Lafayette

Workers take dive into deep doo to unclog sewer pumps

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Divers spent two days deep inside a South Carolina sewer, pulling out huge balls of oily, black used wet wipes and baby wipes that had clogged intake pumps.

12-pound lunar meteorite sells for more than $600,000

BOSTON (AP) — A 12-pound (5.5 kilogram) chunk of the moon that fell to the Earth as a lunar meteorite has been sold at auction for more than $600,000.

Man rescued from Arizona mine lucky to survive fall, snakes

PHOENIX (AP) — An Arizona man who fell to the bottom of an old abandoned gold mine shaft, broke both his legs, fought off a trio of rattlesnakes and went two days without food or water before a friend heard his cries for help is lucky to be alive, said the head of a rescue team.

Motorists stunned as metal balls roll down Seattle street

SEATTLE (AP) — Authorities in Seattle temporarily closed a street after motorists were stunned by dozens of large metal balls that spilled out of a truck and cascaded down the street, damaging several cars.

Hi Mickey, 'Bye Mickey: 6 Disney parks on 2 coasts in 1 day

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Heather and Clark Ensminger breathed sighs of relief when their Los Angeles-bound plane took off from Florida on time: Their biggest hurdle was now eliminated for achieving their goal of visiting six Disney parks on two coasts in one day.

No money down the drain for Philippine sanitation workers

Philippines sanitation workers unblocking a drain discovered dozens of wallets had been clogging it up, some containing credit cards and IDs, but no money. A man working near the scene shot video footage showing the workers in a village in Batangas city, south of the capital Manila, sorting through wallets and removing and laying out items including identity cards found in them. Police officer Mario David, who went to investigate what he suspected were stolen items, said many of the wallets were pulled out from deep in the drain, meaning they had been there for a long time.

Nobel Prize winner honored with dedicated campus bike rack

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — The University of Missouri is honoring its Nobel Prize-winning scientist with an unusual accolade: a dedicated spot in a bicycle rack.

$1,000 reward to nail thieves of California hammer sculpture

HEALDSBURG, Calif. (AP) — The artist who created an 800-pound (363 kilograms) sculpture of a hammer that was stolen from a Northern California community center is offering a $1,000 reward to nail the thieves.

Couple plans to visit 6 Disney parks on 2 coasts in 1 day

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A Tennessee couple plans to visit six Disney parks on two U.S. coasts in one day.

Doggy bag: Beagle intercepts roast pig at Atlanta airport

ATLANTA (AP) — A passenger traveling from Ecuador was relieved of leftovers when an intrepid beagle found a roasted pig's head in baggage at the world's busiest airport.

She came, she saw, she conquered, British woman claims conker crown

Standing in a rain soaked English village, more than 200 competitors armed with horse chestnuts dangling from shoelaces faced off for the World Conker Championship. The quintessential British school playground pastime involves competitors taking it in turns to launch their conkers in a bid to break those of their opponents. Victory can also be claimed if you force your opponent's shoelace to become knotted three times.

Nacho Cheese or Cool Ranch? Doritos lure rogue pig back home

HIGHLAND, Calif. (AP) — Deputies in California have used Doritos to lure a pig "the size of a mini horse" back home.

Home where witch trials victim John Proctor lived for sale

PEABODY, Mass. (AP) — A house where a victim of the Salem witch trials once lived is on the market for $600,000 just in time for Halloween.

A wagging finger sticking out of your mobile phone is creepy. Why?

A French researcher has invented a robot finger that attaches to your mobile phone. "My PhD subject is around touch in communications," explains Marc Teyssier, a researcher at Telecom Paristech engineering school.

Giant hammer artwork stolen in Northern California

HEALDSBURG, Calif. (AP) — Authorities in Northern California are looking for a hammer. A really, really big one.

For sale to the highest bidder: A 12-pound chunk of the moon

BOSTON (AP) — Anyone who can't make it to the moon to gather a few lunar rocks now has the opportunity to buy one right here on Earth.

