Houston

Rescuers try to talk down Eiffel Tower climber

Rescuers were trying to talk down a man who scaled the Eiffel Tower on Monday and forced the monument's evacuation. Live television images showed one specialist fireman and another rescuer perched on the 324-metre (1,063-foot) tower's wrought-iron struts, just below the highest viewing platform trying to persuade the unknown man to give himself up. France's BFM TV reported that he had threatened to commit suicide.

Van passenger impaled by tripod on California freeway

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Authorities say somebody stole a tripod from a California Department of Transportation crew and then dropped it from an overpass onto a Sacramento freeway, impaling the lung of a passenger in a van.

Raven chicks in the Tower ward off prophecy of doom for Brexit Britain

Britain's political establishment is in chaos over Brexit and Prime Minister Theresa May's days in office are numbered but the kingdom and the Tower of London appear safe from legendary doom after the birth of four raven chicks at the famous fortress. Legend has it that should the six resident ravens ever leave the almost 1,000-year-old Tower, home to the crown jewels and now a popular tourist attraction, then the castle and the kingdom will fall. It is believed that since the reign of King Charles II in the 17th Century a small group of the birds have been kept there to prevent this from happening and the current group of seven ravens have now been joined by four newcomers, the Tower said.

NYPD used Woody Harrelson photo to find lookalike beer thief

NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Police Department used a photo of Woody Harrelson in its facial recognition program in an attempt to identify a beer thief who looked like the actor, according to a report published Thursday.

Spray foam-encased kitten rescued by Oregon garbage worker

HILLSBORO, Ore. (AP) — A kitten that was found encased in hardened spray foam is expected to make a full recovery after being rescued from a garbage can by an Oregon sanitation worker, authorities said Thursday.

Retrial planned for man who broke $4.5M statue's thumb

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Federal prosecutors plan to retry a Delaware man who admitted he broke a thumb off a $4.5 million statue at a Philadelphia museum.

Correction: Costly Coffee story

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — In a story May 15 about a California cafe serving what it calls the world's most expensive coffee, The Associated Press reported erroneously that the coffee beans are organic. They are not. The coffee is selling for $75 a cup.

Take or pay: Belgian ex-king faces paternity fines

A Belgian court has ordered the country's former king to pay 5,000 euros ($5,600) a day until he takes a DNA paternity test to resolve a long-running case brought by a woman who says she is his daughter. A judicial source said the 84-year-old King Albert II must pay the sum to Belgian artist Delphine Boel, 50, for every day he now fails to heed a court order made last year to provide a sample. Court-ordered DNA tests have already proved that she is not the offspring of her legal father, Jacques Boel, scion of one of Belgium's richest industrial dynasties.

Kitten stowaways found after long journey in steel column

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Five kittens that stowed away on a 400-mile trip to San Diego are looking for new homes.

Semi-trailer hauling honey overturns along Indiana highway

HAMMOND, Ind. (AP) — A semi-trailer hauling honey overturned on a northwestern Indiana highway, spilling some of the sticky substance and restricting travel for hours.

Snake turns up in washing machine smelling 'like Downy'

EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — An escaped pet snake that apparently slithered into a suburban Chicago family's washing machine ended up smelling like fabric softener after going through the wash.

Guns N' Roses sues brewery over its 'Guns 'N' Rosé' beer

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The rock band Guns N' Roses is accusing a Colorado brewery of piggybacking off their fame to sell beer and merchandise.

Baby giraffe at Seattle zoo gets therapeutic shoes

SEATTLE (AP) — The newest baby giraffe at a Seattle zoo has been outfitted with therapeutic shoes to help treat abnormalities in his rear legs.

High-tech sex toy for women wins back a rescinded award

ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — A trade group has reinstated an award to the makers of a robotic sex toy for women that it had taken away four months ago for not keeping with its image.

Australia takes responsibility for typos on 46M bank notes

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia's central bank has taken responsibility for typos on 46 million bank notes after a radio station posted an image of the microscopic error on social media.

Chef stopped at Los Angeles airport with 40 frozen piranhas

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A famous South American chef says he was stopped as he brought 40 piranhas in a duffel bag through Los Angeles International Airport.

Stop bugging him: Philippine leader brushes off finger-sized pest

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte seemed unfazed when a finger-sized cockroach scrambled onto his shoulder as he spoke at a campaign rally on Wednesday night. Alerted by his anxious aide, Duterte swatted the roach away. "It's Liberal! That's for sure," Duterte said to laughter from the crowd.

Australia's central bank takes 'responsibilty' for note typo

Millions of A$50 ($35) banknotes in Australia have an embarrassing typographical error that was overlooked by the country's central bank before they were printed and circulated. The goof first became known on Thursday when a listener on radio outlet Triple M sent the station a magnified photo of the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) new A$50 note highlighting the word "responsibility" misspelt as "responsibilty" three times. The A$50 currency is the most widely circulated in Australia and accounts for nearly half the total value of other banknotes in use, according to the RBA.

Denver is 1st US city to decriminalize 'magic mushrooms'

DENVER (AP) — Voters narrowly made Denver the first U.S. city to decriminalize psilocybin, the psychoactive ingredient in "magic mushrooms."

Orchestra searching for child who charmed crowd with 'wow!'

BOSTON (AP) — America's oldest performing arts group is looking for a child who was literally wowed by a recent classical music concert.

Tanzania plans cable car for Mount Kilimanjaro

A cable car could increase tourist numbers by 50 percent by providing access to the mountain for those unable to climb it, Constantine Kanyasu, the deputy minister for tourism, said. "There are two companies one from China and another from a Western country that have shown interest." "This won’t be the first time in the world, cable cars are there in Sweden, Italy, the Himalayas,” he said. Porter and guide groups who take tourists up the mountain oppose the project because they fear cable cars will reduce the number of climbers.

Whose poo is this? Prague Zoo takes a closer look at dung

PRAGUE (AP) — After producing plenty of elephant dung and other manure for years, Prague Zoo has capitalized on its expertise by creating a new permanent exhibit on the world of animal excrement.

Coffee cup in 'Game of Thrones' scene perks up viewers

LOS ANGELES (AP) — "Game of Thrones" fans got a taste of the modern world when eagle-eyed viewers spotted a takeout coffee cup on the table during a celebration in which the actors drank from goblets and horns.