Austrian man bitten by snake as he sat on the toilet
An Austrian had a nightmarish morning when a python slid through his drains and bit him as he sat on the toilet, Reuters reported.
The 65-year-old in the city of Graz turned around shortly after 6 am to see a 1.6-metre albino reticulated python in the toilet bowl, police in the province of Styria said in a statement.
The snake, a constrictor native to Asia that can grow to more than 9 metres long, is thought to have escaped a neighbour’s apartment unnoticed and slid into the toilet through the drains, though its exact route was still unclear, the police said.
A reptile expert contacted by the emergency services removed the snake from the toilet, cleaned it and returned it to its owner. Its victim was treated in hospital for minor injuries.
Dublin Marathon cancelled for second year running
The 2021 KBC Dublin Marathon has been cancelled for the second year in a row, with the organisers claiming there are “too many unknowns” ahead of the event, which was due to take place October 24.
Last year’s marathon was also cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but this year organisers said they didn’t feel it was advisable to hold such a large event with “recent updates on the modelling around Covid-19”.
The race director, Jim Aughney said it is with great regret that “we are cancelling the KBC Dublin Marathon for the second year in a row.
Despite vigorous evaluations, there are still too many unknowns to be confident that we could provide a safe event given the pure scale of the marathon.”
All entries for the 2021 KBC Dublin Marathon will be valid for the 2022 event, with those who do not wish to avail of this being offered a full refund option.
This can be accessed from Wednesday July 7 to Saturday July 31 via the ‘Manage My Bookings’ page on Eventmaster.
Tokyo announces state of emergency ahead of Olympics
Japan has declared a state of emergency in Tokyo which will run throughout the Olympic Games, according to the BBC.
This comes as coronavirus cases rise in Tokyo, with the July 23 opening ceremony drawing closer.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga told reporters it would remain in place until August 22.
Bars and restaurants will not be allowed to serve alcohol and must close by 8pm, a government official announced.
There has been widespread opposition to the Olympics in Japan, with calls for them to be postponed or cancelled.
“Taking into consideration the effect of coronavirus variants and not to let the infections spread again to the rest of the nation, we need to strengthen our countermeasures,” the prime minister said.