Hooters – Memphis Flyer

The Passing Parade

As the last remaining Hooters restaurant in West Virginia prepared for demolition, residents of Kanawha City gathered on Feb. 23 for a candlelight vigil, WCHS-TV reported. The event, which started as a joke, got international attention, and hundreds of people showed up. “It’s a lot of memories going down with that building,” said Noah Collins of Rand, West Virginia. Tearful former Hooters employees reunited for one last time. “I started out coming in to get a job and it became so much more because I met so many lifelong friends and my co-workers,” said Danielle Hughart. “This building right here was a legitimate iconic figure to the Kanawha Valley,” declared co-organizer Leo Browning. The corporate office sent a box of calendars to distribute to those who attended the vigil. [WCHS, 2/24/2024]

Smooth Reaction

Dr. Krisztina Ilko, 33, a junior research fellow and director of studies at the University of Cambridge Queens’ College in England, lives in a medieval tower, the Independent reported. But on Feb. 29, Ilko became trapped in her bathroom for seven hours after the wooden door locked behind her and wouldn’t budge. She couldn’t signal or yell for help because the tower walls are thick, and there are no windows in the bathroom. However, she kept her cool and MacGyvered the door open using an eyeliner (to push down the door’s latch) and a cotton swab (to pull the locking mechanism away from the door frame). “When … the door opened, it was exhilarating because I didn’t think it would work,” Ilko said. Since the incident, she’s had the lock removed. [Independent, 3/4/2024]

Police Report

• In Kennesaw, Georgia, police responded to the Heritage Park Town Homes on Feb. 21 after a Toyota Corolla “rammed through the pool fence … and [she’s] in the middle of the pool,” said the 911 caller. Fox5-TV reported that the driver suffered some sort of medical emergency and was unconscious when officers arrived; they were able to break a car window and get her out of the car. She was taken to a hospital and was expected to make a full recovery, according to Cobb County Police. The pool cover was so strong that the car didn’t sink; a tow truck removed it from the cover later in the day. [Fox5, 3/4/2024]

• The Putnam County (Florida) Sheriff’s Office was flooded with calls on March 2 after two low-flying F-15 jets from the Florida Air National Guard caused sonic booms, News4Jax-TV reported. “It destroyed my friggin’ house!” one caller exclaimed, while others thought a bomb had dropped. “I have major damage, they flew right over my house. The lights were blown off the walls, there’s glass everywhere,” said another. The National Guard issued a statement saying they were aware of damage sustained by the sonic booms and had established a contact number for residents who had damage claims. [News4Jax, 3/6/2024]

Delusions of Grandeur

For Connor James Litka, 21, of Bloomington, Indiana, it was, “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.” Litka arrived at a Porsche dealership in Louisville, Kentucky, on Feb. 21 and tried to buy a car with a fake $78 million check, WAVE-TV reported. When he was rebuffed, he searched around the back entrance to the showroom, looking for car keys. Salespeople summoned police, who charged him with criminal trespass and disorderly conduct. Turns out Litka tried the same stunt the day before at a Land Rover dealership, where he presented a $12 million check. [WAVE, 2/22/2024]

Oopsy

Anne Hughes, 71, was standing outside the Best One shop in Tonteg, Wales, where she works, when the electric security shutters started raising, catching her coat and leaving her dangling upside down seven feet in the air. The incident from March 4 was caught on CCTV, Sky News reported; she hung in the air until a shopkeeper helped free her as the shutter was lowered. “I’m learning to live with the fame,” Hughes said. “I’ll never hear the end of it.” She was uninjured in the mishap. [Sky News, 3/5/2024]