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Dangerous hot water challenge leaves teen with 'skin falling off ... my face'
Postmedia News
Published:
August 7, 2018
Updated:
August 7, 2018 1:02 PM EDT
A viral trend popular with young kids can literally burn the skin right off your body, and quite possibly kill you.
And can be just as dangerous as the Tide pod challenge.
The hot water challenge, which involves either drinking the boiling liquid through a straw or having it poured on you, has populated the Internet in recent months.
Although it is unknown what temperature the water is heated to, the dangerous prank has left one teen from Indiana with second degree burns to his back, chest and face, and already claimed the life of another young girl.
Kyland Clark, 15, said he was looking up videos of the hot water challenge on YouTube with a friend last month. While he was sleeping, Kyland said his friend poured boiling water over him as a prank.
“And then I looked down at my chest,” Kyland told Fox59 in Indianapolis. “My skin just fell off my chest, and then I looked in the mirror and I had skin falling off here and on my face.”
Kyland ended up in hospital for a week to be treated for severe burns, and is expected to miss the start of school as he recuperates at home.
“To see my baby, all burned up like that, it was heartbreaking,” his mother, Andrea Clark, said.
This incident follows nearly a year after an eight-year-old Florida girl was dared by her cousin to drink boiling water from a straw.
Ki’ari Pope suffered burns to her mouth and throat in March 2017. She required a tracheotomy, which reportedly left her deaf and suffering from chronic respiratory problems, according to the Palm Beach Post.
In August 2017, Ki’ari told her mother’s lover that she couldn’t breathe and became unresponsive minutes later. She was rushed to hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
[youtube]83qkkwBZ15A[/youtube]
http://fox59.com/2018/07/26/family-...hallenge-after-15-year-old-is-severely-burned
http://mypalmbeachpost.com/news/cri...re-drink-boiling-water/CMG7tAFN0U7Kg8SjL3N3IM
http://torontosun.com/news/world/da...nge-leaves-teen-with-skin-falling-off-my-face
Postmedia News
Published:
August 7, 2018
Updated:
August 7, 2018 1:02 PM EDT
A viral trend popular with young kids can literally burn the skin right off your body, and quite possibly kill you.
And can be just as dangerous as the Tide pod challenge.
The hot water challenge, which involves either drinking the boiling liquid through a straw or having it poured on you, has populated the Internet in recent months.
Although it is unknown what temperature the water is heated to, the dangerous prank has left one teen from Indiana with second degree burns to his back, chest and face, and already claimed the life of another young girl.
Kyland Clark, 15, said he was looking up videos of the hot water challenge on YouTube with a friend last month. While he was sleeping, Kyland said his friend poured boiling water over him as a prank.
“And then I looked down at my chest,” Kyland told Fox59 in Indianapolis. “My skin just fell off my chest, and then I looked in the mirror and I had skin falling off here and on my face.”
Kyland ended up in hospital for a week to be treated for severe burns, and is expected to miss the start of school as he recuperates at home.
“To see my baby, all burned up like that, it was heartbreaking,” his mother, Andrea Clark, said.
This incident follows nearly a year after an eight-year-old Florida girl was dared by her cousin to drink boiling water from a straw.
Ki’ari Pope suffered burns to her mouth and throat in March 2017. She required a tracheotomy, which reportedly left her deaf and suffering from chronic respiratory problems, according to the Palm Beach Post.
In August 2017, Ki’ari told her mother’s lover that she couldn’t breathe and became unresponsive minutes later. She was rushed to hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
[youtube]83qkkwBZ15A[/youtube]
http://fox59.com/2018/07/26/family-...hallenge-after-15-year-old-is-severely-burned
http://mypalmbeachpost.com/news/cri...re-drink-boiling-water/CMG7tAFN0U7Kg8SjL3N3IM
http://torontosun.com/news/world/da...nge-leaves-teen-with-skin-falling-off-my-face
'Suicidal' employee steals passenger plane, crashes off Seattle coast
Associated Press
Published:
August 11, 2018
Updated:
August 11, 2018 5:43 PM EDT
Alaska Airlines and other planes sit on the tarmac at Sea-Tac International Airport Friday evening, Aug. 10, 2018, in Seattle, Wash. Elaine Thompson / AP
SEATAC, Wash. — A “suicidal” airline employee stole an empty Horizon Air turboprop plane, took off from Sea-Tac International Airport and was chased by military jets before crashing into a small island in the Puget Sound on Friday night, officials said.
Preliminary information suggests the crash occurred because the 29-year-old man was “doing stunts in air or lack of flying skills,” the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department said.
Ed Troyer, a spokesman for the sheriff’s department, said on Twitter the man was suicidal and there was no connection to terrorism. The man’s condition after the crash wasn’t immediately known.
Video showed the Horizon Air Q400 doing large loops and other dangerous manoeuvres as the sun set on the Puget Sound. There were no passengers aboard.
Authorities initially said the man was a mechanic but Alaska Airlines later said he was believed to be a ground service agent employed by Horizon. Those employees direct aircraft for takeoff and gate approach and de-ice planes.
Witnesses reported seeing the plane being chased by military aircraft before it crashed on Ketron Island, southwest of Tacoma, Washington. Troyer said F-15 aircraft scrambled out of Portland, Oregon, and were in the air “within a few minutes” and the pilots kept “people on the ground safe.”
The sheriff’s department said they were working to conduct a background investigation on the Pierce County resident, whose name was not immediately released.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Saturday morning that President Donald Trump is “monitoring the situation.” He’s currently at his New Jersey golf club.
