Farmer drives burning tractor into lake, stops fire from spreading
BENGALURU: The quick thinking of a groundnut farmer in Jammanakatti village in Bagalkot district of Karnataka helped prevent a fire from spreading to several houses in the village.
Yankappa, 28, has been hailed by the residents of the village for driving a tractor that caught fire into a lake on Monday.
At around 4 pm, Yankappa was driving the tractor on a narrow village road with houses on either side. This was when the hay loaded on the tractor came into contact with an electrical wire and caught fire. The hay, stacked about 20 feet high, caught fire immediately and started spreading fast.
In spite of the heat rising behind him, Yankappa kept his cool and steered the tractor towards the lake in the village. “Standing still was not an option because the fire would have spread from the tractor to the houses nearby. The residents of the village came forward to show me the way and told me that the best thing to do was to drive the tractor into the lake,” Yankappa says, recounting the series of events that has catapulted him to fame locally.
Residents on the spot scrambled to pour water and douse the fire but it proved inadequate to contain the fast spreading fire. Seeing no other option, Yankappa accelerated and began driving the tractor towards the lake. By this time, a few people had begun filming the incident which shows the back of the tractor engulfed by a giant ball of fire and burnt hay flying all around, even as Yankappa picked up pace.
When he reached the lake, Yankappa drove right into the water and jumped out of the vehicle as the tractor half-submerged in the water and the fire died down slowly.
Yankappa claims that he incurred a loss of Rs 30,000 and is hoping for some kind of compensation following the awful incident.
courtesy : thenewsminute.com
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8 children between ages of 1 and 14 dead after mass shooting in Louisiana, police say
Shreveport(US) (AP): A gunman in Louisiana killed eight children in shootings at two different homes early Sunday in the nation's deadliest mass shooting in more than two years, police in Shreveport said.
The victims ranged in age from one to about 14 years old, said Shreveport police spokesperson Chris Bordelon. A total of 10 were shot and some of the children were related to the suspect, Bordelon said.
The gunman later died after a chase with officers who fired at the suspect, Bordelon said. The suspect stole a car while leaving the scene of the shootings and was followed by police, according to Bordelon.
Police did not release the name of the suspect but did say he was an adult male. The shootings were the result of a “domestic disturbance,” Bordelon said.
Officials said they were still gathering details at the crime scenes south of downtown Shreveport — the two homes and a third location.
“This is an extensive scene unlike anything most of us have ever seen,” he said.
It was the deadliest mass shooting in the US since eight people were killed in a Chicago suburb in January 2024, according to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today in partnership with Northeastern University.
At a news conference outside the residence where one of the shootings occurred, officials appeared stunned, requesting patience and prayers from the community as they sorted through multiple crime scenes.
“I just don't know what to say, my heart is just taken aback,” Shreveport Police Chief Wayne Smith said. “I cannot begin to imagine how such an event could occur.”
“This is a tragic situation — maybe the worst tragic situation we've ever had,” said Tom Arceneaux, mayor of the city in northwestern Louisiana with about 180,000 residents. “It's a terrible morning.”
Louisiana State Police say their detectives have been asked by Shreveport police to investigate. In a statement, state police say no officers were harmed in the shooting that involved an officer after a police pursuit into Bossier City on Sunday morning.
State police are asking anyone with pictures, video or information to share it with state police detectives.
Louisiana Gov Jeff Landry said in a statement that he and his wife were heartbroken. “We're deeply grateful to the law enforcement officers and first responders working tirelessly on the scene,” he added.
