850 Snakes Found in Shirley Home

850 snakes found in NY
Image credit: AP / Daily Mail

About 850 snakes were found inside the home of an animal control officer in Shirley, New York on Thursday, September 19, 2013.

Authorities say that along with the 850 snakes found in two garage of Richard Parinello were two 6-foot Burmese pythons.

The 44-year-old Brookhaven Town employee is being accused of selling the snakes.

Keeping Burmese pythons is illegal in the state of New York.

According to Suffolk County SPCA Chief Roy Gross, "There is a reason why Burmese pythons are illegal."

Last month, two young boys, Noah and Connor Barthe, in New Brunswick, Canada were reportedly fell victim by an African rock python.

Lake Michigan Waterspouts Caught on Video Off Kenosha Coast (VIDEO)

Lake Michigan Waterspouts
Credit: Michael Madsen
Two waterspouts in Lake Michigan that was caught on video went viral over the internet. Several photos of the Lake Michigan waterspouts were also published on several social networking sites.

Officer Michael Madsen of the Kenosha Police Department personally witnessed and took photos of the two towering clouds on Thursday.

The waterspout, usually form over an ocean, sea or large lake, is reportedly weaker than land tornados. The phenomenon usually appear on the Great lakes during the fall.

Below is a video showing the Lake Michigan waterspouts formation.

Smallest Car in the World: Tiny Texas Street Legal Car Gains Guinness Nod

World's smallest street-legal car
Credit: Video grab
The Guinness Book of World Records has awarded the world's smallest street-legal car to a Texas man.

Austin Coulson custom built a car using several spare parts from a toy and tiny gas engine from an all-terrain mini-car. He was able to create a car similar to a 1957 Chevrolet.

Coulson's record-breaking car was measured at 25 inches high, 24.75 inches wide and and 49.75 inches long.

Reports say that the smallest car in the world can run at a maximum speed of 25 mph.

Gargantuan Ferris Wheel in Las Vegas is World's Largest? (Photo, Video)

Gargantuan Ferris wheel in Las Vegas
Credit: Video grab
A gargantuan ferris wheel, considered to be the world's largest for now, will soon be operational in the Las Vegas Strip.

The 55-story ferris wheel, part of the $550 million gargantuan project of Caesars Entertainment Corp.

Reports say that the ferris wheel is expected to start spinning early next year. It will be glittered with 1,500 LED lights.

Its 100 feet High Roller will be put in place on Monday, September 16, 2013.

According to project director, David Codiga, the ferris wheel is "going to be an icon. It's going to be a part of your visit to Las Vegas if you ride it or not."

With its gigantic height, the ferris wheel is expected to dwarf the London Eye, China's Star of Nanchang and Singapore Flyer.

The Las Vegas Ferris wheel will take 30 minutes to make one revolution.

Caesars spokeswoman, Christina Karas, revealed that tickets for the ferris wheel ride will costs about $30.

Below is a Youtube video of the gargantuan ferris wheel while under construction.

231-pound Halibut captured in Homer, Alaska (Photo)

231-pound Halibut
Credit: DeepStrike Sportfishing

A 231-pound Halibut was caught by Dirk Whitsitt during his first fishing trip in Cook Inlet off Homer, Alaska.

It reportedly took about 45 minutes before the massive fish was taken out from a 370 feet deep of water.

Whitsitt turned down a $250 voucher offer, from Captain David Bayes of DeepStrike Sportfishing, in exchange for the monster fish.

According to Bayes he usually "offer fishermen a free trip if they opt to release a halibut of that size, but the angler was not interested. That was the third halibut over 200 pounds that we’ve caught in the last month. One was estimated at 225 pounds and released. The other was 236 pounds and is the current Homer Halibut Jackpot Derby leader."

Bayes explained that during, "the end of the fight, the fish headed back toward the bottom and we had to release the anchor to follow the fish. We shot it three times with a .38 special and used three gaffs to pull it aboard."

