore. Once free, swim back to shore. Four swimmers drowned and three were missing Saturday in two days of treacherous ocean currents at Long Island and New York City beach... more -
Children found floating in pool remain in critical condition
The toddlers, aged two and three, were found shortly before 6 p.m. Sunday floating in the kidney-shaped pool behind a house at 11530 - 90th Avenue, adding a tragic ending to a family get-together going on inside. The toddlers, aged two and three, were found shortly before 6 p.m. Sunday floating in the kidney-shaped pool behind a house at 11530 -... more
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Boy Dies Of Dry Drowning An Hour After Swimming
ohnny Jackson, a 10-year-old American boy from South Carolina, died at home on Sunday from "dry drowning" more than an hour after going swimming and walking home with his mother. The sad event highlights a little known danger that parents and child carers should be aware of, that drowning can kill hours after being submersed in water.
According to the latest figures, about 3,600 Americans died from drowning in 2005, said the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), including a small percentage that die up to 24 hours later because of water entering the respiratory system. A not insignificant number of the victims are children who died after having a bath. ohnny Jackson, a 10-year-old American boy from South Carolina, died at home on Sunday from "dry drowning" more than an hour ... more -
Boy’s death highlights hidden danger of dry drowning
10-year-old died more than an hour after getting out of swimming pool.
The tragic death of a South Carolina 10-year-old more than an hour after he had gone swimming has focused a spotlight on the little-known phenomenon called “dry drowning” — and warning signs that every parent should be aware of.
“I’ve never known a child could walk around, talk, speak and their lungs be filled with water,” Cassandra Jackson told NBC News in a story broadcast Thursday on TODAY.
On Sunday, Jackson had taken her son, Johnny, to a pool near their home in Goose Creek, S.C. It was the first time he’d ever gone swimming — and, tragically, it would be his last.
At some point during his swim, Johnny got some water in his lungs. He didn’t show any immediate signs of respiratory distress, but the boy had an accident in the pool and soiled himself. Still, Johnny, his sister and their mother walked home together.
“We physically walked home. He walked with me,” Jackson said, still trying to understand how her son could have died. “I bathed him, and he told me that he was sleepy.”
Spongy material
Later, she went into his room to check on him. “I walked over to the bed, and his face was literally covered with this spongy white material,” she said. “And I screamed.”
A family friend, Christine Meekins, was visiting and went to see what was wrong. “I pulled his arm and said, ‘Johnny! Johnny!’ ” Meekins told NBC. “There was no response. I opened one of his eyes and I just knew inside my heart that it was something really bad.”
Johnny was rushed to a local hospital, but it was too late. Johnny had drowned, long after he got out of the swimming pool.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, some 3,600 people drowned in 2005, the most recent year for which there are statistics. Some 10 to 15 percent of those deaths was classified as “dry drowning,” which can occur up to 24 hours after a small amount of water gets into the lungs. In children, that can happen during a bath.
Dr. Daniel Rauch, a pediatrician from New York University Langone Medical Center, told TODAY’s Meredith Vieira that there are warning signs that every parent should be aware of. Johnny Jackson exhibited some of them, but unless a parent knows what to look for, they are easily overlooked or misinterpreted.
The three important signs, he said, are difficulty breathing, extreme tiredness and changes in behavior. All are the result of reduced oxygen flow to the brain.
Johnny had two of those signs — he was very tired when he got home, and he had had the accident in the pool. But like most parents, Cassandra Jackson had no idea this could be related to water in his lungs. 10-year-old died more than an hour after getting out of swimming pool. ... more -
Back from the dead
A man who was clinically dead for nearly an hour is making a full recovery in hospital. John Deeks, a Londoner, nearly drowned whilst swimming in a lake on a holiday in South Africa, but paramedics successfully resuscitated him after treatment on a ventilator for two days. Normally, if the brain is starved of oxygen in this way it will die after four minutes. A man who was clinically dead for nearly an hour is making a full recovery in hospital. John Deeks, a Londoner, nearly drowned whilst... more
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Waterboarding is Torture
We need to step up and tell the government to stop this.
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Breaking news: Father and 5 year old son drown in Costa Brava
A British man and his five-year-old son have drowned off Spain's Costa Brava.
The incident happened at noon today at Tossa de Mar, north of Barcelona. The father went into the water after his sons were swept to sea by a large wave. He and managed to rescue one of the youngsters but was overcome by the waves as he tried to recover his second son.
The man's two sons were reportedly swept out to sea as he was photographing them from a viewing point in Tossa de Mar.
Firefighters in a helicopter spotted the man and his son as they clung to a buoy but could not rescue them, the Spanish national news agency Efe reported. A British man and his five-year-old son have drowned off Spain's Costa Brava. ... more -
Sperm Whale Attack
Japanese fisherman try to help a stranded sperm whale get back to the ocean but things turn from bad to worse as the whale capsizes one of the boats causing one fisherman to drown. Japanese fisherman try to help a stranded sperm whale get back to the ocean but things turn from bad to worse as the whale capsizes on... more
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Drowning
