Big Ben, the London Eye, Buckingham Palace … now tourists can add Wet Wipe Island to their lists of must-see attractions in England’s capital. The Times of London reported on June 24 that an island the size of two tennis courts and composed entirely of used wet wipes has appeared in the Thames River that meanders through the city. Government ministers have asked people to stop using the wipes and are considering a ban on those that contain plastic. Fleur Anderson, a Labour Party MP, said she has visited the site: “I’ve … stood on it — it’s near Hammersmith Bridge in the Thames and it’s a meter deep or more in places. It’s actually changed the course of the Thames.” Environmental minister Rebecca Pow asked citizens not to flush the wipes and said a proposal for dealing with the problem would be forthcoming “very shortly.”
What’s a 6-year-old to do when her tooth falls out during an airline flight and gets lost on the plane? After Lena and her family returned to the Greenville-Spartanburg (South Carolina) airport from a trip to Norway on June 17, she realized her tooth was nowhere to be found, WHNS-TV reported. The flight crew noticed that Lena was upset as her family tried to go back onto the plane to look for it; instead, United Airlines Capt. Josh Duchow went the extra mile, writing a note to the Tooth Fairy to make sure Lena got credit for her missing tooth.
On June 26, when traffic came to a complete standstill on I-85 in Atlanta, many people left their cars to walk around, play Frisbee or — in Hailey Ann Smith’s case — strum the harp. “I was in my concert gown and I had the harp in the car from a wedding … so I parked myself in the very middle of the interstate and played a few songs for everybody!” she wrote on Facebook, according to The News & Observer. “It’s not every day you get to play your baby grand harp on the middle of I-85.” “Wow, what a great way to share beautiful music!” one Facebook user responded.
A wild rabbit that looks like something out of a “Star Wars” bar scene is alarming residents of a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, neighborhood, KELO-TV reported. The rabbit’s head and face are covered with growths that look like tentacles, which bob around as the animal moves. Dennis Schorr saw the bunny on July 7: “I walk my dogs every day and I see lots of rabbits — but today was very unusual,” he said. Game Fish and Parks biologist Josh Delger said the growths are caused by a form of papillomavirus found only in cottontail rabbits. He said cases this severe are seen every few years, and the virus can spread from wild rabbits to pet rabbits, but it’s unlikely it would spread to dogs.
– distributed by Andrews McMeel Syndication
Subscribe for the Greenville Journal's free weekly digest of community stories.
Input your search keywords and press Enter.