At a rehearsal on Sept. 16 for an airshow in Changchun, China, two flying cars collided while performing difficult stunts, CNN reported. The electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicles are intended to be part of a "low-altitude economy" in China, which includes flying taxis, drone deliveries and other services below 3,000 meters. Xpeng Aeroht, the company that makes the vehicles, said the collision happened because of "insufficient spacing. All personnel at the scene are safe." However, an unidentified employee said one pilot sustained minor injuries. [CNN, 9/16/2025]

Compelling Explanation

Officer David Jewell, 45, of the Edgewater (Florida) Police Department, was killed on Sept. 15, MSN reported, at the Circle K in Ormond Beach. Jewell died after being shot by Circle K employee Eduardo Felipe Labrada Machado, 24, the Volusia County Sheriff's Office said. Machado confessed to the shooting, telling authorities that "he was having a bad day on his drive to work" and had "thought about shooting Jewell earlier" because Jewell carried a firearm and Machado was afraid of him. Machado's family members said he had been "diagnosed with a mental health disorder in the past." [MSN, 9/16/2025]

Freak Accident

As Jessica Preciado drove on a freeway on Sept. 15 in Los Angeles County, she heard a pop, then immediately experienced a sharp pain in her backside, Yahoo! News reported. Preciado said she thought she'd been shot, but when paramedics arrived, they saw that her left buttock had been pierced by a metal rod that had come through the rear of her Ford Fusion and the driver's seat. "I was so confused as to where this injury was coming from," Preciado said. Now recovering from the accident, she believes the rod must have fallen off a truck and urges drivers to secure their loads before hitting the road. [Yahoo! News, 9/18/2025]

It's a Dirty Job

In Szekszard, Hungary, on Sept. 6, more than 20 teams competed in the International Grave Digging Championship, Oddity Central reported. The contest is sponsored by the country's Association of Cemetery Operators and Maintainers (MTFE) and is intended to raise the prestige of the profession. Teams of two must dig graves 2 meters long, 80 centimeters wide and 1.6 meters deep within two hours, then shovel the dirt back into the holes to create a neat burial mound. Contestants are judged on speed, accuracy and attention to detail. The Hungarian team of Laszlo Kiss and Robert Nagy won the first prize for the second year in a row. "The winners credited their success to the routine they developed in their daily work without any special training," the MTFE said. The Russian team came in last, blaming their performance on the hot weather. [Oddity Central, 9/17/2025]

The Foreign Press

Meanwhile, in Scotland, scandal erupted at the World Stone Skimming Championship, United Press International reported on Sept. 16. The stones used in the contest are required to be naturally occurring slate from the island of Easdale, where the match takes place, but several contestants were found to be using stones that had been smoothed and shaped by machine. Kyle Matthews, the Toss Master, said he "contacted the individuals, who admitted their transgressions, and I had to disqualify them." Matthews said the organizers are considering having competitors choose from already-vetted stones in the future, rather than providing their own. Jonathan Jennings of Kentucky became the first American to win the adult male category; repeat champion Lucy Woods won the adult female category. [UPI, 9/16/2025]

Suspicions Confirmed

The Times reported that on Sept. 15, as a French airliner prepared to land in Corsica, the pilot ended up having to circle above the Mediterranean Sea for 18 minutes, unable to get a response from the air traffic control tower. The flight from Paris was an hour late, arriving after midnight, and only one controller was on the job. As the aircraft circled, the airport's fire crew went to the tower and found the controller asleep at his desk. He woke up, switched on the runway lights and cleared the jet to approach. The pilot said the passengers "treated the incident with good humor," and the controller was tested for drugs and alcohol, for which he was clean. [The Times, 9/17/2025]

Government at Work

More than 50 animals -- mostly cats and a few others -- vied for the title of Bike Path Mayor this summer in Somerville, Massachusetts, NBCBoston-TV reported. On Sept. 14, Minerva the cat, whose one-word campaign slogan was "Crime," took the honors. Somerville residents were able to vote via a QR code in an election that had been going on since July. One Somervillian said Minerva's "platform of crime, I think, really resonated with people." [NBCBoston, 9/16/2025]

Inexplicable

A cameraman touring with singer-songwriter Benson Boone was arrested in Clearwater, Florida, on charges of criminal mischief and disorderly intoxication after he allegedly entered the Surf Style shop on Sept. 11 and relieved himself on almost $700 worth of clothing. The Smoking Gun reported that Tyler Capehart, 39, of Georgia, told cops that he had "consumed alcohol and smoked marijuana," but he said he had no recollection of peeing on the clothing in the store. He posted $650 bond and was released. [The Smoking Gun, 9/12/2025]

