Man Wills Himself to Live After Body Nearly Severed by Train

A Texas man calls 911 after being cut nearly in half by a train.
In June 2006, Duncan was working at his job in the rail yards of Cleburne, Texas, when he slipped and fell onto the tracks while riding on the front of a train car that was moving toward a repair dock.
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"I just fell," the 38-year-old said. "At that point I started running backwards, you know, obviously fast as I could, and I tried to outrun it. I didn't make it."
Duncan was pulled under the rail car, its wheels grinding steadily underneath.
"It just felt like a monster," he said. "I couldn't get away from it, like it was just pulling me in, and I'm pushing away … [and] I was cut in two."

By the time the rail car came to a stop, Duncan had been dragged 75 feet. His lower body, was still entangled in the wheels of the train, and he was cut nearly in half at the waist, with one leg attached by a single muscle.
"The pain was real severe, and then it just kinda like it wasn't there," Duncan said. "I think something else kicks in and then you try to do things necessary to stay alive."
Duncan knew he had to fight to stay alive.

"I knew if I just lay there and lay there and lay there, eventually I was gonna die," he said. "But if I stayed awake, made sure I got my help there then was a possibility that I would live and that's when I realized that I might have my phone on my hip."
Duncan was able to reach his cell phone and call 911. more

Sniper rifle software launched for iPod touch

BulletFlight is a new application has been launched for the iPod touch to help gun users line up a clean shot at their target
A new application has been launched for the iPod touch to help gun users line up a clean shot at their target.
The BulletFlight app, which costs £6.99 to download from the iTunes store, has been developed by Runaway App to turn the iPod touch into a ballistics computer which the company says can provide “quick solutions in the field”.
Users can mount their iPod touch to their rifle, and then use the iPod’s touch-screen to tap in details about the wind conditions, ammunition type, distance to the intended target and even the wind speed.
“Unlike other apps, BulletFlight does not output information in table format,” says the application’s iTunes page. “What it does do is dynamically give you the solution you need now to take that shot.”
The application features built-in profiles for three weapons – the M110 semi-automatic precision rifle, the KAC PDW, and the 14.5in SR16 rifle – although users can add more weapons into the app.
“Environmental calculations are based on the Sierra Bullet model,” says the BulletFlight iTunes entry. “Up to five ballistic co-efficients with corresponding velocity thresholds may be used for each profile.”
BulletFlight is not the first shooting application for the iPhone and iPod touch – that honour goes to iSnipe – but it’s the latest in a long line of unusal apps for the devices, which have included simulated beer-pouring, a fart machine, and even “breathalysers”.

President Obama Wears Bullet-Resistant Suit at Inaugural

Barack Obama had more than the Presidential 'beast' limo taking care of his safety yesterday.
According to some reports, he wore a suit made by a clothier specializing in bullet-resistant clothing during the inauguration ceremonies.
While no one from the U.S. Secret Service have yet to mention any details about the garment's structure, some are speculating it may have come from the line by Colombian designer Miguel Caballero. As we noted last year, Caballero is well known for his super tough but flexible and business appropriate clothing (see pic at right), such as the $7,500 polo shirt that can stop a shot from a 9-mm revolver.
Due to some of the unfortunately rising levels of dangerous conflicts in Colombia and other parts of Latin America, the need for this type of clothing has also led to a spike in sales.
According to Caballero, many of his garments offer more than three levels of ballistic protection and they are about seven times more flexible than the Kevlar vests that are usually worn. Designers that use Kevlar tie together dense strands of the material (500 to 1,500 filaments per strand of yarn, according to Slate), which is then weaved into the clothing.
With close to 2 million people on hand to watch the president-elect take the Oath of Office, the level of security was understandably tight and every precaution was taken to ensure safety for all.
Earlier this month, we noted that President Obama will be using the safest Presidential limo ever built, the so-called Cadillac One (or simply, "The Beast"), whose toughness rivals a tank and seals off like a bank vault in the event of a potential attack.