The aircraft was stolen about 8 p.m. Alaska Airlines said it was in a “maintenance position” and not scheduled for a passenger flight. Horizon Air is part of Alaska Air Group and flies shorter routes throughout the U.S. West. The Q400 is a turboprop aircraft with 76 seats.
Male is confirmed a suicidal male. Acted alone he is 29 year old Pierce county residence . We are working back ground on him now.
— Pierce Co Sheriff (@PierceSheriff) August 11, 2018
Pierce County Sheriff Paul Pastor said the man “did something foolish and may well have paid with his life.”
The man could be heard on audio recordings telling air traffic controllers that he is “just a broken guy.”
An air traffic controller called the man “Rich,” and tried to convince the man to land the airplane.
“There is a runway just off to your right side in about a mile,” the controller says, referring to an airfield at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
“Oh man. Those guys will rough me up if I try and land there,” the man responded, later adding “This is probably jail time for life, huh?”
Later the man said: “I’ve got a lot of people that care about me. It’s going to disappoint them to hear that I did this…Just a broken guy, got a few screws loose, I guess.”
Stolen horizon airplane crashed into Ketron island. Preliminary info is that a mechanic from unknown airlines stole plane. Was doing stunts in air or lack of flying skills caused crash into Island
— Pierce Co Sheriff (@PierceSheriff) August 11, 2018
Flights out of Sea-Tac, the largest commercial airport in the Pacific Northwest, were temporarily grounded during the drama.
The U.S. Coast Guard sent a 45-foot (14-meter) vessel to the crash scene after witnesses reported seeing a large plume of smoke in the air, Petty Officer Ali Flockerzi said. Video showed fiery flames amidst trees on the island, which is sparsely populated and only accessible by ferry.
Alaska Airlines said no structures on the ground were damaged.
Royal King told The Seattle Times he was photographing a wedding when he saw the low-flying turboprop being chased by two F-15s. He said he didn’t see the crash but saw smoke.
“It was unfathomable, it was something out of a movie,” he told the newspaper. “The smoke lingered. You could still hear the F-15s, which were flying low.”
“Our hearts are with the family of the individual aboard, along with all of our Alaska Air and Horizon Air employees,” Horizon Air Chief Operating Officer Constance von Muehlen said in a video posted on Twitter.
Spokesmen for the Transportation Security Administration, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Aviation Administration directed inquiries to local authorities.
Gov. Jay Inslee thanked the Air National Guard from Washington and Oregon for scrambling jets and said in a statement “there are still a lot of unknowns surrounding tonight’s tragic incident.”
[youtube]8j3lxVgLBzc[/youtube]
[youtube]LeYVtVg6aGs[/youtube]
http://torontosun.com/news/world/suicidal-employee-steals-passenger-plane-crashes-off-seattle-coast
Associated Press
Published:
August 11, 2018
Updated:
August 11, 2018 5:43 PM EDT
Alaska Airlines and other planes sit on the tarmac at Sea-Tac International Airport Friday evening, Aug. 10, 2018, in Seattle, Wash. Elaine Thompson / AP
SEATAC, Wash. — A “suicidal” airline employee stole an empty Horizon Air turboprop plane, took off from Sea-Tac International Airport and was chased by military jets before crashing into a small island in the Puget Sound on Friday night, officials said.
Preliminary information suggests the crash occurred because the 29-year-old man was “doing stunts in air or lack of flying skills,” the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department said.
Ed Troyer, a spokesman for the sheriff’s department, said on Twitter the man was suicidal and there was no connection to terrorism. The man’s condition after the crash wasn’t immediately known.
Video showed the Horizon Air Q400 doing large loops and other dangerous manoeuvres as the sun set on the Puget Sound. There were no passengers aboard.
Authorities initially said the man was a mechanic but Alaska Airlines later said he was believed to be a ground service agent employed by Horizon. Those employees direct aircraft for takeoff and gate approach and de-ice planes.
Witnesses reported seeing the plane being chased by military aircraft before it crashed on Ketron Island, southwest of Tacoma, Washington. Troyer said F-15 aircraft scrambled out of Portland, Oregon, and were in the air “within a few minutes” and the pilots kept “people on the ground safe.”
The sheriff’s department said they were working to conduct a background investigation on the Pierce County resident, whose name was not immediately released.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Saturday morning that President Donald Trump is “monitoring the situation.” He’s currently at his New Jersey golf club.
The aircraft was stolen about 8 p.m. Alaska Airlines said it was in a “maintenance position” and not scheduled for a passenger flight. Horizon Air is part of Alaska Air Group and flies shorter routes throughout the U.S. West. The Q400 is a turboprop aircraft with 76 seats.
Male is confirmed a suicidal male. Acted alone he is 29 year old Pierce county residence . We are working back ground on him now.
— Pierce Co Sheriff (@PierceSheriff) August 11, 2018
Pierce County Sheriff Paul Pastor said the man “did something foolish and may well have paid with his life.”
The man could be heard on audio recordings telling air traffic controllers that he is “just a broken guy.”
An air traffic controller called the man “Rich,” and tried to convince the man to land the airplane.
“There is a runway just off to your right side in about a mile,” the controller says, referring to an airfield at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
“Oh man. Those guys will rough me up if I try and land there,” the man responded, later adding “This is probably jail time for life, huh?”
Later the man said: “I’ve got a lot of people that care about me. It’s going to disappoint them to hear that I did this…Just a broken guy, got a few screws loose, I guess.”
Stolen horizon airplane crashed into Ketron island. Preliminary info is that a mechanic from unknown airlines stole plane. Was doing stunts in air or lack of flying skills caused crash into Island
— Pierce Co Sheriff (@PierceSheriff) August 11, 2018
Flights out of Sea-Tac, the largest commercial airport in the Pacific Northwest, were temporarily grounded during the drama.
