Dateline: AustraliaAn Australian man could be facing a nearly $7,000 fine after allegedly using a drone to deliver a sausage. The Civil Aviation Safety Authority is investigating a viral video in which a helicopter-like drone flies to a Bunnings Warehouse hardware store in the Melbourne business district of Sunbury to pick up a sausage, which is later dropped into the hand of a man in a hot tub. “We are currently reviewing this video for compliance with Australia’s aviation safety regulations,” CASA posted on its YouTube account. “Breaching these laws with illegal drone flights may attract fines ranging between $540-$9,000” ($413 to $6,880 in American dough). CASA spokesperson Peter Gibson told the Sydney Morning Herald the action in the video breached regulations concerning the use of a drone within 100 feet of people as well as the use of a drone outside the line of sight. The video has since been removed from YouTube.Dateline: GermanyGerman broadcaster WDR reports that an 82-year-old widower in the town of Bad Münstereifel lost his wedding ring some three years ago—but found it recently wrapped around a carrot from his garden. The discovery comes six months after his wife’s death. According to the German media report, the man pulled the carrot from his garden and found his cold wedding band wrapped around the middle of the vegetable like a belt. The Associated Press added that the man, who has not been named, recently celebrated what would have been his 50th wedding anniversary. Dateline: SlovakiaTwo brothers were crowned the best grave diggers in central Europe at the Grave Digging Championships, held in the Slovakian city of Trencin on Thursday, Nov. 10. Brothers Ladislav and Csaba Skladan from Slovakia beat out nine other teams from Slovakia, Poland and Hungary to claim top honors. Contestants were graded on speed as well as accuracy. Graves had to be exactly 5-feet deep, 6.5-feet long and 3-feet wide, and contestants could only use shovels and picks. The annual event is intended to promote the funeral industry and bring some levity to the serious profession. “This whole exhibition is about getting groups of funeral companies together,” event spokesperson Christian Striz, who was dressed as the Grim Reaper, told reporters. “It’s all about showing how hard” the gravedigger’s job is. The Skladan brothers completed their task in just 54 minutes.Dateline: EnglandA shopkeeper in Margate, a seaside town in Kent, England, has been issued a fine for sweeping the sidewalk in front of his store. Ryan Bond, who manages the Rat Race clothing store on Margate High Street, was sweeping in front of the store as he does every day when two environment wardens from the Thanet District Council approached him and handed over an £80 ($98) fixed penalty notice. The wardens argued that since Bond touched the sidewalk trash—including cigarette butts—with his broom, he took responsibility for it. Therefore, sweeping the trash into the roadway to be picked up by the street cleaning machines amounted to littering. The 21-year-old Bond told KentOnline that he’s been using a broom to sweep the sidewalk for more than a year. “It’s put me off tidying the front of the shop because I’m worried I’m going to get fined,” he said. Bond wrote a letter to the local Council, hoping to appeal the ticket. One Council official has already come forward to condemn Bond’s actions, however. Head of operational services Geoff Dunne said, “Whilst we appreciate that Mr. Bond was trying to keep his shop entrance clear, it should be noted that had Mr. Bond collected up and binned the litter, the outcome would have been different.” Dateline: FloridaA 21-year-old man was arrested after deputies say he pulled a gun on his sister after she accidentally washed his drug-filled pants. The Miami Herald reports the Christopher Burns got into an argument with his 19-year-old sister at their Clay County-area house on Thursday, Oct. 27, after she washed his pants—which allegedly had ecstasy in the pockets. Deputies say Burns pointed a gun at his sister and “fired a few rounds into the ground outside.” By the time deputies arrived at the home, they said furniture had been tossed and broken. Deputies said Burns’ sister told them she was “afraid her brother was going to fatally shoot her.” He was arrested and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Ironically, Burns’ mug shots highlight his large neck tattoo which reads “Family.”
Compiled by Devin D. O'Leary. Email your weird news to devin@alibi.com.
