SafetyLastMiscellany

[Mangoboy]

Popbitch.com (http://www.popbitch.com) mail a weekly newletter of the weird and the wonderful. This week the mailing contained this story:

A hippopotamus swallowed a circus dwarf in a freak accident in northern Thailand last week.

The circus dwarf, Od, was in mid-act, bouncing on a trampoline, when he accidentally jumped sideways... and straight into the mouth of Hilda the hippopotamus, who was yawning on the sidelines, waiting for her act to get underway. Hilda's gag reflex took over.. and Od was swallowed hole.

The 1000 spectators in the audience applauded wildly ... until they realised what they were watching wasn't part of any act.

Does anybody know if this is true? Or is it destined to be confined to the urban legend file of life?

[ncr]

Does anybody know if this is true? Or is it destined to be confined to the urban legend file of life?Sure sounds like one. Let's at least hope it isn't true...... :eek:

[GWR]

Remember seeing a talk show about ten years ago. Two guys on a motorcycle became impaled on a substantial I-Beam which was overhanging an unlit lowloader at night on a country road. An amateur video showed the frenzied and chaotic attempts to help them, as they were still sitting conscious on the motorcycle shouting 'jep mahk, jep mahk' every few seconds. There was a surgeon in a car that arrived at the scene of the accident soon after. He got some local mechanics to cut the I-Beam with oxy torches; and they were then carted off to the nearest operating theater still too close together to cut the beam between them. The surgeon had to sever half the abdominal area of both guys and lift the ribcages over the beam. They survived. They also survived the talkshow.

[jpatokal]

Sure sounds like one. Let's at least hope it isn't true...... :eek:
Well, the first thing that struck me as a little weird is that a hippopotamus is involved. One, as far as I know the beasts don't live anywhere near Thailand, and two, they're notoriously large, vicious, stupid and ugly so they make a pretty bad choice for a circus. What on earth would a hippo do as its act, dance in a tutu? :confused:

[ncr]

What on earth would a hippo do as its act, dance in a tutu? :confused:Just try to imagine that...... *Burst out laughing* :D :D :D

Anyway, you raised some valid points, Jpatokal!

[Jon Combe]

Sadly this is a very old tale originally 'believed' to have happened in the US, but let's face it, didn't happen at all. Type 'hippo eats dwarf' into google and watch the credibility of the story a bit too difficult to chew, pun intended. ;-)

[ConorBracken]

It's even on snopes.com -- the best directory of urban legends.

"An Austrian circus dwarf died recently when he bounced sideways from a trampoline and was swallowed by a hippopotamus. Seven thousand people watched as little Franz Dasch popped into the mouth of Hilda the Hippo and the animal's gag reflex forced it to swallow. The crowd applauded wildly before other circus people realized what had happened."

http://www.snopes.com/humor/nonsense/typos01.htm

Not sure why it's classfied as a typographical error though

[Wisarut]

Yesterday, I got a strong rainstorm at Thammasart University (Rangsit campus) from 3 PM to 5 PM ... many small trees uproots! :eek:

Today, anotehr subber rainstorm is coming AGAIN :eek:

[Wisarut]

Nowaday, when patients compaints about the malpractices by doctors ... and file the complains abotu the malpractices to Thai FDA, thsoe patient will be GUNNED DOWN while Thai FDA officers got threatenign telephone calls ...

FUrthermore, those from Thai Medical Association are increasingly caring more on theri own selfish interests at the expense of the public well being ...
They refuse to investigate the doctors who commit such a crime of malpractice toward patients ...

Sooner or later, the publci will label those selfish doctors as "thuggish in physicina uniform" ... after labeling police as "Thugs in Khaki"

Look and this and you'll see:
http://www.manager.co.th/QOL/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9500000111766

[mdechgan]

Oh what a country Thailand is.
I just don't see how Thailand will improve if the people put up with this.

Traffic is horrible especially at 7-8am and at around 5 pm. Yet people put up with the traffic instead of demanding more from the government they just wake up earlier like at 5am and go home late after a few visits to the local pub, shopping center, masage parlour.

The corruption in the police department is so evident and horrid it is a joke. There should be an internal affairs division or something.

The law enfocement is a joke. One can kill a person in cold blood with many witnesses and get away with it with enough payments while some kid gets jailed for selling flowers on the corner.

The cops blackmail (request donations) millions in protection money from pubs, stalls and truck drivers while some poor Indian gets hasseled and roughed up for selling 5 baht rotee without an ID card.

Democracy doesn't mean a thing unless the people start standing up for their rights. Which they won't because millions still sell their votes for a few hundred baht.

[Wisarut]

Noiw, Even TESCO Lotus is hiring Thugs to make a threatenign phone calls to thsoe Mom & Pop retailers and ready to employ gunmen to shoot down thsoe who stand on the way agaisnt the plan to set up discount stores :eek:

http://www.manager.co.th/Home/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9500000119237

[GWR]

Where else in the world would smelling salts prove a successful treatment for a large centipede bite::D

Man cheats death after he sustains a Centipede bite

http://www.pattayacitynews.net/pic_webnews/08_11_1.jpg
[Photo: Pattaya City News]

On Wednesday Night, Rescue Workers received an urgent call to attend to a Thai Man, Khun Mongkong aged 31, who had become seriously ill after sustaining a bite from a large Centipede. The man was walking around the back of his house and was wearing only sandals. It was dark and he suddenly felt a sharp pain on his right ankle and realized he had been bitten. He soon lost consciousness and his breathing became shallow. He was rushed to the Queen Sirigit Hospital and we can report he was given drugs to counteract the affects of the bite and he is now expected to fully recover from the ordeal.