Patna, Nov 19 (SocialNews.XYZ) Bihar Rural Works Minister Ashok Chaudhary has distanced himself and his party from a controversial remark made by BJP leader Giriraj Singh, who blamed the JMM government for allegedly trying to...
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Bhubaneswar, Nov 19 (SocialNews.XYZ) Odisha held a successful investors roadshow in Singapore attended by over 300 delegates including prominent industry leaders, investors, Odia diaspora, and special invitees. A high-level delegation led by Chief Minister Mohan...
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HUNDREDS of kids will score fantastic free footies strips thanks to The Scottish Sun.
And now one of these lucky teams will score a bumper prize.
Last month we launched this year’s Free Footie Kits for Kids.
Community teams from across Scotland applied and will now get their hands on full kits for their players. In order to qualify, they sent in some brilliant goal celebration vids.
Now the 10 best clips will shoot it out for a further top prize of £250 of footie gear with the nine runners up each netting £100.
To be in with a chance of winning, the teams need your votes. Simply scan the QR code above and head online to choose your favourite.
TERMS & CONDITIONS
Voting closes at midnight on November 25, 2024.
One entry per person per day.
Winners must be prepared to confirm bank account number and sort code in order to process prize payment.
Payment can take up to 28 days to process.
One winner will receive £250 and nine runners up £100 for their club to purchase equipment.
Usual Scottish Sun rules apply. Editors decision is final.
A HORRIFIED mum was forced to suck out 40 bee stings from her toddler’s skin after he was attacked by a huge swarm – reminiscent of a horror film.
Jo Evans was at her local rugby club with friends and family when her four-year-old son, Brody-Jac, was suddenly swarmed by a colony of honey bees.
She feared her son might suffer the same fate as Macaulay Culkin’s character in the 90s film, My Girl, after he was engulfed by a swarm of bees, prompting her to suck out 40 stings to save him.
The 39-year-old social worker from Swansea was sitting with friends at the side of the pitch, “a stone’s throw away” from where her two children and other kids were playing on a bank in September.
Unbeknownst to her, the children had accidentally disturbed a honey bee hive while throwing stones into a stream – aggravating the winged insects.
The mum-of-two was horrified when she heard her eight-year-old son Blake screaming and turned to see a swarm of 50 bees surrounding her youngest, Brody-Jac.
Jo’s husband – 36-year-old social worker Jason Evans – sprinted over to rescue little Brody-Jac, suffering several bee stings himself.
The terrified mum then began sucking out the bee stings from her tot’s body after he was stung dozens of times across his arms, back and head.
Fearing their son could go into anaphylactic shock at any moment, the parents rushed Brody-Jac to hospital where luckily he made a full recovery.
Jo said: “The kids were throwing stones at a stream and obviously unknowingly aggravated this hive. They didn’t know it was there.
“The older children were obviously more aware of the situation and ran over to alert us. We were only sitting a stone’s throw away.
“I could hear my oldest screaming ‘I’ve been stung in the neck!’ When I turned my head, I could see my youngest standing in the middle with all the bees surrounding him. There were around 50.
“It made me immediately think of My Girl. One of the characters is allergic to bees and instantly died. It was like I was reliving that movie. I thought this was it.
“We didn’t know if Brody-Jac was allergic to them or not at that point. So I was really thinking the worst.
“My husband ran over and got my youngest out of there straight away and he was getting covered in bees.”
Jo then began using her mouth to suck the dozens of bee stings out of her little one’s body before rushing him to the hospital.
She added: “I’d already got the one sting out of my oldest and started sucking out the stings in Brody.
“I don’t even know if mother’s instinct started kicking in or I went into survival mode.
“They were all over his hands, arms, belly, back and head. Ones in his head I could just pick out with my nails.
“I just wanted to take the pain away from him. There was another child that had 11 stings.
“His face had swollen up and he had hives on his skin. Because he was crying, I knew he could breathe.
“We took him to hospital and they just told us to keep an eye on them and make sure they don’t get infected.
“They told me ‘good thinking’ about me sucking the stings out.
“The pain must’ve been horrific for him. He had over 40 stings and he had a coat on. The bees obviously went through his clothes.
“I don’t want anyone else to go through what we did that day. If your child is stung and there are signs of an anaphylactic shock, you have to ring 999.”
It comes after a man suffered multiple organ failure and narrowly escaped death after being stung by a giant honey bee.
And a toddler was taken to hospital in agony after being stung 18 times by a colony of angry bees.