Bright Idea

Just after midnight on Sept. 15, a man swam up to the Paddlefish restaurant in Disney Springs, Florida, removed his wet suit and scuba gear, and robbed the restaurant, WFTV reported. Orange County deputies said the thief allegedly walked into the manager's office, where the night's take was being counted, and ordered two employees to stand in the corner and close their eyes. He tied them up, then scooped up tens of thousands of dollars and left, putting his gear back on and swimming into the night. The sheriff's office said the investigation is ongoing. [WFTV, 9/15/2025]

The Continuing Crisis

Kasper Lincoln, 40, of Prince George, British Columbia, was pulled over around 9 a.m. on Sept. 5 as he piloted a hot pink kids' Barbie Jeep down a busy road, WJW-TV reported. During the stop, police realized Lincoln had a suspended license, and he tested over the legal limit for alcohol. Lincoln said he really wanted a Slurpee, so he took his girlfriend's daughter's car. "I never drove it before," he said. "I was using the hand signals and everything!" But attorney Kyla Lee said Lincoln's caper poses "a huge safety risk. Nobody wants to hit somebody in a Barbie car, and drivers aren't looking for Barbie cars in the roadway." Lincoln was charged with prohibited driving and DUI. [WJW, 9/16/2025]

News You Can Use

Wild burros, a federally protected species, are being targeted in inland California, the Associated Press reported. On Sept. 9, a female burro, now called Cupid, was spotted with an arrow protruding from her right shoulder. Animal services and the Riverside County Sheriff's Department worked together to bring her in for emergency surgery. At least six donkeys have been shot with arrows since June, the Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue group said. The group is offering a $24,000 reward for information about who is shooting the donkeys. In the meantime, Cupid is recovering from surgery and will be returned to her herd when she is well. [AP, 9/16/2025]

In Manchester, England, a band called Bionic and the Wires is on the cutting edge of fun-guy (fungi) music, Metro News reported on Sept. 2. Jon Ross and Andy Kidd are producing music by attaching sensors to mushrooms and plants to turn their electrical signals into musical notes. The sensors are attached to bionic arms, which strike the instruments. The different organisms create different beats. "It's a really good way to connect with (plants and mushrooms) and a really sort of emotional experience," Ross said. [Metro News, 9/2/2025]

That's Not How You Play

In a new twist on Ding Dong Ditch, German authorities have identified the culprit of late-night doorbell rings in Schwabach, Bavaria, United Press International reported on Sept. 9. Police were called to an apartment building where several residents complained of the unexpected doorbells, but they couldn't see anyone on their front-door cameras. They suspected that kids were pranking them, but authorities discovered that a slug was crawling across a panel and triggering several doorbells in the process. Officers relocated the slug and declined to press charges. [UPI, 9/9/2025]

Animal Antics

A baby raccoon that was dubbed Otis Campbell (after the town drunk on "The Andy Griffith Show") was rescued from certain death by a nurse in Whitesburg, Kentucky, in early September, Lex18-TV reported. Misty Combs works at the Letcher County Health Department, right next door to Kentucky Mist Moonshine. She and her co-workers noticed a raccoon running through the parking lot, then heard commotion in a nearby dumpster. The moonshine company "had put some fermented peaches in their dumpster," Combs said, "and I guess the baby raccoons had gotten in." The mother raccoon was frantic, so the RN got busy. One of the babies was rescued with a shovel and ran to its mom, but the other one was face-down in water at the bottom of the container. Combs pulled it out by its tail and started chest compressions, and the animal started breathing again. Fish and wildlife officials transported the drunk baby to a local vet for sobering up, and it was released back to its mother the following day. [Lex18, 9/3/2025]

Least Competent Criminal

As the Rhapsody of the Seas cruise ship pulled into port in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on Sept. 7, one passenger disembarked in a most unusual way, USA Today reported. Jey Gonzalez-Diaz jumped ship with his backpack, a criminal complaint alleges, which contained $14,600, two phones and five IDs. Two passing jet skis picked him up, and Customs and Border Protection later detained him near the Puerto Rico Capitol. Gonzalez-Diaz told CBP that he went overboard because "he thought he was going to be taxed duties for bringing in the currency," but it turned out he also had a $16,710 debt with the cruise line, "almost exclusively associated to casino and gaming expenses," CBP said. Gonzalez-Diaz could face a fine of $250,000, a five-year prison sentence or both. [USA Today, 9/10/2025]

