Tag: JohnKu

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF – Fri-Yay/Good News

~ John W. Howell ~ 98 Comments

 

Photo courtesy of NOAA

Today’s story comes from the Good News Network. Here it is without editing.

World’s Largest Container Line is Rerouting its Fleet to Avoid Collisions with Endangered Blue Whales

By

Andy Corbley

Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has taken a major step to help protect blue whales and other cetaceans living and feeding in the waters off the coast of Sri Lanka by altering shipping lanes to avoid their habitat.

A global leader in container shipping and logistics, MSC began in mid-2022 to voluntarily reroute its vessels passing by Sri Lanka on a new course that is approximately 15 nautical miles to the south, in line with the advice of scientists and other key actors in the maritime sector.

The decision was based on research surveys completed by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), with the World Trade Institute (WTI), Biosphere Foundation, University of Ruhuna (Sri Lanka), and supported by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

Westbound ship traffic is now limited to a latitude between 05 30N and 05 35N, and eastbound traffic is limited to a latitude between 05 24N and 05 29N in order to avoid designated cetacean habitats.

– Released.

Sri Lanka lies in the Indian Ocean, between Asia and Europe, and the port of Colombo is a major transshipment hub for global trade.

The area off its southern coast is one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world and is also inhabited by large populations of whales, meaning that these animals may be at risk of colliding with ships.

Simulations have shown that moving the official shipping lane 15 nautical miles to the south could reduce the strike risk to blue whales by a whopping 95%. However, despite years of advocacy by scientists, the shipping industry, and NGOs, the boundaries of the official shipping line have not been reassigned to reduce the risk of ship strikes on cetaceans.

MSC is now taking measures to protect marine wildlife seriously, from adapting shipping service networks to keep away from designated whale breeding and feeding grounds to reducing vessel speed and rerouting ships to avoid reported marine wildlife populations.

“We believe that the commercial shipping sector has an important role to play in protecting cetaceans, specifically in helping to reduce the risk of ship collisions with whales,” said Stefania Lallai, Vice President – Sustainability at MSC.

“MSC is proud to rank at or near the top of whale safety shipping rankings. However, we are not at all complacent. We believe that raising awareness of these issues and encouraging collaboration between industry, scientific bodies, civil society, and governments is essential as we strive collectively to do more to minimize the risk of ship strikes.”

In Sri Lanka specifically, the liner shipping industry led by the World Shipping Council, of which MSC is a member, has advocated creating a new official marine traffic scheme that is fully separated from the blue whale feeding area.

It is hoped that this will soon become a reality, so all large-scale commercial marine traffic moves to the more southerly zone that MSC ships are now guided to follow. In the meantime, MSC urges all other ship operators to consider choosing a more southerly route past Sri Lanka to significantly reduce the possibility of whale strikes.

The good news here is that big business is beginning to take some stewardship of the planet. Today’s JohnKu talks about sharing the planet. I hope you have a terrific weekend.

Neighbors by John W. Howell © 2022

We often take care,

Of our neighbors when in need . . .

Why not animals?

Today I’m at Story Empire talking about lousy story endings. Here’s the LINK if you want to visit

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF Fri-Yay/Good News

~ John W. Howell ~ 95 Comments

Today’s Good News was submitted by dear friend Harmony Kent from the UK. She thought we would all enjoy it and sent it on. I have reproduced it here in its entirety. (Left the British English alone.) Thank you, Harmony.

Leeds: M62 motorist brings sick driver’s car safely to a stop

A car whose driver had fallen seriously ill while at the wheel on a motorway was brought to a halt by a quick-witted motorist who had realised his plight.

John Barlow said he spotted the Audi going slowly in the outside lane of the M62 near Leeds on Saturday. The driver was slumped with a bloodied face.

Mr. Barlow managed to get his car ahead of the Audi and eased it to a stop before getting out to help the man.

It emerged the driver had suffered a seizure but was well enough to go home.

Mr. Barlow, 59, from Middleton in Greater Manchester, said he first noticed the Audi travelling slower and slower and he pulled alongside to see the driver.

