oddly enough

oddly enough

Leaking lime juice sends responders to cargo jet

KETCHIKAN, Alaska

A mysterious liquid leaking on a cargo jet sent emergency responders to the island that is home to the Ketchikan, Alaska, airport.

Turns out, a bartender with a dish towel could have handled the problem.

The Ketchikan Daily News reports the leak Tuesday on the Alaska Airlines 737-700 was traced to a container of lime juice that broke open during a flight from Seattle.

Alaska Airlines spokesman Cole Cosgrove says workers first detected the sour-smelling liquid coming from a cargo container.

Airport staff took a cautious approach and called for emergency responders from the Ketchikan Fire Department to take a ferry to the airport on Gravina Island.

The leaking lime juice was diagnosed as the source at 7:30 p.m.

Ketchikan cargo was unloaded, and the jet continued to Sitka, Juneau and Anchorage.

Police: Man caused $14,000 damage by doing doughnuts

BUTLER, Pa.

Police say a Pennsylvania man caused more than $14,000 damage to several other vehicles when he took a dare to do a “doughnut” with his pickup truck in a bar parking lot.

Police say 35-year-old Brett Whitmire’s truck kicked up damaging stones as it spun in a tight circle in the parking lot of the Beer Garden in Washington Township on Aug. 18.

Butler County prosecutors tell the Butler Eagle they’re willing to drop a felony criminal mischief charge if Whitmire, of Butler, pays for the damage.

Whitmire was arraigned by video Tuesday as he’s in a state prison on a parole violation. His attorney called the incident a “mistake.” He says criminal mischief requires prosecutors to prove the damage was intentional, not just an accident.

Police: Lonely man made repeated 911 phone calls

HARRISON CITY, Pa.

A Pennsylvania man has been charged with making three 911 calls to report bogus emergencies simply because he was lonely and wanted paramedics to show up.

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports 52-year-old Gregory Shaffer was jailed after his arraignment Wednesday on charges of making false reports to authorities.

Penn Township police say Shaffer called Westmoreland County’s 911 center three times over about four hours July 30 with various false complaints. The first time, Shaffer claimed he had fallen down some stairs and injured his head and neck. Paramedics say they found him intoxicated but otherwise well and calmly waiting inside his home.

Online court records don’t list an attorney for Shaffer. He’s in the county jail and faces a preliminary hearing Tuesday.

Associated Press