Latest news with #Hickson
Axios
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Axios
What it's like to play a very real version of pretend "Survivor"
I spent my Saturday shuffling around Rock Creek Park, attempting to channel 25 years' worth of lessons from "Survivor" into a day-long replica of the long-running reality show. The big picture: Survivor DC: Rock Creek Park held its 15th "season" this weekend with 18 players from mostly near, but some far, including Los Angeles. Inspired by a friend's "Survivor"-themed birthday party, Jacob Hickson started hosting in 2017 and is now getting 200 applications per season. With the help of three others — all former Rock Creek players — Hickson architects and hosts the game on a $500 budget, hewing closely to the format of the CBS mothership. The participants range from D.C.-area "Survivor" super-fans to out-of-town super-duper fans to locals simply intrigued by this peculiar way to spend a Saturday. My thought bubble: Modern-era "Survivor" is much more about social politics and strategy than the survival aspect. That means even a condensed, low-budget version at a local park can create the same dynamics, dilemmas and decision points as the real thing. That goes a long way toward making it feel like you're actually playing "Survivor" — even if the prize money is $250 instead of $1 million, and it's being documented on Instagram Stories instead of broadcast TV. I relished the high highs of lying to tribemates about a decision to get an extra vote advantage and the low lows of being lied to about voting plans before I was the game's sixth boot. What's next: There are two more planned runs of the game in 2025, including an all-stars season of returning players. For those interested in playing, details for future seasons will be announced on the game's Instagram page.
BBC News
19-03-2025
- BBC News
Man sentenced following fatal Malvern collision
A 91-year-old man has been given a suspended prison sentence following a crash in Worcestershire in which an elderly woman Burrow, of Meadow Walk in Colwall, Herefordshire, pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving over the collision on Church Street, Malvern, on 8 August said the Fiat 500 Burrow was driving left the road and hit a group of pedestrians, killing 89-year-old Joyce Worcester Crown Court on Tuesday, he was given an eight-month sentence suspended for 12 months. He was also disqualified from driving for three years, after which he will need to take an extended Hickson was taken to hospital following the crash, but later died of her injuries. Another two pedestrians were seriously also pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by careless driving, for which he was given a £1,000 fine and a 12-month driving ban to run concurrently with the three-year Con Paul Pickering, of West Mercia Police's serious collision investigation unit, said his thoughts were with Ms Hickson's family and those who were injured. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Yahoo
FedEx driver was looking at phone before fatal crash that killed ex-NY track star and 2 kids: report
A FedEx truck driver accused of killing a former Long Island track star and his two children in a crash allegedly looked at his phone 25 times and was 'periodically tapping and swiping' before causing the fatal wreck. Santos Valentin, 30, collided with a Honda Civic carrying Donnell Hickson, 43, his son Decir, 18, and his 11-year-old daughter Kyla on the Pennsylvania Turnpike on July 20, 2024, while driving in his FedEx tractor-trailer, WKBN reported. Investigators said that the sheer force of the crash caused both vehicles to be pushed off the road and that the delivery truck landed on top of the car. Hickson, who was a Baldwin resident, and his two children were pronounced dead at the scene. Valentin was taken to the hospital but survived. Valentin turned himself into police on Thursday after he was charged with three felony counts of homicide by a vehicle after prosecutors alleged he was using his phone around the time of the collisions, according to court records filed on Feb. 12. The delivery driver — who was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the wreck — told police that the Hickson's Civic 'came out of nowhere' when they collided, and he was driving at a speed of around 65 to 75 mph. However, dash camera footage inside the FedEx truck paints a different picture. Prosecutors say the footage shows Valentin 'using his cellphone for an extended period of time well before the crash,' and he had done so about 48 seconds before the fatal collision. 'Valentin looks down or glances at his phone a total of 25 times. In that same 48 seconds, Valentin looks up or glances at the road a total of 20 times' and was observed 'periodically tapping and swiping the screen,' according to Newsday. Seconds before the crash, the Honda was heading east in the left lane but changed over to the right lane in front of the FedEx truck and stopped. Investigators have yet to determine why the Honda abruptly stopped. Valentin posted his bail set at $300,000 by Magisterial District Judge Joseph Stauffer after being held in the Lancaster County Prison on Thursday. A preliminary hearing has not yet been scheduled. A crowdfunding page to support Hickson's wife and Kyla's mother, Keisha, and his mother, Martinique, says the 'amazing' father of two 'was always that person to light up any room her entered with his great personality.' Hickson also was an All-American and all-state triple jumper at York College in Jamaica, Queens, and competed at the 2005 NCAA Championships. His son, Decir, was gearing up to enter college a few weeks before he was killed in the wreck. His 11-year-old daughter was described as 'very creative with dreams of creating her own cartoon show one day.' 'Donnell, Decir, and Kyla were beloved members of our community,' the page organizers, Frances Crooks and Lakeisha Barron-Williams, wrote. 'Their loss is felt deeply by all who knew them.'