The U.S. Coast Guard sent a 45-foot (14-meter) vessel to the crash scene after witnesses reported seeing a large plume of smoke in the air, Petty Officer Ali Flockerzi said. Video showed fiery flames amidst trees on the island, which is sparsely populated and only accessible by ferry.
Alaska Airlines said no structures on the ground were damaged.
Royal King told The Seattle Times he was photographing a wedding when he saw the low-flying turboprop being chased by two F-15s. He said he didn’t see the crash but saw smoke.
“It was unfathomable, it was something out of a movie,” he told the newspaper. “The smoke lingered. You could still hear the F-15s, which were flying low.”
“Our hearts are with the family of the individual aboard, along with all of our Alaska Air and Horizon Air employees,” Horizon Air Chief Operating Officer Constance von Muehlen said in a video posted on Twitter.
Spokesmen for the Transportation Security Administration, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Aviation Administration directed inquiries to local authorities.
Gov. Jay Inslee thanked the Air National Guard from Washington and Oregon for scrambling jets and said in a statement “there are still a lot of unknowns surrounding tonight’s tragic incident.”
[youtube]8j3lxVgLBzc[/youtube]
[youtube]LeYVtVg6aGs[/youtube]
http://torontosun.com/news/world/suicidal-employee-steals-passenger-plane-crashes-off-seattle-coast
Utah man flies plane into own home after assaulting wife: Police
Associated Press
Published:
August 13, 2018
Updated:
August 13, 2018 11:48 PM EDT
PAYSON, Utah — A Utah man flew a small plane into his own house early Monday just hours after he had been arrested for assaulting his wife in a nearby canyon where the couple went to talk over their problems, authorities said.
The pilot, Duane Youd, died. His wife and a child who were in the home survived despite the front part the two-story house being engulfed in flames, Payson police Sgt. Noemi Sandoval said.
The crash occurred at about 2:30 a.m. in Payson, a city of about 20,000 60 miles (95 kilometres) south of Salt Lake City.
Investigators believe the plane belonged to Youd’s employer and that he intentionally flew into his own house, Sandoval said. He was an experienced pilot, she said. It wasn’t immediately clear who employed Youd.
Investigators believe the twin-engine Cessna 525 belonged to Youd’s employer and that he intentionally flew into his own house; Sandoval said he was an experienced pilot. It wasn’t immediately clear who employed Youd or whether he was authorized to take the plane.
It’s unknown if the child in the house is related to Youd, Sandoval said.
This frame from video shows the scene of a small plane that crashed into a house in Payson, Utah, on Monday, Aug 13, 2018. (John Wilson/KSL-TV/Deseret News via AP)
Youd, 47, was arrested about 7:30 p.m. Sunday after witnesses called police to report that he was assaulting his wife, Utah County Sheriff’s Sgt. Spencer Cannon said. The couple had been drinking and went to American Fork Canyon to talk about problems they were having, authorities said.
Youd was booked on suspicion of domestic violence and posted bail, Cannon said. Youd requested an officer escort him to his home so he could get his truck and some belongings around midnight. That occurred without incident, Sandoval said.
Within hours, Youd was taking off in the plane from the Spanish Fork-Springville Airport about 15 miles (25 kilometres) north of his house. He flew directly to his neighbourhood and smashed into his house, Sandoval said.
Photos of the wreckage showed the white plane charred and in pieces in the front yard nearby an overturned and crushed car. Most of the upscale house was still intact, but heavily burned in the front. Youd and his wife bought the 2,700 square foot house valued at nearly $400,000, in 2016 in a quiet subdivision of new homes near the foothills, county property records show.
The plane barely missed power lines and other homes, Sandoval said. The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.
Online court records show that Youd agreed last month to attend marriage and family counselling sessions for six months as part of a plea agreement following an April 8 domestic violence incident in which he was charged with disorderly conduct.
It is the second bizarre airplane incident in recent days. On Friday an employee stole a turboprop plane from Sea-Tac International Airport in Seattle and flew it for more than an hour before dying in a crash on an island southwest of Tacoma.
[youtube]m2WEtbNgZC8[/youtube]
[youtube]Cr9aG67sRMA[/youtube]
http://torontosun.com/news/world/utah-man-flies-plane-into-own-home-after-assaulting-wife-police
Associated Press
Published:
August 13, 2018
Updated:
August 13, 2018 11:48 PM EDT
PAYSON, Utah — A Utah man flew a small plane into his own house early Monday just hours after he had been arrested for assaulting his wife in a nearby canyon where the couple went to talk over their problems, authorities said.
The pilot, Duane Youd, died. His wife and a child who were in the home survived despite the front part the two-story house being engulfed in flames, Payson police Sgt. Noemi Sandoval said.
The crash occurred at about 2:30 a.m. in Payson, a city of about 20,000 60 miles (95 kilometres) south of Salt Lake City.
Investigators believe the plane belonged to Youd’s employer and that he intentionally flew into his own house, Sandoval said. He was an experienced pilot, she said. It wasn’t immediately clear who employed Youd.
Investigators believe the twin-engine Cessna 525 belonged to Youd’s employer and that he intentionally flew into his own house; Sandoval said he was an experienced pilot. It wasn’t immediately clear who employed Youd or whether he was authorized to take the plane.
It’s unknown if the child in the house is related to Youd, Sandoval said.
This frame from video shows the scene of a small plane that crashed into a house in Payson, Utah, on Monday, Aug 13, 2018. (John Wilson/KSL-TV/Deseret News via AP)
Youd, 47, was arrested about 7:30 p.m. Sunday after witnesses called police to report that he was assaulting his wife, Utah County Sheriff’s Sgt. Spencer Cannon said. The couple had been drinking and went to American Fork Canyon to talk about problems they were having, authorities said.