“He looked dead at the wheel. I could see his lips were blue, and he had blood trickling down his face,” Mr. Barlow said.

He pulled into the lane ahead of the Audi, which was travelling at about 30mph (48km/h), before taking his foot off the accelerator and bringing both cars to a stop.

John BarlowPA MEDIA

John Barlow used his car to stop the vehicle after he spotted the driver was seriously ill.

The incident happened at about 15:15 BST on Saturday (September 3) on the M62 eastbound carriageway between junctions 29 and 30, a West Yorkshire Police spokesperson confirmed.

Officers said a man in his 70s had fallen ill, and Mr. Barlow’s actions to stop the car had prevented a “potential serious collision.”

Two cars stopped bumper to bumperJOHN BARLOW

Mr. Barlow pulled in ahead of the ill man’s vehicle and helped ease it to a stop.

After the Audi was stopped, another man helped Mr. Barlow break into the vehicle.

He opened the seriously ill driver’s airway by tilting his jaw backwards, at which point the Audi driver took in a gasp of air.

Other drivers also stopped at the scene, bringing the four-lane carriageway to a halt.

A physio and an off-duty police officer took over the first aid until paramedics arrived.

Meanwhile, a doctor on the opposite carriageway of the M62 travelled to the next junction, turned round, and battled through the backed-up traffic to get to work with a defibrillator.

Mr. Barlow said: “Everyone was amazing, it was a real team effort. They got the man on the floor, then the doctor jumped in as well.”

Cars stopped on the M62JOHN BARLOW

Motorists stopped to help the seriously ill driver, who had suffered a seizure at the wheel.

Mr. Barlow had been travelling to Pontefract with his wife Kirsty and son Joey, 7, to pick up a new kitten at the time of the incident.

The next day, he received a call from West Yorkshire Police thanking him, and he was told the driver had suffered a seizure but was well enough to go home.

He said he hoped to meet the man he saved in the future, adding: “I’d shake his hand and give him a hug.”

The good news here is someone cared enough to save a life. Today’s JohnKu talks about caring. I hope you all have a delightful weekend.

Caring by John W. Howell © 2022

Sharing is caring,

So they say when raising funds . . .

A life saved is too.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF Fri-Yay/Goodnews

~ John W. Howell ~ 77 Comments

Today’s good news comes to us from the Daily Paws. Here is the story unedited.

Elderly, Blind Golden Retriever Returns Home After 3 Weeks Missing in Alaska Wilderness

The Alaskan bush is tough terrain for almost anyone, let alone an elderly, blind, golden retriever.
By Jennifer Huizen August 30, 2022
CREDIT: CHENDONGSHAN / GETTY

If you’re a fan of Naked and Afraid, you know how hard it is to survive in the Alaskan wilderness. But let us introduce you to an older, blind golden retriever who held her own in the wild for three weeks alone.

On June 18, the Kubacki family’s beloved fur-baby, Lulu, went missing. “She means everything,” her dad Ted Kubacki told theAssociated Press. “I have five daughters, and they’re 4 to 13 years old, so they’ve spent every day of their life with that dog.”

The entirety of the Kubacki family searched for Lulu for weeks, but to not avail. Cruelly, someone even texted the family, telling them they’d found Lulu—only to then follow up with a “just kidding.”

But on July 5, a construction crew spotted the golden retriever, who they initially mistook for a bear, in a salmonberry bush lining the road they were working on. Lulu was about 15 feet down an embankment off the side of the road, not too far from the Kubacki’s home. Upon closer inspection, the construction workers realized they had found a dog who needed care.

Ted Kubacki told the AP that when he got word Lulu had been discovered, “I called my wife from work and it was just screaming. … She just starts yelling, then she yells to the kids. And I just hear them screaming like crazy.”

“I just expected to come back and be like, ‘Hey, here’s my dog.’ She’s going to jump up and wag her tail and kiss my face, and she couldn’t even pick up her head,” Kubacki told the AP. “She’d been through the wringer.”

