1. Woman Kicked in the Face by Rabid Deer: Lavale, Md.
Theresa Stevens was letting her Yorkie out of the house for some morning relief when she found herself face to face with a deer. The startled animal stood up on its hind legs and kicked Stevens in the face. The deer—emaciated and obviously not well—then retreated to rest under Stevens’ cars. Feeling compassion for the animal, she told the Cumberland Times-News, “I got it a bucket of water and it stuck its head in it.”
It turns out the deer was rabid, and since Stevens had cuts on her hand, her Good Samaritan act exposed her to the deer’s saliva, giving her rabies as well. Nearly a month of treatment shots followed.
2. When Beavers Attack: Louisa, Va.
And if one animal attack wasn’t enough, another took place in Virginia’s Lake Anna, where two young girls were bitten by the same beaver in mid-July. Annabella Radnovich, 11, and her eight-year-old cousin Alyssa were swimming near Sorbie Cove when a beaver bit Alyssa on the leg as she tried to exit the water. Then the critter circled around Annabella and bit her on the back of the leg. The result was 15 stitches for the younger cousin and three wounds above the knee for the elder. The girls’ uncle didn’t take kindly to seeing his nieces being attacked, so he shot the beaver with a BB gun and killed it with a knife.
3. High School Kid Hikes Across Belize: Richmond, Va.
What did you do on your summer vacation? Joseph Gallagher, a senior at Richmond’s Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School, hiked across Belize. His four-day, 92-mile walk from the Guatemalan border to Belize City was done to raise money for an organization in the country that helps the visually impaired. Gallagher walked with 14-year-old Rowan Garel, who has been blind since birth. Gallagher had met Garel during a previous family mission trip to Belize.
4. A.T. Hiker Set on Fire: Gettysburg, Pa.
This was not the zero day an Appalachian Trail hiker had in mind when he stopped in Gettysburg. An Alabama man working his way up the trail in mid-July went to a bar in town and on his way out he got into a confrontation with some people in a small blue car. When things escalated, two men got out of the car, one of them doused the hiker with a flammable liquid and the other lit him on fire. The hiker, whose named was not listed in a local news story, sustained burns to his arm, chest, and scalp.
5. Watch Where You Swing that Thing: Knoxville, Tenn.
A Knoxville man was arrested for indecent exposure after a neighbor called the cops on him for doing yard work in the nude. After the complaint, Lindsay Stevens was nabbed by the cops for chainsawing a tree naked. Apparently it’s not the first time he’s been seen baring all outside of his house. According to the Knoxville News-Sentinel, other neighbors have seen him riding his lawn mower with no cloth between him and the seat.
Beyond The Blue Ridge
Runner Disappears During Rough Race: Seward, Alaska
The three-mile Mount Marathon Race is an out and back to the top of a 3,000-foot summit. 66-year-old Michael LeMaitre was last seen 200 yards from the top, well behind the rest of the pack, but he never made it back down. As of late July he was still missing. Another racer had to be put into an induced coma after breaking his skull—a result of falling off a cliff. Organizers are considering a course change.
Flying High at 90: Pittsfield, Maine
Lester Slate gave himself a great birthday present when he jumped out of a plane above Pittsfield Airport this past summer. Slate had learned how to use a parachute as a Navy pilot during World War II, but he waited until turning 90 to use his skills.
Surfing Goats: San Onofre State Beach, Calif.
Dana McGregor loves riding waves so much that he decided to teach his pet goats, Goatee and Pismo, to do the same, with the dynamic duo riding together on their own board.