Youd was booked on suspicion of domestic violence and posted bail, Cannon said. Youd requested an officer escort him to his home so he could get his truck and some belongings around midnight. That occurred without incident, Sandoval said.
Within hours, Youd was taking off in the plane from the Spanish Fork-Springville Airport about 15 miles (25 kilometres) north of his house. He flew directly to his neighbourhood and smashed into his house, Sandoval said.
Photos of the wreckage showed the white plane charred and in pieces in the front yard nearby an overturned and crushed car. Most of the upscale house was still intact, but heavily burned in the front. Youd and his wife bought the 2,700 square foot house valued at nearly $400,000, in 2016 in a quiet subdivision of new homes near the foothills, county property records show.
The plane barely missed power lines and other homes, Sandoval said. The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.
Online court records show that Youd agreed last month to attend marriage and family counselling sessions for six months as part of a plea agreement following an April 8 domestic violence incident in which he was charged with disorderly conduct.
It is the second bizarre airplane incident in recent days. On Friday an employee stole a turboprop plane from Sea-Tac International Airport in Seattle and flew it for more than an hour before dying in a crash on an island southwest of Tacoma.
[youtube]m2WEtbNgZC8[/youtube]
[youtube]Cr9aG67sRMA[/youtube]
http://torontosun.com/news/world/utah-man-flies-plane-into-own-home-after-assaulting-wife-police
Last edited:
utah man flies plane into own home after assaulting wife: Police
associated press
published:
August 13, 2018
updated:
August 13, 2018 11:48 pm edt
payson, utah — a utah man flew a small plane into his own house early monday just hours after he had been arrested for assaulting his wife in a nearby canyon where the couple went to talk over their problems, authorities said.
The pilot, duane youd, died. His wife and a child who were in the home survived despite the front part the two-story house being engulfed in flames, payson police sgt. Noemi sandoval said.
The crash occurred at about 2:30 a.m. In payson, a city of about 20,000 60 miles (95 kilometres) south of salt lake city.
Investigators believe the plane belonged to youd’s employer and that he intentionally flew into his own house, sandoval said. He was an experienced pilot, she said. It wasn’t immediately clear who employed youd.
Investigators believe the twin-engine cessna 525 belonged to youd’s employer and that he intentionally flew into his own house; sandoval said he was an experienced pilot. It wasn’t immediately clear who employed youd or whether he was authorized to take the plane.
It’s unknown if the child in the house is related to youd, sandoval said.
This frame from video shows the scene of a small plane that crashed into a house in payson, utah, on monday, aug 13, 2018. (john wilson/ksl-tv/deseret news via ap)
youd, 47, was arrested about 7:30 p.m. Sunday after witnesses called police to report that he was assaulting his wife, utah county sheriff’s sgt. Spencer cannon said. The couple had been drinking and went to american fork canyon to talk about problems they were having, authorities said.
Youd was booked on suspicion of domestic violence and posted bail, cannon said. Youd requested an officer escort him to his home so he could get his truck and some belongings around midnight. That occurred without incident, sandoval said.
Within hours, youd was taking off in the plane from the spanish fork-springville airport about 15 miles (25 kilometres) north of his house. He flew directly to his neighbourhood and smashed into his house, sandoval said.
Photos of the wreckage showed the white plane charred and in pieces in the front yard nearby an overturned and crushed car. Most of the upscale house was still intact, but heavily burned in the front. Youd and his wife bought the 2,700 square foot house valued at nearly $400,000, in 2016 in a quiet subdivision of new homes near the foothills, county property records show.
The plane barely missed power lines and other homes, sandoval said. The federal aviation administration and national transportation safety board are investigating.
Online court records show that youd agreed last month to attend marriage and family counselling sessions for six months as part of a plea agreement following an april 8 domestic violence incident in which he was charged with disorderly conduct.
It is the second bizarre airplane incident in recent days. On friday an employee stole a turboprop plane from sea-tac international airport in seattle and flew it for more than an hour before dying in a crash on an island southwest of tacoma.
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http://torontosun.com/news/world/utah-man-flies-plane-into-own-home-after-assaulting-wife-police
this is what happens when people read too much about lie-beral policy and its poisonous effect on their lives!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
New York man dies after shirt gets caught in subway escalator
Associated Press
Published:
October 16, 2018
Updated:
October 16, 2018 10:59 AM EDT
(Getty Images)
New York police say a man who died after he was found unconscious in a subway station probably choked to death when he fell on an escalator and his shirt got caught.
Police say 48-year-old Carlos Alvarez fell at a station in the Bronx early Sunday, where he was found unresponsive. He was cut out of the shirt, rushed to a hospital and pronounced dead.
Authorities say Alvarez had been drinking.
http://torontosun.com/news/weird/new-york-man-dies-after-shirt-gets-caught-in-subway-escalator
Associated Press
Published:
October 16, 2018
Updated:
October 16, 2018 10:59 AM EDT
(Getty Images)
New York police say a man who died after he was found unconscious in a subway station probably choked to death when he fell on an escalator and his shirt got caught.
Police say 48-year-old Carlos Alvarez fell at a station in the Bronx early Sunday, where he was found unresponsive. He was cut out of the shirt, rushed to a hospital and pronounced dead.