But after medical attention, R & R, and food, Lulu is on the mend.

“Slowly but surely she started eating and she was kind of able to pick her head up. But then yesterday, she propped herself up on her front paws by herself, like nestled into me and gave me a kiss and wagged her tail and it was just so great,” Kubacki told the AP.

Kubacki told the AP he was worried about covering Lulu’s vet bills, but people from their town of Sitka had donated hundreds to foot the bill.

“We have our family member home,” Kubacki said.

The good news here is Lulu never gave up.

Todays JohnKu talks about giving up. I hope you have a great weekend.

Love by John W. Howell © 2022

Wanting to give up,

And we think the time has come . . .

Think of those we love.

 

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF – Friyay/Good News

~ John W. Howell ~ 84 Comments

Today’s good news story comes from the Good News Network. Here it is in its entirety.

6 High School Football Players Combine Their Strength to Rescue Injured Woman Trapped in a Wrecked Car

By

Andy Corbley

–

(From left to right) Rome High School students Cesar Parker, Treyvon Adams, Antwion Carey, Messiah Daniels, Tyson Brown, and Alto Moore made the rescue.

A Georgian woman is thanking her stars that it was nothing less than a group of buff high schooler football players who just happened to be passing by her when she needed help.

Together they leaned their strength to pry open the jammed door of the woman’s wrecked car, which allowed the rescuers to access the badly injured driver.

The Rome City Football Team was out in force that morning, with teammates Treyvon Adams, 16, Antwion Carey, 16, Cesar Parker, 16, Messiah Daniels, Tyson Brown, 17, and Alto Moore, 16, all heading to school together in Adam’s car, or with their mom in the case of Caesar.

As soon as they saw the wrecked car, they leaped into action.

“We just ran as fast we (could) to the lady and check on her to see if she was alright,” Adams told CNN. “We saw she was in pain; she was screaming and asking us to help her.”

The car was totaled and badly bent out of shape. Relying on their brawn more so than their brains, the teens managed to pry the passenger door open, realizing only afterward that the other door had to be removed for her to be reached.

“We used all our muscles,” Adams said. “We’re pretty big people; we’re strong. We play football, so we lift weights a lot, but (the door) was just extremely bent and broke.” It all happened in about a minute.

But when it was over, the teens had freed the woman from the vehicle and carried her on their way back to class after checking on the driver of the other car in the collision.

Adams admitted that the team had been getting a lot of love and recognition for their act, which teachers said they deserved, and the school has helped drive.

In a post on Twitter, the school’s football team wrote, “PROUD of our MEN!” in reference to the story.

At the end of the day, like all great rescuers, the teens admitted that while the recognition was nice, it was something anyone would do.

The good news here is that these guys never hesitated to guarantee this woman’s safety and jumped into action.

Today’s JohnKu talks about heroes. I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Action by John W.Howell © 2022

What makes a hero?

Someone who has a big heart . . .

And moves very fast.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF – Fri-Yay/Good News

~ John W. Howell ~ 72 Comments

This week’s Good News is again from the Good News Network. Here is the complete story without editing.

25-Year-Old Runs into Burning Home and Saves 5 Kids–Gets Rewarded With $500K and ‘New Lease on Life’

By

Andy Corbley

–

 

A man is being honored by a city as a hero after he charged into a house that had turned into a raging inferno to rescue a young girl.

A late-night argument with his girlfriend had a disgruntled 25-year-old Nicholas Bostic out driving aimlessly around his town when he saw the house completely engulfed in flames.

Running inside, his cries allegedly woke 4 children and a family friend from their sleep. The oldest of five, 18-year-old Seionna Barret, had gathered together her siblings and prepared to go down the stairs from the second floor where they encountered Nick.

Once outside however, Seionna told Bostic that her 6-year-old sister wasn’t with them. Running inside through the back door, Bostic described the fire in the Lafayette, Indiana home as having created a “black lagoon” of smoke on the ground floor.

