Ripley Entertainment Inc.'s Blog, page 100
February 28, 2022
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February 25, 2022
4,000 Luxury Cars Left Smoldering At Sea – Are They Up For Grabs?
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
A fire that engulfed a cargo ship floating in the Atlantic for a week straight has subsided, leaving the carcasses of $400 million worth of luxury vehicles behind.
The Felicity Ace’s journey from Germany to the docks of Rhode Island was cut short off the coast of Portugal’s Azores islands last Wednesday when the 656-foot car carrier went ablaze as it hauled approximately 4,000 Volkswagen Group vehicles — including Lamborghinis, Porsches, Bentleys, and Audis — across the Atlantic. As the fire began to spread, all of the 22 crew members on board jumped ship before anyone could get hurt.
It wasn’t until six days later that the fire began to calm after two tugboats arrived from Gibraltar with firefighting equipment to douse the ship in water. Unfortunately for stateside luxury vehicle enthusiasts anticipating their new rides, the fire had likely incinerated every car on board.
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Fueling the FireIt appears the cars may have turned on themselves in this scenario, as Faial port captain João Mendes Cabeças explained over the weekend that lithium-ion batteries of electric vehicles on board were responsible for “keeping the fire alive” for so long.
Since the fire caused no human harm, the Portuguese Navy’s main concern is what kind of environmental impact the burning fuel and car batteries will cause. On the upside, no oil leakage has been detected thus far.
This is by no means the first — or likely the last — time a roll-on/roll-off (RORO) car carrier has caught fire. In fact, fires were the third top cause of shipping losses in the last decade, with 10 “total loss” cargo ship fires in 2020 alone.
Cashing in on Maritime LawSo what is one to do if they find themselves sailing around and happen upon an abandoned vessel up in flames? A viral tweet by @RetroTechNoir set the internet ablaze with the claim that since the ship was abandoned, maritime law says everything on board is up for grabs.
BREAKING: A giant cargo ship “Felicity Ace” is on fire in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
It’s carrying a cargo of Porsche and VW automobiles.
The crew safely abandoned ship in lifeboats. Under maritime law the ship is now “finders keepers.” pic.twitter.com/gHLqHncrOi
— Retro Tech Noir (@RetroTechNoir) February 17, 2022
Not quite.
When considering maritime law, there are two ways to cash in on the unmitigated disaster of a sinking ship: the law of finds and the law of salvage.
Retro Tech Noir’s tweet refers to the prior, which would be an accurate assessment if the Felicity Ace were a shipwreck discovered after several years during which the owners gave up the hunt.
In this instance, the ship is still owned by Mitsui O.S.K Lines. Its contents are still very much of interest to insurance companies and the Volkswagen Group, especially considering it was carrying several high-end, custom models, including rare Lamborghini Aventadors. Enter: the law of salvage, which was created to encourage comradery at seas — in exchange for a reward.
Aventador Ultimae (Courtesy Lamborghini)
According to this law, anyone who risks their own safety to help a fellow person at sea is entitled to a reward after returning the vessel’s contents to its rightful owner — typically to the tune of 10–20% of the total property value, but sometimes as high as 50%.
With around $400 million worth of vehicles on board the Felicity Ace, salvagers stand to make a pretty penny once the ship is safe to board — about $150 million, to be exact.
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines will allow salvage teams to board “when conditions are safe” with hopes that they can provide more insight into the damage — and hopefully what caused the fire. Two salvage teams are already on-site, with another en route to lend a VERY helping hand.
By Meghan Yani, contributor for Ripleys.com
EXPLORE THE ODD IN PERSON! Discover hundreds of strange and unusual artifacts and get hands-on with unbelievable interactives when you visit a Ripley’s Odditorium!Source: 4,000 Luxury Cars Left Smoldering At Sea – Are They Up For Grabs?
February 24, 2022
February 23, 2022
Khuk Khi Kai: Thailand’s Alleged “Chicken Poop Prison”
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Much of human history has been marred with places of unthinkable brutality. From Dachau to the torture chamber of the Gravensteen castle, some torturous places of the past will shake you to your core. Thailand’s Khuk Khi Kai was such a place — where animal feces were used as a mechanism for cruelty.
Translating to “chicken poop prison,” Khuk Khi Kai is located in the seaside town of Laem Sing, Chanthaburi, and was built in 1893 after the French occupied the region during a part of the Franco-Siamese war.
Built from red bricks, the tiny tower of terror measured only 14 feet long and 23 feet high and featured rows of slit-like windows along its sides. Prisoners were locked on the ground floor underneath a long chicken coup. The perforated vents allowed the chicken poop to continuously rain down on the inmates below, torturing them both night and day.
It is said that French colonists used the chicken poop prison to lock up locals who resisted French occupation. However, some historians believe that the building was merely used as an observation tower.
While some may view chicken poop as an ineffective, or even comical, torture device, this could not be further from the truth. Chicken feces has a suffocating odor of ammonia that most people can withstand for only a few moments. The strong smell can cause headaches, vomiting, and even mental health problems.
