The Way the World Works
The Staten Island Zoo is weathering a storm of controversy over the prediction made by its resident groundhog, Staten Island Chuck, on Feb. 2 an annual event at the zoo. Chuck popped up on a Facebook livestream at the designated hour, on the designated day, but something seemed . off. After hours of accumulating snow in the New York area, the
New York Post reported, Chuck was seen to emerge into bright sunlight with no snow on the ground, his handlers wearing sweatshirts. So there ya have it, folks, we re gonna have an early spring, announced zoo executive director Ken Mitchell. Viewers weren t fooled, one commenting, Welppp, this isn t live. Previous Groundhog Day celebrations at the zoo have also raised a ruckus. In 2014, a stand-in groundhog named Charlotte died after being dropped by Mayor Bill de Blasio, and in 2009 Chuck bit Mayor Mike Bloomberg s finger.
Police mistook pensioners queueing for COVID vaccine with an “illegal rave” last week.
Last Friday (22nd) police attended the Freemasons’ Saxon Hall in Southend, Essex after being tipped off about a ‘rave’, The Echo reports.
After arriving at the scene, the police didn t find any signs of an illegal rave, and instead, were greeted by hundreds of pensioners waiting for their coronavirus vaccine. The chairman of Saxon Hall, Dennis Baum, told The Echo that it was really funny when the police arrived. They had been notified that there was a rave taking place at Saxon Hall, he said, only to find 80 and 90 year-olds on wheelchairs, zimmer frames and walking sticks, patiently queueing for their vaccinations.
What they found was not actually an illegal rave, however. Instead, police officers found a queue of pensioners, aged in their 80s and 90s, all queuing patiently to receive their vaccine shots. A world away from an illegal rave. I mean, if public services weren t as stretched as they were right now, you d probably say it was funny.
Fortunately, the police were able to provide assistance with traffic in the area, and so it wasn t a complete waste of their time.
Apparently, the tip-off came not as the result of a hoax call, but from concerned neighbours. After a spate of illegal raves in the Essex area of late, some residents had seen an increase in traffic and assumed the worst.