The best thing to do if wasps swarm is to run away as fast as you can until you reach shelter, according to Pest Expert.
This could be a building or vehicle but is just anywhere where you can get away from the critters.
The pest experts advise against jumping in water as the cunning creatures might wait for you to come out before launching another attack.
They say If you have more than one layer on, pull your top over your head to help protect your face.
If you do get stung by a wasp it is important you remove it as soon as possible.
The sting can be scraped away from the skin using the edge of a credit card, or if you don’t have one to hand, you can use your fingernails.
You should never use your fingers or tweezers as it can cause the venom to spread.
After removing the sting you should:
Some people are allergic to wasp stings and they can cause them to go into anaphylactic shock, which requires urgent medical treatment.
Symptoms of anaphylaxis include:
THEME Park giant Universal has today revealed a sneak peek inside its Harry Potter-themed land opening at Epic Universe next year.
Today (November 19), Universal Orlando Resort shared an exclusive look inside The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic.
Images from Universal Orlando Resort show a full-scale recreation of the British Ministry of Magic, which Potter fans will know from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
Slated to open on May 22, 2025, Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry promises to be “Universal’s most impressive ride” thanks to “powerful storytelling” and “unprecedented ride technology”.
Park-goers will journey through the wizarding government building exploring ministry departments and Dolores Umbridge’s office before boarding magical, omnidirectional lifts.
Fans of the Boy Wizard will be able to spot details from the film, such as copies of wizarding newspaper the Daily Prophet and interdepartmental memos belonging to their favourite characters.
Set in the 1920s, guests will enter the Potter-themed land from a Parisian Muggle park and travel through Place Cachée, a wizarding shopping district.
The Harry Potter-themed land will also feature an all-new live show, Le Cirque Arcanus, which has been inspired by the Fantastic Beasts film.
The story sees Ringmaster Skender, who has stolen Newt Scamander’s Suitcase, try and bring the circus back to life with the creatures inside.
Along the way, characters to meet include visitors, officials and residents from the wizarding world, exchange students from the Hogwarts and Ilvermorny Schools of Witchcraft and Wizardry as well as talking portraits of wizards.
For places to eat and drink, there is Café L’Air De La Sirène serving French sandwiches and desserts as well as Le Gobelet Noir for “international Dark witches and wizards” which will have soups, salads and entrées.
Otherwise drinks can be found at Bar Moonshine for exclusive beers, wines and cocktails, or a butterbeer at the Bièraubeurre Cart.
And souvenirs such as sweets and Ministry of Magic merchandise can be found at Les Galeries Mirifiques, K. Rammelle and Tour En Floo.
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Ministry of Magic is the fifth and final land at Florida’s Epic Universe.
Epic Universe was first announced in 2019 and will feature four other theme lands, including Celestial Park, How to Train Your Dragon, Super Nintendo World and Dark Universe.
Celestial Park will be the central land of the theme park, with ‘portals’ to all the other lands.
The main ride will be the dual-launch, 62mph rollercoaster Starfall Racers, with other rides including the Constellation Carousel and wet-play area Astronomica.
Set at the Isle of Berk, the four rides at the How to Train Your Dragon land include family coaster Hiccup’s Wing Gliders, and water cannon ride Fyre Drill.
Entering via the iconic green pipe, the main ride at Super Nintendo World will be AR racing ride Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge.
Set around Frankenstein Manor, dark ride Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment is to be Universal’s “most terrifying yet” at the Dark Universe land.
Next time you visit a theme park, you may want to use our top tips to make the most of your adrenaline-inducing day out.
A new £300m theme park could soon open in the UK – despite not having any rides.
Meanwhile, a new indoor theme park could open in Europe next year, with a huge castle, a water flume and a family rollercoaster.
THE jury in a civil case against Conor McGregor has been told to consider the evidence rather than providing a “hot take” in their verdict.
MMA fighter McGregor is facing an accusation in the civil action that he “brutally raped and battered” Nikita Hand at a hotel in south Dublin in December 2018.
The sports star previously told the court he had consensual sex with Ms Hand in a penthouse at the Beacon Hotel.
Ms Hand, who is also known as Nikita Ni Laimhin, is also suing another man, James Lawrence, for sexual assault.
The jury began hearing closing arguments on Tuesday morning.
Remy Farrell SC, defence barrister for Mr McGregor, said it may be the case that some members of the jury – if not all of them – had negative views of his client.
He said: “You may have an active dislike of him, some of you may even loathe him – there is no point pretending that the situation might be otherwise.”
