Tag: 8yearold

8-year-old is the only survivor after bus plunges off cliff in South Africa, killing 45 people



CAPE TOWN, South Africa — A bus carrying worshippers headed to an Easter festival plunged off a bridge on a mountain pass and burst into flames in South Africa on Thursday, killing at least 45 people, authorities said.

The only survivor of the crash was an 8-year-old child, who was receiving medical attention, according to authorities in the northern province of Limpopo.

The Limpopo provincial government said the bus veered off the Mmamatlakala bridge and plunged 164 feet into a ravine before busting into flames.

Search operations were ongoing, the provincial government said, but many bodies were burned beyond recognition and still trapped inside the vehicle.

Authorities said they believe the bus was traveling from the neighboring country of Botswana to the town of Moria, which hosts a popular Easter pilgrimage.



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A bus plunges off a bridge in South Africa, killing 45 people. 8-year-old child is only survivor


CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — A bus carrying worshippers headed to an Easter festival plunged off a bridge on a mountain pass and burst into flames in South Africa Thursday, killing at least 45 people, authorities said.

The only survivor of the crash was an 8-year-old child, who was receiving medical attention, according to authorities in the northern province of Limpopo.

The Limpopo provincial government said the bus veered off the Mmamatlakala bridge and plunged 50 meters (164 feet) into a ravine before busting into flames.

Search operations were ongoing, the provincial government said, but many bodies were burned beyond recognition and still trapped inside the vehicle.

Authorities said they believe the bus was traveling from the neighboring country of Botswana to the town of Moria, which hosts a popular Easter pilgrimage.

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AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa



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Police investigating the death of an 8-year-old swimmer found in a pipe of a lazy river at a Houston hotel


HOUSTON — Police in Houston are investigating the death of an 8-year-old girl whose body was found inside a large pipe for a lazy river at a Houston hotel where she’d been swimming with her family.

Aliyah Jaico’s death on Saturday was ruled an accidental drowning by the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences. It said she died from drowning and mechanical asphyxia, when an object or physical force stops someone from breathing. Her autopsy report is pending.

Police said the girl was found “inside a large pipe in the pool area” and was pronounced dead by paramedics.

A lawsuit filed Monday against the hotel by her mother, Jose Daniela Jaico Ahumada, alleges that the child was sucked into an unsecured opening in the pool’s flow system that was 12 inches to 16 inches wide.

“They had to break up concrete in order to extract her, cut pipe, it was absolutely horrific,” Richard Nava, her mother’s attorney, said Tuesday at a news conference.

The family was staying at the Doubletree by Hilton Houston Brookhollow, which is named as a defendant in the lawsuit along with Hilton Worldwide Holdings. A Hilton spokesperson said they were deeply saddened by the girl’s death and noted that the property is independently owned and operated by a third party. The spokesperson said that Hilton had not been served with a lawsuit and doesn’t comment on pending litigation.

A law office that the Hilton spokesperson said represented the hotel ownership did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.

Ahumada said in the lawsuit that she’d rented the room so her family could enjoy a day of swimming, an activity Aliyah loved.



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8-year-old boy survives cougar attack at national park in Washington state


An 8-year-old camper at Olympic National Park in Washington state survived with only minor injuries after a cougar attacked Friday evening, the National Park Service said.

“The cougar casually abandoned its attack after being yelled and screamed at by the child’s mother,” the park service said in a statement Sunday.

The attack was reported at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, and the injuries were minor enough that the child, identified by a park spokesperson as a boy, was hospitalized only for evaluation, it said.

The big cat was being sought by park service personnel, who plan to euthanize it under longstanding guidelines, the park service said.

“Olympic National Park has extensive protocols in place for wildlife observations, interactions, and attacks and the lethal removal of this cougar is in line with these protocols,” it said.

The area of the attack, Lake Angeles, was evacuated, campers there were made to leave, and access was closed until further notice, the park service said. Adjacent Heather Park was also closed, it said.

The park, near the U.S.-Canada border, is about 85 miles northwest of Seattle.

If the cougar is captured and killed, park service officials will order a necropsy — an autopsy for animals — in a quest to find clues about its state at the time of the attack, the park service said.

Interactions with humans, let alone attacks, are uncommon, and the reclusive big cats are a rare sight, it said.

Interaction does happen, however: Olympic National Park is cougar territory, the park service said.

“If you meet a cougar, it is important to not run because it could trigger the cougar’s attack instinct,” it said. “People should group together, appear as large as possible, keep eyes on the animal, make lots of noise and shout loudly.”

Dennis Romero

Dennis Romero is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital. 

Erick Mendoza contributed.





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Cougar attacks 8-year-old camper at Olympic National Park


An 8-year-old camper survived being attacked by a cougar at Washington’s Olympic National Park on Saturday evening, officials said. 

The attack happened around 6:30 p.m. local time at Lake Angeles, the National Park Service said. The cougar “casually abandoned its attack” after the child’s mother yelled at the animal, leaving the 8-year-old with minor injuries, according to the National Park Service. 

All other campers in the area were evacuated after the attack and access to the area was shut down “due to the extreme nature of this incident,” Olympic National Park wildlife biologist Tom Kay said in a statement.

Law enforcement and wildlife personnel went into the park early Sunday morning to find the cougar, authorities said. The cougar will be euthanized and removed from the park for a necropsy if it’s located. 

“This may provide clues as to why the animal attacked since cougars are rarely seen and attacks on humans are extraordinarily rare,” the National Park Service said.

Since 1924, state authorities have recorded around two dozen cougar-human encounters that resulted in a documented injury, including a deadly attack in 2018, according to the state Department of Fish and Wildlife. A 9-year-old girl survived a cougar attack in Washington last year.

All of Olympic National Park is considered cougar territory. Visitors to the park are advised not to hike or jog solo. Adults should keep children within sight and pets should be left at home. 

Park visitors who spot a cougar should not run because it may trigger the animal’s attack instinct. Experts advise that people should instead group together to appear as large as possible and make lots of noise/

“The idea is to convince the cougar that you are not prey, but a potential danger,” according to state Department of Fish and Wildlife guidelines.

Cougars are the largest members of the cat family found in Washington, with adult males weighing an average of 140 pounds. Adult females rarely weigh more than 110 pounds. They are most active from dusk until dawn.

Aliza Chasan

Aliza Chasan is a digital producer at 60 Minutes and CBS News.



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