After the ammonia from the chicken poop enters the body, it reacts with your body’s natural water to produce ammonium hydroxide. This harmful chemical solution causes numerous adverse reactions, including throat and respiratory issues.
Imagine being locked in a cramped, dark cell under a never-ending cascade of chicken droppings for days, and even weeks, on end. Not only would your sense of smell be overwhelmed, but you could also fall into a deep depression.
Khuk Khi Kai isn’t the only instance where chicken poop has been used to harm people. In 2013, city workers in British Columbia, Canada, attempted to rid the streets of homeless people by dumping a truckload of chicken poop and spreading it throughout the homeless encampment. The editor of Abbotsford Today described the act as “wicked.”
The Chicken Poop Prison: Fact or Fiction?Whether or not this method of torture was actually implemented at Khuk Khi Kai is difficult to confirm. But based on the acts of cruelty humans have inflicted upon each other throughout the centuries, a chicken poop prison certainly doesn’t seem out of the question. True or not, the location remains a tourist attraction, complete with chicken statues at its entrance.
By Stephanie Weaver, contributor for Ripleys.com
EXPLORE THE ODD IN PERSON! Discover hundreds of strange and unusual artifacts and get hands-on with unbelievable interactives when you visit a Ripley’s Odditorium!Source: Khuk Khi Kai: Thailand’s Alleged “Chicken Poop Prison”
February 22, 2022
Voluntary Confinement: Regular Folks Line Up To Stay In Swiss Prison
Featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!
Many challenges and considerations go into constructing a “successful” jail. According to Samuels Group, preconceived notions abound regarding what an incarceration facility should look like. Part of the reason for this is the careful balancing act that exists between great design and functionality. Coupled with these concerns, planners must also consider how the layout will best facilitate rehabilitation efforts.
That said, these institutions don’t have a reputation for being particularly pleasant or comfortable. After all, they specialize in human cages complete with exposed toilets. Perhaps this is why it’s so surprising that a new jail in Zurich, Switzerland, has regular folks lining up for a little voluntary confinement. Sure, this sounds like the premise of a reality television show, but we’re here to assure you that truth is stranger than fiction.
Find out more about the deluge of people jonesing to spend a few days in the Zurich West Prison.
Doing Swiss TimeSwitzerland has a reputation for crafting exceptionally accurate clocks and the world’s finest watches. Think TAG Heuer, Piaget, and Rolex. So, when you hear the expression “doing Swiss time,” you’re likely thinking about cogs and cuckoos — not prisons.
But that hasn’t stopped more than 832 individuals from submitting applications hoping for a chance to spend a few nights in a new Swiss jail facility. According to Zurich corrections authorities, the test run for staying in the facility is scheduled from March 24 through 27. That said, they’re still working out details before they start accepting faux prisoners.
Nevertheless, we do know that the Zurich West Prison is located west of the city’s central train station and will house roughly 117 people awaiting trial and 124 people under “provisional arrest.” Officials have yet to announce how many volunteers they’ll accept for the practice run. To qualify, they must be at least 18 years old and prepared for a realistic detention experience.
Volunteers for the Clinker
Swiss prison experiment: Volunteers sign up to test out new prison https://t.co/YSjHpqu3JG
— ABC News (@abcnews) February 17, 2022
What else do we know about the experience volunteers should expect? For starters, they won’t pay anything, and they also shouldn’t expect to get paid for their time in jail. Daily life will include going through intake procedures, testing food, walking the yard, and sleeping in a cell. Cellphones and other electronic devices must be left at the door when checking in, and every volunteer will need a security clearance. To obtain this clearance, participants must go through a security checkpoint similar to airport TSA. And as for strip searches? According to officials, those are voluntary. (Whew!)
During the authentic incarceration experience, volunteers will receive safe words. That way, if things spiral out of control, they can let authorities know ASAP. The same goes for those who get cold feet at any point during the test run. In return, the experience will let officials of the prison system test the new facility’s capacity, operations, and services. It will also give correctional officers a chance to communicate and cooperate with authorities like prosecutors and law enforcement.
Officials of the Swiss prison system hope to kill two birds with one stone through this venture. Besides testing the jail and working out kinks, they believe the experience will demystify the penal system for members of the public. And they hope it’ll let people see what prison officials actually do. Speaking of wardens in the Zurich region’s rehabilitation and corrections services department, spokeswoman Elena Tankovski notes, “They know how [to] treat people right. . . They are actually more a carer than a guard.” Hopefully, those safe words won’t be needed after all.
By Engrid Barnett, contributor for Ripleys.com
EXPLORE THE ODD IN PERSON! Discover hundreds of strange and unusual artifacts and get hands-on with unbelievable interactives when you visit a Ripley’s Odditorium!Source: Voluntary Confinement: Regular Folks Line Up To Stay In Swiss Prison
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