Questionable Judgment

Sean O'Donnell, 46, of Harris County, Texas, was charged with murder in late August, NBC News reported on Sept. 2. When deputies first responded on Aug. 17 at O'Donnell's home, they found Aaron Pratt, 34, with a gunshot wound to his head. He died from his injuries. Authorities first believed his death was a suicide, but then said "things weren't adding up." Allegedly, O'Donnell and Pratt were taking turns shooting each other in the head with a rifle while wearing a Kevlar helmet (and while being under the influence of alcohol). O'Donnell was held on $300,000 bond. [NBC News, 9/2/2025]

Can't Possibly Be True

An 80-year-old woman from Sapporo, Japan, is the latest victim of an online "astronaut," the South China Morning Post reported on Sept. 5. The man met the octogenarian on social media and claimed to be aboard a spaceship orbiting Earth. He went on to convince her that his ship was "under attack" and he was running out of oxygen -- which could only be remedied by the transfer of 1 million yen to his bank account so he could buy more. Investigators said her communications with the fake spaceman showed she had developed "romantic feelings" for him. [SCMP, 9/5/2025]

Recent Alarming Headline

Richard Catrone, 67, of retirement community Belmont Villas in Long Island, New York, was walking his dog on Sept. 9 when 76-year-old Kathleen Schuman emerged from her apartment and shot Catrone in the face with a flare gun, NBCWashington reported. As seen on home security video, Catrone let go of his dog's leash and lunged at Schuman: "My next inclination was to get the gun and I knocked it out of her hand ... I wanted to protect my dog," Catrone said. "She claimed I was the devil, that I tried to murder her." Neighbors said the two have feuded before over Schuman sitting outside with her cat, which was "always upsetting his dog." "I just asked her can you keep the cat inside," Catrone said, "and that started the situation." Schuman was charged with assault and pleaded not guilty; her attorney said she would temporarily live with a relative. [NBCWashington, 9/10/2025]

The Neighbors

"Gorilla-obsessed" Adele Teale, 58, is battling the Wakefield, Yorkshire, council where she lives over a 4-foot-tall resin gorilla she installed on a second-story platform on the front of her house, the Daily Star reported. The "cherished" gorilla, named Caesar, has been deemed "out of character with the surrounding area" and "an obtrusive feature" by the council. "He's nothing more than a garden ornament," Teale said. "He is secure up there -- he has been screwed and glued in place. I own the house, it's mine, so surely I can have whatever I want outside to decorate it. Caesar makes me smile -- he makes me happy." [Daily Star, 9/9/2025]

Awesome!

Have no fear, if you live in Greenville, South Carolina -- Spider-Man is on the job! The 18-year-old superhero fills his down time with picking up litter, meeting fans and listening to his police scanner, WYFF4-TV reported on Sept. 10. Lately, though, he's been busy, recently saving two people stuck on a waterfall at Falls Park. "So, I saw one of them almost slip and fall ... and I jumped over some rocks to get over there. ... And then they grabbed my wrist, and I pulled them up," the "friendly downtown Spider-Man" explained. "My intention is to help the people of Greenville, protect and honestly spread kindness along the way," he said. [WYFF4-TV, 9/10/2025]

But Why?

All the king's horses and all the king's men are looking for two men who nabbed a Humpty Dumpty statue from Ocean Putt Miniature Golf in Cape May, New Jersey, on Sept. 7. NBC4-TV reported that the thieves were captured on surveillance video as they climbed a fence and removed the character before dropping it at a property a few doors away. Police hope the public will help them identify the bad eggs who vandalized the statue. [NBC4, 9/11/2025]

Perhaps it was the stress of speaking in front of others. Perhaps it was just a call to a higher Michael Jackson. On Sept. 2 in Cranford, New Jersey, resident Will Thilly appeared at a town hall meeting to ask questions about a recent property tax hike, WABC-TV reported. But before he uttered a word, he performed a wordless robot dance, without music, and spun on the floor. Then he asked, "How was everyone's weekend?" He went on to ask a few specific questions about taxes and school expenses, then gathered his papers from the podium and moonwalked back to his seat. Oh -- and Thilly is a candidate for the Cranford township committee. "I hope to bring a friendly, stress-free way of our committee when dealing with the public," he says on his website. [WABC, 9/4/2025]

Fail

Hopes were dashed into the sweet winds on Oct. 2 as the Dolce Vento was launched into the water off the coast of Zonguldak, Turkey, the New York Post reported. The $1 million, 85-foot yacht slipped into the water and almost immediately started listing to its port side before sinking. The new owner, captain and two crew members were able to jump overboard and swim to the nearby shore without injury. Shipyard officials said the cause of the sinking was under investigation. [NY Post, 9/3/2025]

Bad Dog!