And the fattest bear in Alaska is ... 409 Beadnose

Beadnose nosed out a larger Alaska brown bear, a male called 747 – and likened to a jumbo jet – in online votes collected by staff at Katmai National Park and Preserve during a wildly popular event called Fat Bear Week. Male bears are bigger but Beadnose was deemed to be more rotund. “Our chubby champ has a few more weeks to chow down on lingering salmon carcasses before she heads up the mountains to dig herself a den and savor her victory.” Katmai, which hugs the mountainous Gulf of Alaska coast, is known for its massive, salmon-chomping ursine residents.

Axe throwing takes aim at sunny Los Angeles

"Axe throwing gives people a good reason to put down their phones," said operation's manager Carly Chalom, better known as Seven, a nickname she got after competing in an especially epic axe throwing battle. "Put that down, step away for an hour or two, and throw some axes.

Investigators want to know who left gator in Lake Michigan

WAUKEGAN, Ill. (AP) — Authorities don't know who dumped a 4-foot-long reptile into Lake Michigan, but they now know what kind it is.

Gecko butt-dials 'bazillion' times from Hawaii seal hospital

HONOLULU (AP) — If you got incessant phone calls last week from a hospital that cares for Hawaiian monk seals, you were butt-dialed.

Animal sanctuary, farm team up to save pig from slaughter

HAVERHILL, N.H. (AP) — An animal sanctuary and a farm in New Hampshire are working together to spare a young slaughterhouse-bound pig to promote local agriculture.

Inflatable sea monster takes over a rusting warehouse

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A giant sea monster has taken over a building at Philadelphia's Navy Yard, but only temporarily.

From 'special seed' to 2,170-pound winning pumpkin

HALF MOON BAY, Calif. (AP) — "One special seed" and months of care by an Oregon commercial pilot produced a massive pumpkin that tipped the scales at a global weigh-in Monday in Northern California, the fourth time his gargantuan plants were awarded top honors.

Walk on the wild side: Dutch jogger runs into lion cub

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A jogger's run through the Dutch countryside turned into a walk on the wild side when he discovered a lion cub in a field.

Dogs owners march on UK parliament demanding new Brexit 'Wooferendum'

Bulldogs, both English and French breeds, were among those walked through central London to Parliament Square. One grey Schnauzer wore a homemade banner declaring "Brexit's Barking Mad". The march backed a wider campaign for a 'People's Vote' on Brexit, at which Britons would have the chance to vote on whatever Brexit deal Prime Minister Theresa May is able to bring back from Brussels.

How many squirrels in Central Park? Count aims to find out

NEW YORK (AP) — It's one of the enduring mysteries of life in New York City: Just how many squirrels live in Central Park?

Rock used as doorstop is actually a meteorite worth $100K

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — A Michigan man curious about a rock he'd used for decades as a doorstop now knows its secret: it's a meteorite worth $100,000.

Good Samaritan driver revives squirrel after car scare

BROOKLYN PARK, Minn. (AP) — A motionless squirrel apparently stunned by a passing car has been revived by the driver who performed chest compressions beside a Minnesota road.

Rwandan entrepreneur woos drinkers with beetroot wine

Rwandans enjoy eating beetroot but entrepreneur Assumpta Uwamariya has found a novel use for the vegetable - turning it into a red wine that has proven popular with customers in several African countries and even as far away as Germany. Unable to find a job after graduating from university, Uwamariya started growing beetroot for a living and then learned how to turn it into a rich, earthy red wine known as "Karisimbi".

Swedish girl Saga pulls out pre-Viking era sword from lake

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Her name conjures up Old Nordic tales about heroic accomplishments and that's exactly what Saga this summer did when she stumbled on a pre-Viking-era sword in a southern Sweden lake.

Whoops! Typos on highway signs vex drivers from New York to Ohio

Generations of literate drivers in New York City, for example, have done a double take when passing a sign reading "Verrazano" - with a missing "z" - directing traffic to the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, connecting the boroughs of Brooklyn and Staten Island. In New York, it has taken five decades to get around to correcting the bridge road signs, which surely have vexed generations of schoolchildren and their tax-paying parents. This week New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a bill to fix the 54-year-old howler on traffic signs to the bridge named for Giovanni da Verrazzano, the 16th-century Italian explorer who sailed into New York Harbor.