Authorities say Alvarez had been drinking.
http://torontosun.com/news/weird/new-york-man-dies-after-shirt-gets-caught-in-subway-escalator
======================================================================================================
Yeah- dont you just LOVE IT when govt owned infrastructure is so poorly maintained that it mains or kills!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And all because govt thinks that handing out more gravy to civil service union HOGS- so their votes can be bought by LIE-berals- is more important than actually FIXING ANYTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Just look at Toronto - with THREE MAJOR water main breaks in one week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Multiple MAIN streets closed down for days at at a time while Hogs go out to PATCH the ROTTING infrastructure!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And we do not know yet the FULL cost of the flooding from those ruptured pipes as there are a couple of flooded underground parking garages that nobody can enter yet to assess the damage to the cars down there!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
But no need to worry!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Our Wynne-bag LIE-berals signed FOUR YEAR wage deals with civil service union Hogs just before going down to defeat in the June election- just like turds flushed from a toilet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And Jackass John- the Sorry Tory mayor of Hogtown has displayed the same dauntless generosity to Hogs as his provincial and federal counterparts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
All is well- IN LIE-beralville!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
'WIND GUST CAN BE FATAL???' Selfie-taking couple who died in 800-foot fall at Yosemite lived 'life on the edge'
Associated Press
Published:
October 31, 2018
Updated:
October 31, 2018 1:00 AM EDT
Vishnu Viswanath and his wife Meenakshi Moorthy (inset) fell to their deaths from Taft Point in Yosemite Park, Calif., while trying to take a selfie. (Vishnu Viswanath/Facebook via AP/elgad/Getty Images)
SAN FRANCISCO — She was a self-described “adrenaline junkie,” and he took “wow-worthy photos” of the couple posing at the edge of cliffs and jumping from planes that appeared on social media and a travel blog that attracted thousands of followers.
In one post at the Grand Canyon this spring, 30-year-old Meenakshi Moorthy even warned daredevils who try to snap selfies from dangerous heights: “Did you know that wind gusts can be FATAL???” The caption accompanies a photo of Moorthy sitting on the edge of the canyon’s North Rim.
The couple’s latest trip turned out to be their last. Moorthy and her husband, Vishnu Viswanath, 29, who were Indian expats living in California, fell to their deaths in Yosemite National Park last week while taking a selfie, the man’s brother said Tuesday.
They set up their tripod near a ledge at a scenic overlook in the California park, Viswanath’s brother, Jishnu Viswanath, told The Associated Press. Visitors saw the camera the next morning and alerted park rangers, who “used high-powered binoculars to find them and used helicopters to airlift the bodies,” he said.
Rangers found their bodies about 800 feet (245 metres) below Taft Point, where visitors can walk to the edge of a vertigo-inducing granite ledge that offers spectacular views of the Yosemite Valley below.
Their thrill-seeking social media posts foreshadow the couple’s link to the growing problem of selfie deaths.
A study published this month in the Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care said 259 people had died taking selfies between October 2011 and November 2017.
The report, based on findings from researchers in India who scoured worldwide media reports, said the main causes of selfie deaths were drowning, usually involving people being washed away by waves or falling from a boat, followed by people killed while posing in front of a moving train, deaths involving falls from high places or while taking pictures with dangerous animals.
More than 10 people have died at Yosemite this year, some from natural causes and others from falls, park spokesman Scott Gediman said.
Moorthy and Viswanath were born in India and had lived in the United States for a few years, most recently in the San Francisco Bay Area. Cisco India said Viswanath was a software engineer at the company’s San Jose, Calif., headquarters in Silicon Valley.
They graduated in 2010 from the College of Engineering, Chengannur, in the Alapuzha district of India’s Kerala state, one of their professors, Nisha Kuruvilla, told AP. She said Moorthy and Viswanath were both good students who were fond of travelling and had married at a Hindu temple in Kerala in southern India four years ago.
This photo obtained from Facebook posted on June 26, 2017, shows a selfie of Vishnu Viswanath, right, and his wife Meenakshi Moorthy at Skydive Santa Barbara in Lompoc, Calif. Vishnu Viswanath / Facebook via AP
Moorthy described her and her husband as “travel obsessed” on their blog, “Holidays & Happily Ever Afters,” which was taken down Tuesday. It was filled with photos of the couple in front of snowy peaks and on romantic trips across Europe, where they took selfies from a gondola in Venice, at the Leaning Tower of Pisa and at the Vatican.
Moorthy wanted to work full time as a travel blogger, her brother-in-law said. She described herself in the blog as a “quirky free spirit” and “an ardent adrenaline junkie — roller coasters and skydiving does not scare me.”
She posed at the edge of the Grand Canyon wearing a Wonder Woman costume, writing, “A lot of us including yours truly is a fan of daredevilry attempts of standing at the edge of cliffs — and skyscrapers. But did you know that wind gust can be FATAL??? Is our life just worth one photo?”
Her husband’s Facebook cover photo shows the couple smiling, with arms around each other standing at a Grand Canyon precipice. “Living life on the edge,” he wrote.
In a post from July 2017, the couple celebrated their wedding anniversary by skydiving in Santa Barbara, Calif. Moorthy posted a video on Instagram that shows her in a T-shirt saying, “Gimme Danger,” and flashing a thumbs-up as she jumps from the plane.
“I believe I can flyyy. I believe i can touch the skyyy,” she wrote in the post. “Aaaand touch the sky I did from an effin’ 18000 feet thanks to the unconditional love-ninja in my life, Vishnu, who literally took this year’s anniversary surprise a notch ’higher’ than last year’s hot air ballooning adventure, by gifting this adrenaline junkie with one of the highest tandem skydives in the world!”
She also blogged about depression. In a post from April, Moorthy apologized to readers for going silent and “disappearing for more than a year.”
“Between battling the tightening tentacles of depression and blustering in the tempest of moving madness, I am afraid social media is taking a back seat??” she wrote.
The couple’s pictures indicated they liked to pose in scenic spots at sunset, which was the last time they were seen alive.