Obama Caps White House Staff Salaries, Promises Openness

President Obama plans to put a freeze on White House salaries over $100K.
Obama also sent a messenger to Capitol Hill to brief them on the three executive orders he plans to sign tomorrow, sources tell ABC News.
Obama woke up in the White House for the first time and began a whirlwind day, having already set in motion Tuesday major policy changes for the new administration.
On his agenda for Day One, Obama summoned his economic advisers to hammer out details of an economic bailout and called in his top generals to give them new marching orders.
His staff was already putting into effect executive orders to usher in the Obama presidency, as well as his request that military hearings for terror suspects at the Guantanamo prison be suspended for 120 days.
ABC News has also learned that Obama will sign three executive orders tomorrow, including one to close Gitmo within a year.
But at a staff meeting to swear in top aides, Obama dropped a bombshell. He was freezing their salaries.
" During this period of economic emergency, families are tightening their belts, and so should Washington," Obama told the assembled staff.
He thanked the staff for accepting the restriction and said, "It's a mark of your commitment to public service."
The president said the salaries of everyone on the White House staff that exceeded $100,000 would be frozen. If the Obama White House pay structure is similar to that of the Bush White House, more than 100 staffers will have six-figure salaries.
Obama went on to spell out restrictions on lobbying after employees leave the White House and vowed that the federal government would be more willing to make information public. more

81 year old mugging victim died as she laid in street calling for help

An 81-year-old widow who died after being mugged was ignored as she lay on the pavement pleading for help.
Passers-by refused to stop and help Molly Morgan, thinking that she was drunk.
The retired architect was on her way to a lecture at her local library in Harrow, North-West London, on Thursday night when her shoulder bag was snatched.
This caused her to fall to the ground, causing serious head injuries and a broken arm.
Ignored: Pensioner Molly Morgan died following a street mugging. Many passers-by refused to help her because they thought she had been drinking
Mrs Morgan managed to tell police that a man walked right past her, even though she asked him for help.
She lay on the ground for ten minutes until two women - who had initially crossed to the other side of the road to avoid her - heard her cries and came to her aid.
Detective Chief Inspector Jessica Wadsworth, from the Met's Homicide and Serious Crime Command, said: 'I need to trace this man and any other people who saw Mrs Morgan lying on the pavement, since they are vital witnesses and will be able to help me find who killed Mrs Morgan.
'It is our belief that this man and other people in the area who didn't assist the victim may tragically not have realised that Mrs Morgan had been attacked and was in considerable pain.
more

Coast Guard Suspend search for elderly couple

LONG BEACH, Calif. — The Coast Guard suspended its search Saturday for an elderly couple believed to have fallen off a cruise ship between Long Beach and northern Mexico.
The aerial search for the 90-year-old man and his 79-year-old wife was halted after officials determined that their chances of surviving in the water were slim, said Chief Warrant Officer Scott Epperson.
"Factoring in their age and weights, their survivability in 59 degrees water was about 4 to 6 hours," he said. "The last time they were seen was 84 hours ago."
The couple were last seen Tuesday aboard the Carnival Paradise.
Officials also consulted with the couple's relatives, who agreed to suspending the search, Epperson said.
Miami-based Carnival said their cabin door was double-locked from the inside with a "Do Not Disturb" sign on the handle. Their belongings remained inside and the door leading from the cabin to the private balcony was unlocked.
Crews searched throughout the night, tracing the route the ship had taken since it left Long Beach on Monday, with stops at Santa Catalina and in Ensenada, Mexico, before returning Friday.

Edlery woman has accident but keeps going to not miss hair appointment

BOYNTON BEACH, FL (AP) -- Police say an elderly woman in Palm Beach County crashed into a man on a scooter and then kept driving to make her hair appointment.
Boynton Beach police spokeswoman Stephanie Slater says 77-year-old Louise Davidson of Boynton Beach was arrested Thursday for leaving the scene of an injury crash. The man suffered abrasions all over his body. His injuries are not believed to be life threatening.
Police say Slater was turning right when she pulled into the path of an oncoming scooter that had the right of way. The scooter collided with her silver Toyota, vaulting the man off the scooter, onto the windshield and then onto the roadway.
Police spotted her car after she had her hair appointment.