NEWS OF THE WEIRD

OOPS An unnamed 33-year-old woman fromHerminie, Pennsylvania, took an unconventional route home after a nightout drinking onFeb. 16, according to City of Duquesne police. Driving a Mazda CX-5, the woman left a tavern and ended up in a rail yard near the Port Perry Railroad Bridge, a narrow span that carries one set of tracks over the Monongahela River.“The vehicle did quite well, considering it is not a locomotive,” noted police, and the driver traveled a significant distance along the bridge before getting stuck. WPXI reported she called 911 for help at about 2:40 a.m., and Norfolk Southern stopped all rail traffic while the car was removed from the tracks. Police arrested the driver for DUI.

THE PASSING PARADE Three friends were wrapping up a nightof dinner and drinking onFeb. 15 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, when things got “a little out of control,” according to a police report. As the night wore on, Kasey Margaret Westraad, 24, became increasingly amorous toward a resistant female friend, the friend told police, eventually escalating to the point that a naked Westraad pursued the woman outside, punching her several times in the face. Myrtlebeachonline.com reported Westraad was charged with third-degree assault and battery, damage to property and resisting arrest.

THE SMELL TEST Police in Speyer, Germany, gave chase after they were passed by a car driving at high speed with its lights off onFeb. 14. The suspect, a 26-year-old man, pulled over and ran from the car, leaving a trail of scent that was so distinct officers said they were able to followit from the car to the man, who was hiding behind a hedge. “Due to the cloud of perfume that was detected inside the car and on the man,” police said, “it was possible to identify him as the driver,” the Associated Press reported. His breath didn’t smell so good, though: He was far over the alcohol limit.

WAIT, WHAT? The woman who attempted to board an airplane with her emotional support peacock made headlines, but in Port St. Lucie, Florida, one man is questioning why his particular supp ort item has been banned from the dialysis center where he takes treatments three times a week. Nelson Gibson first brought an eight-by-ten-inch photo of President Donald J.Trump to comfort him as he endured the 3 1/2-hour treatments, then exchanged that for a small cardboard cutout of himself standing next to a Trump photo.When he next arrived with a life-size cutout of the president, no one complained, Gibson told WPBF, but onFeb. 11, “they told me it was too much and it wasn’t a rally.” “It just feels like bringing something from home to make you comfortable,” Gibson said, noting thatothers bring items, including one woman who pops bubble wrap during the entire treatment. “That’s very nervewracking,” he said. It’s unclear whether Gibson will return to the center for treatments.

EXTREME MEASURES Tensions are running high in China, where the coronavirus has affected thousands of people and sparked instances of panic-buying. AFP reports that supermarkets have experienced runs on staples such as rice and pasta, but in Hong Kong, a gang of men wielding knives attacked a delivery driver in Mong Kok onFeb. 17, making off with hundreds of rolls of toilet paper worth about $130. Police said the missing rolls were recovered, and two suspects were arrested. Locals seemed baffled, with one woman telling a TV station, “I’d steal face masks, but not toilet roll.”

ANNALS OF ENTITLEMENT Seloni Khetarpal, 36, threw a tantrum worthyof the terrible twos onFeb. 13 when she “repeatedly” called 911 to report that her parents had shutoff her cellphone, according to court documents. Khetarpal demanded that officers respond to her home in Jackson Township, Ohio, and was warned that she should only call 911 for a legitimate emergency.Several hours later,News5 Cleveland reported, she called back, became “belligerent” and told the dispatcher she thought it was a legitimate issue. She was arrested and charged with disrup ting public services.

AWESOME! Hell, Michigan, is inviting 29 couples to “take the leap” and tie the knot in their fair city onFeb. 29, 2020 (Leap Day), all at no cost, MLive reported. Outside the tiny chapel there, at 2:29 p.m., Reverend Vonn will join the couples in a mass ceremony.“Imagine having only to remember your wedding anniversary every four years,” said the reverend. “There are some couples that are paying officiant and chapel fees to be married in the chapel at different time slots. It is going to be one Helluva Day.”

weirdnewstips@amuniversal.com