In an eerie coincidence, another couple who hiked to Taft Point captured pictures of Moorthy prior to her fall, saying she appears in the background of two of their selfies.
Sean Matteson said Moorthy stood out from the crowd enjoying sunset at the overlook because her hair was dyed bright pink. He said she made him a little nervous because she was close to the edge.
In this Oct. 21, 2018 photo provided by Sean Matteson, Matteson poses for a selfie with his girlfriend Drea Rose Laguillo, in Yosemite National Park, Calif. The couple said Meenakshi Moorthy, seen in background at left, the pink-haired woman who fell to her death in Yosemite Park accidentally appeared in two of their selfie photos taken shortly before the 30-year-old old fell from a popular overlook. Sean Matteson / AP
“She was very close to the edge, but it looked like she was enjoying herself,” said Matteson of Oakland, California. “She gave me the willies. There aren’t any railings. I was not about to get that close to the edge. But she seemed comfortable. She didn’t seem like she was in distress or anything.”
The travel advice website MyYosemitePark.com posted a photo of Taft Point to illustrate its “bad selfies” list, warning tourists: “Don’t pose on top of a huge granite drop-off.” It added, “It would only take a loose rock or bad footing to plummet.”
Yosemite spokeswoman Jamie Richards said officials were investigating the deaths, which could take several days.
In India, after a rash of selfie-related deaths, the Tourism Ministry in April asked state government officials to safeguard tourists by installing signs in areas where accidents had occurred declaring them “no-selfie zones.”
http://myyosemitepark.com/photos/bad-selfies
http://torontosun.com/news/world/br...800-foot-fall-while-taking-selfie-at-yosemite
Associated Press
Published:
October 31, 2018
Updated:
October 31, 2018 1:00 AM EDT
Vishnu Viswanath and his wife Meenakshi Moorthy (inset) fell to their deaths from Taft Point in Yosemite Park, Calif., while trying to take a selfie. (Vishnu Viswanath/Facebook via AP/elgad/Getty Images)
SAN FRANCISCO — She was a self-described “adrenaline junkie,” and he took “wow-worthy photos” of the couple posing at the edge of cliffs and jumping from planes that appeared on social media and a travel blog that attracted thousands of followers.
In one post at the Grand Canyon this spring, 30-year-old Meenakshi Moorthy even warned daredevils who try to snap selfies from dangerous heights: “Did you know that wind gusts can be FATAL???” The caption accompanies a photo of Moorthy sitting on the edge of the canyon’s North Rim.
The couple’s latest trip turned out to be their last. Moorthy and her husband, Vishnu Viswanath, 29, who were Indian expats living in California, fell to their deaths in Yosemite National Park last week while taking a selfie, the man’s brother said Tuesday.
They set up their tripod near a ledge at a scenic overlook in the California park, Viswanath’s brother, Jishnu Viswanath, told The Associated Press. Visitors saw the camera the next morning and alerted park rangers, who “used high-powered binoculars to find them and used helicopters to airlift the bodies,” he said.
Rangers found their bodies about 800 feet (245 metres) below Taft Point, where visitors can walk to the edge of a vertigo-inducing granite ledge that offers spectacular views of the Yosemite Valley below.
Their thrill-seeking social media posts foreshadow the couple’s link to the growing problem of selfie deaths.
A study published this month in the Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care said 259 people had died taking selfies between October 2011 and November 2017.
The report, based on findings from researchers in India who scoured worldwide media reports, said the main causes of selfie deaths were drowning, usually involving people being washed away by waves or falling from a boat, followed by people killed while posing in front of a moving train, deaths involving falls from high places or while taking pictures with dangerous animals.
More than 10 people have died at Yosemite this year, some from natural causes and others from falls, park spokesman Scott Gediman said.
Moorthy and Viswanath were born in India and had lived in the United States for a few years, most recently in the San Francisco Bay Area. Cisco India said Viswanath was a software engineer at the company’s San Jose, Calif., headquarters in Silicon Valley.
They graduated in 2010 from the College of Engineering, Chengannur, in the Alapuzha district of India’s Kerala state, one of their professors, Nisha Kuruvilla, told AP. She said Moorthy and Viswanath were both good students who were fond of travelling and had married at a Hindu temple in Kerala in southern India four years ago.
This photo obtained from Facebook posted on June 26, 2017, shows a selfie of Vishnu Viswanath, right, and his wife Meenakshi Moorthy at Skydive Santa Barbara in Lompoc, Calif. Vishnu Viswanath / Facebook via AP
Moorthy described her and her husband as “travel obsessed” on their blog, “Holidays & Happily Ever Afters,” which was taken down Tuesday. It was filled with photos of the couple in front of snowy peaks and on romantic trips across Europe, where they took selfies from a gondola in Venice, at the Leaning Tower of Pisa and at the Vatican.
Moorthy wanted to work full time as a travel blogger, her brother-in-law said. She described herself in the blog as a “quirky free spirit” and “an ardent adrenaline junkie — roller coasters and skydiving does not scare me.”
She posed at the edge of the Grand Canyon wearing a Wonder Woman costume, writing, “A lot of us including yours truly is a fan of daredevilry attempts of standing at the edge of cliffs — and skyscrapers. But did you know that wind gust can be FATAL??? Is our life just worth one photo?”
Her husband’s Facebook cover photo shows the couple smiling, with arms around each other standing at a Grand Canyon precipice. “Living life on the edge,” he wrote.
In a post from July 2017, the couple celebrated their wedding anniversary by skydiving in Santa Barbara, Calif. Moorthy posted a video on Instagram that shows her in a T-shirt saying, “Gimme Danger,” and flashing a thumbs-up as she jumps from the plane.