Six-clawed lobster: Lola caught in Maine (Photo)

Six-clawed lobster named Lola
Credit: RICHARD FIGUEIREDO/RACHEL LEAH/WBZ

Lola, a six-clawed lobster, was captured off the coast in Hyannis, Massachusetts.

The 4-pound lobster was later donated to the Maine State Aquarium in West Boothbay Harbor.

Rachel Leah Captain Peter Brown and lobsterman Richard Figueiredo caught the strange looking lobster. The six-clawed lobster is an addition to their growing collection of "weird lobsters."

She has a normal claw on her right side and five claws on the other side.

Marine Scientist David Libby explained that "Sometimes the genes will just get a little mixed and it will grow a funny claw. But I’ve never seen anything like this.”

Oarfish or Loch Ness Monster Found in Spain? (Photos)

Loch Ness Monster? or Oarfish?
Credit: Facebook Page of Ideal.es Ameria

Oarfish or Loch Ness Monster?

Authorities are now at a loss over a 13-foot creature that was found lifeless along the Luis Siret Beach shoreline in Villaricos, Spain on Wednesday, August 21, 2013.

According to Maria Sanches of the Cuevas Civil Protection, the carcass of the mysterious creature was discovered by a lady.

Sanches explained that "A lady found one part and we helped her retrieve the rest. We have no idea what it was. It really stank."

Widespread speculations linked the creature to the Loch Ness Monster, sea dragon or water dinosaur.

Some netizens on social networking sites said that the mysterious creature may be a mutated fish, shark species or an oarfish.

Images of the mysterious creature
Credit: Facebook Page of Ideal.es Ameria

Paco Toledo, spokesman of the Programa en Defensa de la Fauna Marina-Sea Life Defense Program (PROMAR) said that,

It’s hard to know what we’re dealing with. It’s very decomposed and we cannot identify what it is.

Perhaps we could learn something more from the bones, but to be precise, it would be necessary to perform a genetic analysis, which is very expensive and who would pay for it?

Anyway, we have submitted the information to colleagues with more experience and knowledge to see if they can tell us something more specific.

It’s not a longhorn cowfish, that’s for sure.

How about you? Is this the Loch Ness monster or just an oarfish? Post your opinion below.

Twins born 87 days apart: Sets new Guinness Record (Photo, Video)

Twins born 87 days apart
Credit: AOL video grab
A new Guinness record may be set by the twins born 87 days apart in Waterford, Ireland last year.

The twins' mother, Maria Jones-Elliot, broke her water bag and delivered Amy on June 1 and Katie on August 27, 2012 at the Waterford Regional Hospital. Amy was born four-months premature and weighed just over one pound.

53 King Cobras in Car Seized in Vietnam

King Cobra
Credit: National Geographic
About 53 King Cobras in a car was seized by Vietnam authorities in Hanoi on Monday, April 22, 2013.

Reports say that after being stopped by authorities, the driver of the car said that he was paid to deliver the snakes that were placed in a bag. He reportedly received $50 for the transport service.

However, no further details on where and to whom the 53 King Cobras will be transported. The driver was taken into police custody.

West Texas Explosion in Fertilizer Plant (Video)

Texas explosion
Image credit: Mike Stone

US authorities have not yet established anything about the identity and motives of the Boston Marathon bombing last Monday, April 15, 2013. Two days after the deadly blast in Boston and two days before the 20th anniversary of a Waco fire, another fiery explosion was experienced in West, Texas.

Police estimated that up to 15 persons were killed and about 160 were injured after the fire and explosion that hit the West Fertilizer Co plant on Wednesday night, April 17.

Due to heavy toxic fumes coming from the explosion, about half of the population in the small town of West was evacuated.

The explosion reportedly registered a 2.1 magnitude of ground movement, according to the US Geological Survey.
McLennan County Sheriff Parnell McNamara said that he had "never seen anything like this." McNamara described the scene that "looks like a war zone with all the debris."