But after checking all the bedrooms on the second floor, he still had not found the youngster.

“He moved to a window to exit the house when he heard a child’s cry coming from downstairs,” write city reporters who spoke with the rescuer. “Nicholas [had] an inner dialog with himself. He knew he was there to get that child out, and even though the fire and smoke downstairs frightened him, he would not quit.”

Wrapping a t-shirt around his mouth, he crawled through the blackness, following the sounds of the girl’s cries.

He then found her, proceeded back through the smoke, ran upstairs, smashed a window with his bare hand, and jumped down onto the lawn where a fire and rescue team had arrived and were beginning work to put out the fire.

Bostic suffered 1st-degree burns, a serious cut on his arm, and smoke inhalation, and would be airlifted to a hospital—the child was completely unharmed.

A GoFundMe was made for Bostic’s medical bills by his cousin, which shattered the $100,000 goal by amassing $556,000 for a hero whom the city plans to honor at the next Lafayette Aviators minor league baseball game.

Bostic says the experience brought him a “new lease on life,” that has him ready to play football or drift a sports car. Indeed he spent enough time in that burning house to have several lives flash before his eyes.

Here’s a video of Nick talking about the rescue.

So the good news here is that Nick didn’t hesitate to even think about saving the family. Today’s JohnKu talks about thinking too hard about things. I hope you have a great weekend.

Heroes by John W. Howell © 2022

Heroes share in common,

A no-thought action response. . .

Maybe the best way.

Friday – AKA – TGIF – Fri-Yay/Good News

~ John W. Howell ~ 81 Comments

Today’s good news comes again from the Good News Network, so here it is unedited.

Teen Finds Woman’s Purse and is Rewarded With $17,000 After He Delivers it to Her Door By Good News Network

 

A 17-year-old teen in San Diego returned a purse left in a grocery store parking lot—and although he expected nothing in return, hundreds of strangers have offered him a big reward.

Adrian Rodriquez found the green handbag in Ralph’s parking lot in Chula Vista, California, two weeks ago. Instead of bringing it inside the store, he decided to deliver it himself to the woman’s front door.

Although the owner, Eliana Martin, wasn’t there, the purse was left with the roommates, and the home’s surveillance video was later used to track down the high school graduate to show him some love.

“I looked into the Ring camera, and I was like, ‘Oh my God. He’s such a young kid’,” recalls Melina Marquez. “We need to find him and just give him a little piece of gratitude.”

She and Martin posted the striking image on social media, and found the young man who returned the bag, which contained $20 and a wallet full of credit cards.

“My mom always told me since I was little to always do the right thing when nobody’s around,” Adrian told NBC News. “I didn’t expect nothing back, honestly.”

“If someone found my stuff, I’d want them to bring it back to me,” said the humble youth.

But the good news didn’t stop there. Marquez organized a GoFundMe campaign as a way for friends and new admirers to reward Adrian’s honesty.

764 donors sent money that totaled over $17,000.

“Every parent right now hopes that their children grow up to be just like this young gentleman,” Marquez told 10News in the video below.

Watch the video from the 10News segment, Positively San Diego…

The good news here is that some do for others without expecting anything in return. Today’s JohnKu talks about the highest good done for others. I hope you have a super weekend.

Good Works by John W. Howell © 2022

The very best good deed,

Is done without selfish thought . . .

And when no one knows.

 

Friday – TGIF – Fri-Yay/Good News

~ John W. Howell ~ 75 Comments

Today’s good news comes from the good news network. Here is the story in its entirety.

Airline Captain Writes Note to Tooth Fairy For Girl Who Lost Tooth on Plane

By

Andy Corbley

–

Captain Josh – courtesy of Laura Larmon

A 6-year-old who realized after disembarking that she had lost a tooth aboard a plane was desperate to get it back.

Seeing this, a passing captain, with his jacket, cap, and epaulets, stepped in to write a note to the Tooth Fairy explaining the situation.