“I believe I can flyyy. I believe i can touch the skyyy,” she wrote in the post. “Aaaand touch the sky I did from an effin’ 18000 feet thanks to the unconditional love-ninja in my life, Vishnu, who literally took this year’s anniversary surprise a notch ’higher’ than last year’s hot air ballooning adventure, by gifting this adrenaline junkie with one of the highest tandem skydives in the world!”
She also blogged about depression. In a post from April, Moorthy apologized to readers for going silent and “disappearing for more than a year.”
“Between battling the tightening tentacles of depression and blustering in the tempest of moving madness, I am afraid social media is taking a back seat??” she wrote.
The couple’s pictures indicated they liked to pose in scenic spots at sunset, which was the last time they were seen alive.
In an eerie coincidence, another couple who hiked to Taft Point captured pictures of Moorthy prior to her fall, saying she appears in the background of two of their selfies.
Sean Matteson said Moorthy stood out from the crowd enjoying sunset at the overlook because her hair was dyed bright pink. He said she made him a little nervous because she was close to the edge.
In this Oct. 21, 2018 photo provided by Sean Matteson, Matteson poses for a selfie with his girlfriend Drea Rose Laguillo, in Yosemite National Park, Calif. The couple said Meenakshi Moorthy, seen in background at left, the pink-haired woman who fell to her death in Yosemite Park accidentally appeared in two of their selfie photos taken shortly before the 30-year-old old fell from a popular overlook. Sean Matteson / AP
“She was very close to the edge, but it looked like she was enjoying herself,” said Matteson of Oakland, California. “She gave me the willies. There aren’t any railings. I was not about to get that close to the edge. But she seemed comfortable. She didn’t seem like she was in distress or anything.”
The travel advice website MyYosemitePark.com posted a photo of Taft Point to illustrate its “bad selfies” list, warning tourists: “Don’t pose on top of a huge granite drop-off.” It added, “It would only take a loose rock or bad footing to plummet.”
Yosemite spokeswoman Jamie Richards said officials were investigating the deaths, which could take several days.
In India, after a rash of selfie-related deaths, the Tourism Ministry in April asked state government officials to safeguard tourists by installing signs in areas where accidents had occurred declaring them “no-selfie zones.”
http://torontosun.com/news/world/br...800-foot-fall-while-taking-selfie-at-yosemite
Aussie man dies nine years after eating garden slug on dare from friends
Postmedia News
Published:
November 6, 2018
Updated:
November 6, 2018 1:34 PM EST
(Getty Images)
An Australian man died Friday, more than eight years after being paralyzed by eating a garden slug on a teenage dare.
Sam Ballard, then 19 and a star rugby player, reportedly became infected with rat lungworm after eating a slug on a spur-of-the-moment challenge by friends during a “wine appreciation night” back in 2010.
“The conversation came up, you know, ‘Should I eat it?,’ and off Sam went,” friend Jimmy Galvin told news.com.au. “Bang. That’s how it happened.”
Ballard didn’t get sick until a few days later but eating the slug was quickly dismissed as a cause, with his mother telling him “no-one gets sick from that.” Multiple sclerosis, which his father had, was also feared to be causing his symptoms before being ruled out.
Contracting eosinophilic meningoencephalitis from the rat lungworm, he wound up falling into a coma for 420 days and, due to brain damage, was paralyzed when he awoke.
Nearly nine years after chowing down on the slug, Ballard, 29, died in Sydney’s Hornsby Hospital, according to reports out of Australia, surrounded by friends and his mother, Katie Ballard.
“He had his voice and he said ‘I love you’ several times to Katie,” a friend told 10 Daily.
“Sam was a true battler and hero to his younger brother Joshua and sister Melanie. He had an army of friends and family who have loved and cared for him for which he was truly grateful,” Ballard’s online obituary said. “His last days were the happiest and he was surrounded by a room full of love.”
http://twitter.com/i/videos/tweet/980382413573406722
http://news.com.au/lifestyle/health...s/news-story/08b0e700a8d6d6c6709d2dd92dfeaa8f
http://tendaily.com.au/views/a18110...es-its-sam-ballard-ill-remember-most-20181105
http://tributes.smh.com.au/obituaries/smh-au/obituary.aspx?n=samuel-adam-ballard&pid=190659994
http://torontosun.com/news/weird/au...after-eating-garden-slug-on-dare-from-friends
Postmedia News
Published:
November 6, 2018
Updated:
November 6, 2018 1:34 PM EST
(Getty Images)
An Australian man died Friday, more than eight years after being paralyzed by eating a garden slug on a teenage dare.
Sam Ballard, then 19 and a star rugby player, reportedly became infected with rat lungworm after eating a slug on a spur-of-the-moment challenge by friends during a “wine appreciation night” back in 2010.
“The conversation came up, you know, ‘Should I eat it?,’ and off Sam went,” friend Jimmy Galvin told news.com.au. “Bang. That’s how it happened.”
Ballard didn’t get sick until a few days later but eating the slug was quickly dismissed as a cause, with his mother telling him “no-one gets sick from that.” Multiple sclerosis, which his father had, was also feared to be causing his symptoms before being ruled out.
Contracting eosinophilic meningoencephalitis from the rat lungworm, he wound up falling into a coma for 420 days and, due to brain damage, was paralyzed when he awoke.
Nearly nine years after chowing down on the slug, Ballard, 29, died in Sydney’s Hornsby Hospital, according to reports out of Australia, surrounded by friends and his mother, Katie Ballard.
“He had his voice and he said ‘I love you’ several times to Katie,” a friend told 10 Daily.