However, he said it was their job to consider the evidence in the case.
Mr Farrell said: “This case is not about some kind of hot take, not about your gut, not about what colour writers in newspapers might say it is about.”
He said the case could not be reduced to a soundbite and added: “This case is about the evidence and nothing but the evidence.”
He noted that the jury may not have appreciated hand gestures or comments made by Mr McGregor during evidence including referring to “two lovely ladies”, but added: “I’m not asking you to invite him to Sunday brunch.”
Mr Farrell said the jury were not considering the consequences of who they liked and disliked, nor who they would like to see win and not win the case.
He said the outcome would be devastating for either Mr McGregor or Ms Hand.
He said they were probably the hardest working jury members currently sitting in Ireland to have to put these considerations out of their mind.
Mr Farrell told them they had to consider on balance of probabilities whether the alleged assault is more likely to have happened than not.
He said: “Many of you probably don’t like Mr McGregor – that’s not terribly surprising. Should that matter?”
He added: “If this defendant was anyone other than Mr McGregor, would the door of the jury room hit you on the backside before you were out to dismiss this case?”
Mr Farrell told the jury it was their job to work their way methodically through the “islands of fact” which were uncontested pieces of evidence.
He suggested to the jury that it could be beneficial to cross reference text messages sent by Ms Hand and CCTV footage from the hotel.
He said the jury had the benefit of being able to look at CCTV footage of Ms Hand from the immediate aftermath and hours after the alleged rape.
Mr Farrell said John Gordon SC, for Ms Hand, had told them at the start of the case that there was a single issue of rape and a lot of noise surrounding that.
Mr McGregor’s legal representative added: “Having heard the evidence, do you think that’s right? Do you think all the other stuff is just noise?”
He told the jury that Ms Hand had given a “simply invented” account of the alleged rape in her first recollection of the incident to her friend Eimer Brennan after the incident.
He said she told Ms Brennan there were security guards present at the hotel when she woke up and she feared she would be “gang raped”.
He said it was also important that she told Ms Brennan that there was no sign of another woman, Danielle Kealey, when she woke up and that she left immediately.
He asked the jury to contrast this with a later account where she wakes up and does not immediately remember anything: “How can those two things be true?”
“Many of you probably don’t like Mr McGregor – that’s not terribly surprising. Should that matter?”
Remy Farrell
Mr Farrell said: “She sought to airbrush Danielle Kealey out of events.”
He said Ms Kealey’s evidence did not support Ms Hand’s account.
Mr Farrell said if Ms Hand was waking up thinking she was about to be “gang raped”, she must have said something to Ms Kealey.
Commenting on Ms Hand’s account to Ms Brennan, he said: “This is all an elaborate fabrication.”
Mr Farrell said that when cross-examined, Ms Hand said she must have been confused.
He added: “That’s one explanation, there are other explanations.”
He said it was “odd” that some things were coming back to her when she had given an account of things that did not happen.
“Ask yourself this question: That initial account, was that just confusion? Or was it just fantasy?” he said.
Mr Farrell also said texts sent by Ms Hand to her boyfriend while she was at the hotel showed that she was lying about where she was.
He asked the jury to consider “the sheer number of lies” in the transcript of a recording of a conversation Ms Hand later had with her boyfriend.
He said it was not a crime to lie but added: “What is much more interesting is why someone tells a lie.”
He said she had texted “clear fabrications” and an “absolute untruth” about her whereabouts to her boyfriend.
“Why is she doing it?”, he said.
Mr Farrell said the CCTV showed someone “well able” to deflect and lie.
He said it showed Ms Hand doing a “victory dance” after sending a text to her boyfriend where she did not say she was at the hotel.
“If this defendant was anyone other than Mr McGregor, would the door of the jury room hit you on the backside before you were out to dismiss this case?”
Remy Farrell
Mr Farrell asked the jury to consider the consistency of Ms Hand’s account and said she could be seen to be “happy, happy, happy all the way through” on the CCTV footage.
“Then bang, as soon as she knows she has to go home and face the music – that’s when the allegations start,” he added.
He said Ms Hand’s account is that she was brutally raped by Mr McGregor while Ms Kealey, her friend, was no more than a couple of feet away in an adjoining room, for which he said evidence had been given that the door was not closed.
He said: “Could this really be true?”
Mr Farrell said Ms Kealey gave evidence that Ms Hand was in and out of the bedroom showing no signs of distress.