Lena and Laura Larmon were at the tail end of a long travel period, with a return leg from Norway to Greenville-Spartanburg Int. Airport, South Carolina, interrupted in New York with a 36-hour delay. Finally, stepping off the plane must have felt like bliss, until at the baggage claim, when 6-year-old Lena realized she had lost a tooth.

“We tried to walk back to the airplane, but security was closed. It was 2 a.m.,” mom Laura told Good Morning America, adding that Lena was “crying and very emotional” when she realized that, without the tooth to place under her pillow, there would be no corresponding visit from the Tooth Fairy.

That’s when United Airlines Captain Josh Duchow, seeing Lena’s distress, stepped in to help. With his captain’s bearing and official uniform, there would be no doubt that a quick written explanation from “Captain Josh” would be an acceptable receipt for the Tooth Fairy’s records.

“Dear Tooth Fairy, Lena had a tooth fall out on her flight to Greenville,” wrote Duchow, who piloted the flight. “Please take this note in place of her tooth.”

Note to Tooth Fairy – courtesy Laura Larmon

Mother Laura later shared the story on Instagram and Facebook as a break from “a world of bad airline stories.”

United Airlines released a statement on Duchow’s part, declaring: “we’re proud to see moments like this that underscore our commitment to going above and beyond for our customers and creating an airline where Good Leads the Way.”

The good news here is it doesn’t take much to show kindness. Thank you, Captain Josh, for your kindness toward Lena. Today’s JohnKu talks about being kind. I hope you have a great weekend.

Kindness by John W. Howell

It does not take much,

To make the day of someone . . .

Who needs a kind act.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF – Friyay/Good News

~ John W. Howell ~ 84 Comments
Today’s good news story comes once again from the Good News Network. Here it is in its entirety.

Floating Drones Are Swallowing Tons of Plastic Waste Before it Reaches Ocean

By Andy Corbley
June 24, 2022
Waste Shark

From Chennai to Trentino alto Adige to Baltimore, inventors are churning out methods of stopping plastic pollution from entering the ocean by picking it out of riverways.

They come in different shapes and sizes, and a Dutch company just added a whale-shark-inspired drone that can cobble 160 liters of waste to the mix.

Developed by RanMarine in Rotterdam, the drone project was both straightforward, but with a pretty long checklist. It had to be automated, zero emissions, easy to use, economic to deploy and maintain, and be able to clean a freshwater environment without harming it.

The result is WasteShark, which is about 4 feet long and quietly captures trash in a tray between its two pontoons. Like the whale shark that provided its inspiration, a grid stops anything sizeable from entering its mouth, until it detects trash and the grid is lowered.

Once the drone is filled, it’s steered back to the water’s edge, where the tray can be easily removed, and emptied into a larger receptacle.

Watch the video

The good news here is around the world people continue to work on keeping plastic and trash out of the ocean. Today’s JohnKu talks about problem-solving.

Perseverance by John W. Howell © 2022

Solving a problem,

Even the impossible . . .

Takes a dogged heart.

 

Friday Johnku – AKA – TGIF – Fri-Yay/Good News

~ John W. Howell ~ 83 Comments

Today’s Good News story comes from the good news network. Here it is in its entirety.

Woman About to be Evicted Was Saved By Neighbors Who Bought the Home For Her

By Andy Corbley June 14th
ABC 5/KSTP

After being threatened with eviction, a retiree was able to buy the house she had rented for two decades after a quarter-million dollars was raised by the community on her behalf.

Known for having a heart of gold and a pair of green thumbs, Linda Taylor was a beloved neighbor in her Minneapolis community.

After arriving in the area 19 years ago as a volunteer to help the homeless and needy, she began renting a small house on 10th avenue and East 36th street in the Powderhorn Park district. There, the 70-year-old retiree became a “bright star” of the neighborhood.

It seemed though that bright star would be severely darkened, perhaps permanently, when her landlord decided to sell the property, and gave her until the end of January to evict.