“Sam was a true battler and hero to his younger brother Joshua and sister Melanie. He had an army of friends and family who have loved and cared for him for which he was truly grateful,” Ballard’s online obituary said. “His last days were the happiest and he was surrounded by a room full of love.”
http://twitter.com/i/videos/tweet/980382413573406722
http://news.com.au/lifestyle/health...s/news-story/08b0e700a8d6d6c6709d2dd92dfeaa8f
http://tendaily.com.au/views/a18110...es-its-sam-ballard-ill-remember-most-20181105
http://tributes.smh.com.au/obituaries/smh-au/obituary.aspx?n=samuel-adam-ballard&pid=190659994
http://torontosun.com/news/weird/au...after-eating-garden-slug-on-dare-from-friends
Mom of man who died after injecting scrotum with silicone blames death on bondage partner
Postmedia News
Published:
November 8, 2018
Updated:
November 8, 2018 2:05 PM EST
Jack Chapman (centre) and his mother, Linda (right). (GoFundMe)
The mother of an Australian man who died after injecting his scrotum with silicone as part of an inflation fetish confronted his American bondage master in an episode of The Project.
The episode of the Australian news affairs program, which aired Tuesday on Channel 10, Linda Chapman, mother of Jack Chapman, said someone convinced her son into injecting his scrotum with silicone.
According to the Daily Mail, Chapman confronted Dylan Hafertepen, Jack’s reported bondage partner and blamed him for her son’s death. Chapman instructed Hafertepen to leave her house.
“What sort of person injects into their balls … What sort of person does that?” Chapman asked Hafertepen while in tears.
“Someone who feels so badly about themselves, someone who was vulnerable, who just wanted your love at any cost .. and the cost of his life.”
According to his autopsy, the 28-year-old Jack — also known as “Pup Tank” — died from silicone embolism syndrome in October. Jack was reportedly part of a cult fetish scene spearheaded by Hafertepen, where followers were required to have large scrotums along to go with their hulking physiques.
Jack’s mother claimed she didn’t learn about her son’s disorder until a day after his death.
Chapman said she didn’t know Jack was in the hospital under an induced coma before his eventual demise.
“I never got to hold him, I never got to hug him. I never got to say goodbye,” she said on the show.
Linda Chapman holds a picture of her son, Jack, while talking to Dylan Hafertepen during a confrontation on an episode of The Project. (YouTube)
According to Seattle-based independent newspaper The Stranger, Jack was one of many men, nicknamed “pups,” linked to Hafertepen as part of a polyamourous “self-made family” where the men cater to the needs of the master in hopes of winning his affection.
On social media, Hafertepen was known as Noodles and Beef, where he’d regularly post photos of the bulging boys who served him.
Dylan Hafertepen. (YouTube)
The Daily Mail reported in the weeks leading to his death, Jack left a US$200,000 inheritance in his will to Hafertepen.
The Project documented Hafertepen flying from Seattle to Melbourne, where he returned Jack’s ashes to his family.
http://tenplay.com.au/channel-ten/the-project/video
http://dailymail.co.uk/news/article...ng-scrotum-silicone-faces-bondage-master.html
http://thestranger.com/features/2018/11/07/35073826/death-of-a-kinkster
http://torontosun.com/news/world/mo...with-silicone-blames-death-on-bondage-partner
Postmedia News
Published:
November 8, 2018
Updated:
November 8, 2018 2:05 PM EST
Jack Chapman (centre) and his mother, Linda (right). (GoFundMe)
The mother of an Australian man who died after injecting his scrotum with silicone as part of an inflation fetish confronted his American bondage master in an episode of The Project.
The episode of the Australian news affairs program, which aired Tuesday on Channel 10, Linda Chapman, mother of Jack Chapman, said someone convinced her son into injecting his scrotum with silicone.
According to the Daily Mail, Chapman confronted Dylan Hafertepen, Jack’s reported bondage partner and blamed him for her son’s death. Chapman instructed Hafertepen to leave her house.
“What sort of person injects into their balls … What sort of person does that?” Chapman asked Hafertepen while in tears.
“Someone who feels so badly about themselves, someone who was vulnerable, who just wanted your love at any cost .. and the cost of his life.”
According to his autopsy, the 28-year-old Jack — also known as “Pup Tank” — died from silicone embolism syndrome in October. Jack was reportedly part of a cult fetish scene spearheaded by Hafertepen, where followers were required to have large scrotums along to go with their hulking physiques.
Jack’s mother claimed she didn’t learn about her son’s disorder until a day after his death.
Chapman said she didn’t know Jack was in the hospital under an induced coma before his eventual demise.
“I never got to hold him, I never got to hug him. I never got to say goodbye,” she said on the show.
Linda Chapman holds a picture of her son, Jack, while talking to Dylan Hafertepen during a confrontation on an episode of The Project. (YouTube)
According to Seattle-based independent newspaper The Stranger, Jack was one of many men, nicknamed “pups,” linked to Hafertepen as part of a polyamourous “self-made family” where the men cater to the needs of the master in hopes of winning his affection.
On social media, Hafertepen was known as Noodles and Beef, where he’d regularly post photos of the bulging boys who served him.
Dylan Hafertepen. (YouTube)
The Daily Mail reported in the weeks leading to his death, Jack left a US$200,000 inheritance in his will to Hafertepen.
The Project documented Hafertepen flying from Seattle to Melbourne, where he returned Jack’s ashes to his family.
http://dailymail.co.uk/news/article...ng-scrotum-silicone-faces-bondage-master.html
http://thestranger.com/features/2018/11/07/35073826/death-of-a-kinkster
http://torontosun.com/news/world/mo...with-silicone-blames-death-on-bondage-partner