oddly enough

oddly enough

Lightning strikes twice for NJ’s Lucy the Elephant

MARGATE, N.J.

Who says lightning never strikes twice in the same place? Certainly not Lucy the Elephant.

The national historic landmark on the Jersey shore — billed as the world’s largest elephant — was damaged over the weekend by a lightning strike that knocked out electrical, computer, alarm and air-conditioning systems.

Richard Helfant, executive director of the group that operates Lucy, says Sunday’s lightning strike could cost anywhere from $10,000 to $100,000 to fix.

Lucy also was hit by lightning in 2006. That hit caused $162,000 worth of damage to her riding carriage, called a howdah. After that incident, lightning rods were installed. They may have helped limit the damage from Sunday’s strike.

The popular 65-foot tall wood and metal tourist attraction just south of Atlantic City remains open and will mark its 130th birthday in two weeks.

Lost pigeon from Tenn. race finds way to Ohio

LANCASTER, Ohio

A homing pigeon from Maryland flew hundreds of miles off course and is being cared for in Ohio, where a woman found it in her yard.

The owner says the bird was lost after starting a race June 2 in Knoxville, Tenn.

The pigeon stayed around the central Ohio home of Betty Swartz in Lancaster for about three weeks, until she called the local pigeon club. She tells the Lancaster Eagle-Gazette she fed it, though it wouldn’t come too close.

Jack Donley with the Lancaster Pigeon Club speculates the racing bird was blown off track by recent East Coast storms.

Through a tag on the pigeon’s foot, he traced it to owner Jim Norris of a Maryland racing club near Baltimore. Norris is arranging to get it home.

Police: Polite NJ burglar offers to repair screen

VINELAND, N.J.

Authorities say a burglar offered to repair the screen that he damaged breaking into a New Jersey home after he was confronted by the homeowner and told her he meant to break into a neighbor’s home.

The homeowner, Maria Cardona, tells The Press of Atlantic City that the man made her nervous as he told her about his family and kept a hand in his pocket. She says he was “really polite,” but she just wanted him to leave.

Vineland police say nothing was stolen during the encounter last week.

Associated Press