WORLD IN BRIEF
Crash in canal
A Chinese container ship has scraped against the wall of a newly inaugurated lock on the enlarged section of the Panama Canal. The container ship was one of a number of ships to cross the locks on Friday. They are the largest ships that can use the new locks after a US$5.25 billion project expansion, but it is a challenge to safely guide them in.
Parole denied
California Governor Jerry Brown has denied parole for Leslie Van Houten, 66, the youngest follower of murderous cult leader Charles Manson, who is serving a life sentence for killing a wealthy grocer and his wife in 1969. Brown overturned the recommendation of a parole board that found Van Houten was no-longer the violent young woman who committed a gruesome murder and was now fit for release. He acknowledged her success in prison and her youth at the time of the murders, but wrote that she failed to explain how she transformed from an upstanding teen to a killer.
Paramedic needs rescue
An injured Queensland paramedic had to call triple zero for himself after being stabbed on the job by a woman seeking drugs. Philip Switzer, 56, is recovering in a Brisbane hospital after an attack that left him unconscious and with a stab wound to his abdomen. When he came to, Switzer dialled 000 for help and a helicopter was sent to Fraser Island while locals rushed to the ambulance station to help him.
Sex case outrage
Two members of 60s pop group The Tremeloes strongly criticised British police yesterday after they were cleared of a sex attack almost 50 years ago. Leonard ‘Chip’ Hawkes and Richard Westwood were to stand trial next year accused of indecently assaulting a 15-year-old fan at the height of their fame in 1968. But the case collapsed after it emerged that the complainant had mental health issues and her account was riddled with inconsistencies. The woman’s allegations that she was assaulted after a concert in Chester emerged only in May 2013 when she approached police.
Floods kill almost 80
At least 78 people were killed and another 91 are missing across China after a round of torrential rains swept through the country earlier this week, flooding streams, triggering landslides and destroying houses. The Ministry of Civil Affairs said more than 400,000 people have been evacuated. The northern province of Hebei is the worst-hit with 36 people dead and another 77 missing. Local police blamed the failure of a river levee for the heavy casualties, but villagers have complained to local media that they were not notified in time to evacuate when authorities decided to discharge floodwater from an upstream reservoir.
They’ll go for you
Too busy with your real life to play “Pokemon Go?” For a price, New York entrepreneurs will play the game for you. Ads are being posted on Craigslist by people who say they will log on to your “Pokemon Go” account and run up your score while you are at work or in class. Pokemon trainers Lewis Gutierrez and Jordan Clark say they have clients paying them US$20 per hour for the service.