Waco Police are still clueless about the cause of the explosion. Sergeant W. Patrick Swanton explained that they "are not indicating that it is a crime, but we don't know. What that means to us is that until we know it is an industrial accident, we will work it as a crime scene."

Full assessment of property damage has not been released as of posting. Authorities meanwhile estimated that about 50 to 80 homes and a 50-unit apartment were damaged by the explosion. About 133 people were evacuated from a nearby nursing home that was also damaged by the explosion.

6.8 Earthquake Hits Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea was hit by a 6.8 magnitude earthquake on Wednesday, April 17, 2013, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

The USGS said that the shallow quake's epicenter was located about 19 kilometers (11 miles) from the northern town of Aitape.

There was no tsunami alert issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.

The Papua New Guinea quake comes less than a day after a major quake hit Iran. The USGS reported that a 7.8 magnitude quake hit Iran on Tuesday, April 16.

As of posting, no immediate report on damages was provided by authorities.

More updates will be provided on this site once they are made available.

Iran Earthquake 2013: 7.8 Magnitude Quake Hits Iran, USGS says

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported that a 7.8 magnitude earthquake was registered near Zaheda, Iran on Tuesday, April 16, 2013. Earlier reports say that the quake was at magnitude 8.0.

Authorities warned residents of expected aftershocks with lesser magnitude. However, this may result to further damages to weak structures caused by the initial quake.

All residents near the coastal areas are being alerted for possible tsunami.

As of posting, there was no clear report on damages to properties or any casualty.

Below is the earthquake alert, as provided at ready.gov website.

Expect aftershocks. These secondary shockwaves are usually less violent than the main quake but can be strong enough to do additional damage to weakened structures and can occur in the first hours, days, weeks, or even months after the quake.

Look for and extinguish small fires. Fire is the most common hazard after an earthquake.
Be aware of possible tsunamis if you live in coastal areas. These are also known as seismic sea waves (mistakenly called "tidal waves"). When local authorities issue a tsunami warning, assume that a series of dangerous waves is on the way. Stay away from the beach.

Be careful when driving after an earthquake and anticipate traffic light outages.

Mystery Man On Roof Photo Goes Viral

Mystery man on roof
Photo credit: Dan Lampariello

Who is that mystery man on the roof? Does he have anything to do with any of the two explosions during the 2013 Boston Marathon on Monday, April 15, 2013?

The famous annual Boston marathon stunned the world as three persons were killed and at least 23 spectators were injured after a bomb exploded behind them.

Graphic images and videos of the Boston marathon explosions were posted on social networking sites that include Facebook and Twitter.

Among the images that caught the eye of netizens is the photo of a man walking on a rooftop building that is overlooking the finish line where the first explosion happened. Dan Lampariello captured the image of the man with his camera.

Twitter users commented on Lampariello's photo and discussions about the mystery man quickly heat up.

As of posting the photo of the mystery man on roof was already retweeted for over 2,000 times.

Will authorities include this in their investigation of the incident? Or are netizens just being paranoid because of the tragic explosions?

Boston Marathon Explosions 2013 (Video)

2013 Boston marathon explosions
Video Credit: TheBostonGlobe/YouTube

Two bomb explosion during the 2013 Boston Marathon on Monday, April 15, 2013 killed three and seriously injured 23 spectators.

An explosion on the north side of Boylston Street was caught on video. A few seconds later, another explosion was heard in the area.

Marathon participants and race volunteers cried as they ran away from the chaotic scene.

Authorities rushed the victims to medical tents intended for exhausted runners.

Thick smoke rose from the blasts slightly covering the aerial view of blood stains on the pavement.

Runners who were not able to finished the race were re-routed to Commonwealth Avenue.

Second explosion at the 2013 Boston marathon
Video Credit: FatalitySnow/YouTube