A biker named Zhang Bo rode into an open manhole and ended up in hospital. Bo, 28 - from Changchun, Jilin province, eastern China - hadn't spotted the missing cover and was sent flying over the handlebars when the front half of his bike disappeared into the hole. He sustained a broken jaw and fractured skull. "The manhole cover had been stolen to melt down for scrap. It's an increasing problem," said a police spokesman.Found at the Telegraph. Photo credit: CEN
The exact same thing happened to me in India. I was travelling with 3 college friends who unbeknownst to me had a love triangle going on, when suddenly one of them took a depressive turn and rode off into the mountains on his moped. We had 2 mopeds between the 3 remaining travellers; 1 bike had lights and a horn but no brakes, the 2nd had brakes but no lights or horn. I ended up taking the first bike and driving ahead so we could see where we were going.
ReplyDeleteWe ended up in the mountains in the middle of a very dark and humid night searching for our friend, when suddenly on the side of the road a gaggle of men appeared, screaming and shouting. Well, we presumed we were being ambushed and proceeded to accelerate, only to realise too late that they were in fact warning me about a huge pothole a metre wide and about 2 metres deep! Needless to say I ended up flat on my face with the bike sticking up vertically from the hole. My friends behind me just managed to stop in time. The would-be ambushers very kindly dusted me off and helped us back on the road, just in time to see our wayward companion speed past us on his way home.
The journey home took several hours and involved a pile of dog carcasses, a truck full of drunk soldiers, and a young man with a generous but unwelcome libido...
Actually that whole "stolen to be melted down for scrap" reminds me of something that happened in a southern Californian town some time ago. Apparently, there was someone stealing antique lamp posts for the same thing. It's also happened to people with copper wiring, since it's also being stolen for scrap copper.
ReplyDeleteeh, there is a white chalk outline that would appear to suggest that this did more than hurt...
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