Word gets around tight communities, and after she told one neighbor, the greater part of Powderhorn rallied around her, striking a deal with the landlord that if he would give “Miss Linda” until the end of June, they would raise the money to buy the house.

There was no one-size-fits-all approach to the fundraising efforts. Inflation is at a 40 year high driven by previous monetary inflation reaching broader sectors of the economy, while gas just crossed a national average of $5.00 a gallon, yet even in such difficult times, folks were able to open heart, mind, and wallet, to make the project a reality.

It involved an art show, bake sale, pro-bono work by a real estate agent, countless small donations, and other community-fund drives to come up with the dough—which they did, a full month ahead of the June 30th deadline.

“Yesterday I went and did the closing for the house,” Taylor said. “It makes me feel so good, everything that I have given, it’s coming back to me and I want to continue to give. I love this neighborhood.”

The good news here is the Golden Rules is very much in play. (Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.) I hope you have a great weekend. Today’s JohnKu is about helping others.

Good works by John W. Howell © 2022

A simple concept,

Treat all those you meet daily . . .

Just like you are they.

Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF – Fri-Yay/Good News.

~ John W. Howell ~ 65 Comments
Today’s Good News comes from the Good News Network. Here is the story in its entirety.

Millions of Tons of Earth Dug for New London Subway Line Became a New Bird Sanctuary

By

Andy Corbley

–

Ben Hall/RSPB Images

Multi-billion dollar civic engineering projects tend not to be good news for wildlife, but upon the completion of a new English underground railway line, the upturned earth was used to rebuild a coastal habitat for birds in Essex.

The new bird sanctuary instantly became one of the richest in Britain’s coastline for avocets, spoonbills, black-tailed godwits, and other wading birds.

The Elizabeth Crossrail is a high-speed line that runs from Reading to the west of London, through the capital, to Shenfield near the east coast. During the $24 million (£19 million) project, seven million metric tons of soil was dug up to make thirteen underground railway tunnels, half of which were transported by boat to the eastern shore of the country.

The earth was taken to a place called Wallasea Island, once just a tiny peninsula of the wild Essex coastline, consisting of salt marshes, coastal lagoons, muddy flatlands, and other features, but several times during the Medieval period and after it was drained to make sheep pasture or farmland.

Farming often is not as profitable now as it was then, and as the defensive seawall was in need of repairs, the farmer that used to own the land sold it to the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

“Massive amounts of soil were dug up from below the streets of London during tunneling needed to create the Elizabeth line,” said Rachel Fancy, site manager of RSPB Wallasea Island. “That material was given to the RSPB, allowing us to create our Jubilee Marsh, the cornerstone of our new reserve.”

Jubilee is the appropriate name in this case. Bird-friendly journalists from the Guardian, reporting on the state of Wallasea Island, now note the diversity of species and the rich numbers.

Hen and marsh harriers have appeared in winter while wigeon, teal, plover, yellow wagtail, lapwings, blackbirds, oystercatchers, and skylarks were all recorded in what reporters called a “nature lover’s paradise.”

It took 1,500 trips by canal to bring the dirt to Wallasea. Once there it was transported via conveyor belt to a dump, where tipper trucks slowly deposited it along the shoreline to create a steady sloping terrain up from the sea, protecting it from rising levels.

After the manicuring and landscaping was finished, the seawall was strategically breached in three separate places at low tide, which, once it rose again, gently partitioned the landscape into the various landscape features seen today, as opposed to turning it into a big muddy lake if the wall had been breached all at once at high tide.

In its first year, Wallasea Nature Reserve hosted 150 breeding pairs of avocets, which is endangered-in-Britain, instantly making it one of the bird’s strongholds.

“We are really proud that Jubilee Marsh is helping to combat the threats from climate change and coastal flooding,” Mark Wild, Crossrail’s chief executive, told the Guardian.

The good news here is that with proper planning human expansion need not come at the expense of the earth. Today’s JohnKu talks about stewardship. I hope you all have a super weekend.

Our Earth by John W. Howell © 2022

This is all we have,

Humans need to work smarter . . .

To preserve our life.