Registered sex offender Rodney Platthy, 46, has been working at a pet store in Clearwater, Florida, The Smoking Gun reported. His job is to wear an inflatable puppy costume and stand outside the store to lure in pet lovers. But on Aug. 29, Platthy and the store owner got into it with several "juveniles (riding) by on bicycles." It wasn't their first beef with the kids, and as one of them tried to ride away, Platthy "approached the victim from behind and placed him in a chokehold," police said. The victim told police he couldn't breathe for a brief period. Platthy was arrested for battery by strangulation and ordered to have no contact with the victim; he posted a $10,000 bond. [The Smoking Gun, 9/3/2025]

What's in a Name?

-- This week's winner of Best Name for a Credit Card Fraud Suspect is Alec Bogus, 33, of Aurora, Colorado. Bogus gets bonus points for his attempted escape from law enforcement on Aug. 26, when he was approached at the Indian Hot Springs resort in Idaho Springs, Colorado. According to CBS News, Bogus, who also had an outstanding felony warrant from Douglas County, was just exiting the mud bath wearing only a Speedo when officers arrived. He ran up a wooded mountainside and tried to hide in a shed, but he was recovered a short time later still covered in mud. His charges included assault on a peace officer and resisting arrest. [CBS News, 8/28/2025]

-- Indianapolis-based bankruptcy attorney Mark S. Zuckerberg is suing Meta, the company of Mark E. Zuckerberg, because the former's Facebook page keeps getting shut down, WTHR-TV reported on Sept. 4. "It's not funny," the attorney said. Meta has been accusing him of impersonating a celebrity and using a false name, "which I've had way longer than he has," he said. "I'd rather not pick a fight with them, but I don't know how else to make them stop." He said his business account has been removed five times and his personal account four. "It's not right and they need to stop," he said. And so, they have: Meta confirmed that Zuckerberg's account is back up after being "disabled in error." [WTHR, 9/4/2025]

That Rule Doesn't Apply to Me

A court in Germany has ruled that an unnamed teacher who has been on sick leave for 16 years must prove that she is ill, Metro News reported on Aug. 23. Since 2009, the female teacher has been drawing her full salary in spite of not working at all. When the education authority in North Rhine-Westphalia demanded that she take a medical test, she sued. But the court called her case "truly incomprehensible" and ruled that the employer had the right to call for the test. Andreas Bartsch, president of the state's teachers' union, called her behavior "completely abysmal." [Metro News, 8/23/2025]

Maybe the Hyenas Ate Your Groomsman

Nicolas Hohls, 27, of Harburg, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, was camping at Cape Vidal Nature Reserve in St. Lucia, South Africa, on Aug. 30 when he got unexpected overnight visitors. Hohls was there with his dad and others for a bachelor party, People magazine reported. After settling in his tent, he woke up to two hyenas attacking him -- one focused on his face, the other on his ankle. "I fought them off by ... attacking the eyes of one and forcing my hand down the throat of the other," Hohls said. His dad heard him screaming and rushed him to a hospital, where doctors say a full recovery will take about a month. "I'm doing a lot better. The doctors are happy with my progress," he said. [People, 9/3/2025]

Awkward

Police in Canton, Connecticut, are searching for the owners of a silver urn containing cremated remains that was left along a running trail near the Canton Department of Public Works, WFSB-TV reported on Sept. 4. Authorities report that they tried to open the urn, but it appears to be sealed shut. Officers hope whoever misplaced the object will come forward to retrieve it. [WFSB, 9/4/2025]

It's a Mystery

Over the Labor Day weekend, hikers on Huron Peak in Colorado got a special surprise when they reached the summit of the 14,000-foot-plus mountain, the Associated Press reported. Seated in a camping chair, wearing an ice cream cone costume and sunglasses with a fake mustache, was an unnamed man who had hauled up ice cream sandwiches in a pack with dry ice. One hiker dubbed him "legend dairy" for rewarding climbers with the sweet treat. "Ice cream was just kind of what we wanted," said Blaine Griffin. Griffin said he saw the man zooming down the mountain once the ice cream was gone, sans costume. [AP, 9/4/2025]