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Tradie makes shock discovery in stagnant drain: 'They're bloody everywhere'
A tradie was looking down from a roof at a new construction site when he noticed something odd moving in the murky stormwater drain below. After downing his tools during smoko, Aaron Hickson ventured down to take a closer look and discovered signs the area had become overrun with invasive toads. 'They're bloody everywhere. Yesterday I saw around 15 juveniles within 20 metres,' he told Yahoo News on Friday. 'I'm back there now and I can see thousands of tadpoles.' Cane toads were imported from Hawaii and introduced into Queensland in the 1930s in a misguided attempt to combat insect attacks on sugar cane crops. Since then toads have continued to methodically spread south with the southern front now extending to the Clarence River in NSW. Related: Farmer solves decade-long cane toad 'murder mystery' 'Spot fire populations' are also common occurrences that need to be tracked. They are sparked when pairs jump ahead of the front by catching rides on caravans, buses, horse floats and trucks carrying garden supplies. As they take new territory, toads have demonstrated an ability to outcompete native frogs and kill marsupials and birds with their poisonous glands. Once they become established, their numbers need to be controlled, or sudden outbreaks can occur, as Gold Coast residents found out two years ago. Hickson's discovery was 90km south of Byron Bay in the town of Yamba. While the toads were rarely seen there in the 1980s, the video highlights how the species is now flourishing. Charles Sturt University environmental scientist Dr Matt Greenlees studies the species' encroachment through northern NSW and said the situation at the construction site demonstrates how toads can utilise disturbance caused by humans and become established. 'It's an unfortunate consequence of how they're able to exploit engineering associated with development,' he said. 'If it was in an area on the edge of their distribution, an environment like that would offer them an opportunity to become established. So, it's a good example of what to keep an eye out for.' Related: Grim prediction after 'Toadzilla' discovery in Aussie national park Despite efforts by authorities to contain toads to regions north of the Clarence River, satellite populations of toads are frequently found on the Central Coast, and a small population temporarily became established in Sydney's suburbs during the early 2000s. 'It demonstrates they're perfectly capable of existing that far south. Modelling that compares toad physiology to the environment shows they could definitely spread all the way down the coast of NSW further south than Sydney,' Greenlees said. New technologies are available to help residents rid toad tadpoles from their properties, with one device capitalising on the cannibalistic nature of toads to control them. And Local Land Services also have experts available for advice on toads. Macquarie University cane toad expert Professor Rick Shine told Yahoo the rate at which toads have spread around Australia is 'concerning'. How the extraordinary weather conditions created by climate change affect their advance remains unknown. 'It can either accelerate the invasion or slow it down. The obvious suggestion would be, if you get lots of rain it makes it easy for the toads to move across wet ground. 'But if you get a weird week or two of unusually cold weather at the front, we get reports from farmers of dead toads. If you get unusually dry conditions, there are fewer bugs and you get lots of starving toads. 'It really is swings and roundabouts. We don't know whether the net positives and the net negatives will balance out, or whether we'll see a more rapid or a slower expansion of the toad front.' 😟 Wallaby discovered inside car at Woolworths' car park 🔎 Aussie researchers document major change in 200 crocodiles 😳 19-metre roadside billboard targets PM over ancient site While skirmishes against the spread of cane toads continue, some fear the battle against them is already lost. Invasive Species Council CEO Andrew Cox doesn't think Aussies should lose too much sleep over the spread of cane toads because it's 'inevitable', and that emerging threats need more attention. According to modelling by the CSIRO in 2021, invasive species are already costing the nation $25 billion a year, and Cox thinks more money needs to be spent on stopping their arrival in Australia. 'The mistakes were made long ago and we have very few tools to stop cane toads. But what we're seeing around Australia is a constant arrival of new invasive species, particularly in the north, and authorities are struggling to keep up,' he said. 'The magnitude of impacts from invasive grasses, insects and diseases are being seen already, but it's poorly appreciated by most Australians. We need to invest more heavily in solutions, particularly prevention, developing new technologies, and getting smarter about how we deal with this problem.' Love Australia's weird and wonderful environment? 🐊🦘😳 Get our new newsletter showcasing the week's best stories.