He asked the jury how this could conceivably be reconciled with Ms Hand’s account of events.
He said that she had asked Ms Kealey to delete text messages.
“Is all of that noise, or is it evidence that helps you?” he said.
Mr Farrell said Ms Hand “simply pretends she cannot remember” aspects of the day.
He said there was a “black hole” in her account where she had sex with Mr Lawrence.
Mr Farrell said Ms Hand had put forward a “very carefully put-together account”.
However, he told the jury that she said she did not remember details that did not corroborate her story, or flatly contradicted it.
He said: “Is it just a coincidence?”
The jury returned to hearing closing arguments from Mr Gordon on behalf of Ms Hand on Tuesday afternoon.
THOUSANDS of Irish people could be missing out on a €462 cold weather cash lump sum or €33 weekly as temperatures plummet to -4C.
Fuel Allowance season kicked off back in September, but thousands who could be eligible for the cash may not be claiming it.
Criteria for the social welfare payment will also change again in January after Budget 2025, meaning thousands more will be able to avail of the vital heating cash for the latter part of winter.
The Fuel Allowance is a €33-per-week payment, or a €462 lump sum paid twice across 28 weeks, paid out to some 404,000 Irish.
The Fuel Allowance, which is paid out to only one person per household, is available to people over 70, or people on a qualifying social welfare payment from September to April.
And thousands more will benefit when the payment is extended in the New Year.
People on the Carer’s Allowance will now be eligible for the Fuel Allowance, providing they meet the Fuel Allowance criteria.
And the means test disregard for the Fuel Allowance will be extended to those aged 66 and over from January, where it was previously for over-70s.
Social Protection Minister Heather Humphreys confirmed: “I am reducing the age criteria for the Fuel Allowance means test from 70 to 66 with effect from January 2025.
“The means test disregard will be extended to those aged 66 and over at €524 for a single person and €1,048 for a couple meaning more people will qualify for this support.”
Any carers or over-66s who qualify for the cash from January will only receive a maximum of €462 for this season as the payment is not backdated.
The 2024/2025 Fuel Allowance season will wrap up after 28 weeks on April 4, 2025.
Several weather warnings are in place for a November cold snap, with more severe weather bound to hit Ireland before the end of the Fuel Allowance season next year.
To qualify, you must:
If you are 70 or over, you don’t need a qualifying payment to qualify for Fuel Allowance.
Social welfare payments are either based on your PRSI contributions or means-tested social assistance payments.
Qualifying social insurance payments:
Qualifying social assistance payments:
AS freezing conditions and low temperatures hit Ireland, the country is set to bask in ice, snow and sleet.
With temperatures setting into minus figures, it won’t beat the coldest days ever recorded on the island.
The coldest areas in Ireland are usually found inland, with coastal areas benefiting from sea breezes to keep warmer.
Mullingar, Co Westmeath has the lowest average temperature at 9.3C yearly, but it is not the coldest ever recorded area.
Here are the areas in the country that have recorded the lowest ever temperatures:
You can apply for the Fuel Allowance online and this requires the use of your MyGovID account.
For those who are unable to apply online there are two paper applications that can be printed and filled out.
The NFS1 form is to be filled out by those age under 70.
While the NFS2 form is the form that must be filled out by those age 70 or over.
Those who can not download the forms online can get a copy of the form at their local post office or by calling 0818 200 400.
For those who need assistance in filling out the form – your Intreo Centre, Social Weldare Branch Office or Citizens Information Centre can assist with the application.
When returning the physical form – who you return it to depends on which qualifying social welfare payment you receive.
SUN Racing goes through Wednesday’s cards on the hunt for value.
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LONGSHOT
HELLO MISS LADY (4.30 Kempton)
She was in winning form at Lingfield the last time she ran on the all-weather two starts ago in September.
THIEF
WONDER OF THE SEAS (12.50 Ffos Las)
He came right back to form after a break when second at Uttoxeter last time. A repeat of that would see him in the frame again.
POWER OF DESTINY (8.00 Kempton)
Has joined Ralph Beckett from Sir Michael Stoute and runs off a lower mark then her close second at Goodwood in July.
A responsible gambler is someone who:
Find our detailed guide on responsible gambling practices here.
After a long wait, Taylor Sheridan’s Western drama Yellowstone is finally back with the second half of its fifth season. The tenth episode of season 5 deals with the fallout from the major revelation in the previous episode while focusing on Beth Dutton and Rip Wheeler. In the process, the episode also strongly hints at […]
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