Navy Parachutist Died After 'Chute Malfunctioned Over Hudson River for Fleet Week (VIDEO)

No good.

Say a prayer. This sailor's not coming back.

At CBS News 2 New York:

'Assuming I did not botch the task, by the time this posts I will have been dead via suicide for several hours...'

Will H. Moore, a professor of political science at Arizona State, took his life last week, and, most dramatically, scheduled a blog post to go live a couple of hours after he planned to complete the deed.

His blog's still up (search "Will Moore blog" if you're up for reading it).

I cribbed the opening quotation from his scheduled post from Inside Higher Ed, "Aftermath of a Professor's Suicide: A death this week leads to renewed discussions about academics and mental health."

ICYMI: Recent suicide by prof sparks renewed discussions about access to mental-health services for faculty members https://t.co/QpZmLQj5b8 pic.twitter.com/P9n0fFwaWm

— Inside Higher Ed (@insidehighered) April 24, 2017

Professor shares suicide note on blog https://t.co/bZCrcsVHIU #highered

— Inside Higher Ed (@insidehighered) April 20, 2017

Wheaton College Student Killed at 'Hammer Throw' Track and Field Event (VIDEO)

Dang, you gotta keep your bearings man!

You could get killed out there, and this dude did. He got hit in the head.

At CNN, "Student killed at track and field event: A 19-year-old college student died after being hit in the head while standing near a hammer throw event."

Man Dives in the Water to Retrieve His Hat at Ocean Beach Pier in San Diego, Drowns (VIDEO)

Oh man.

That's not what you want.

At the San Diego Union-Tribune, "Man drowns after jumping off San Diego pier to retrieve items thrown into ocean."

Well, the report indicates that search and rescue efforts were hampered by "8-foot-high waves and thick seaweed," so what can you do?

Four-Year-Old Minnesota Boy Accidentally Hangs Himself (VIDEO)

Just devastating.

At CNN:

At Least 32 Dead in Mexico Fireworks Market Explosion (VIDEO)

At CNN, "Mexico explosion: 32 dead at fireworks market as search teams comb rubble."

That's a spectacular explosion, almost like a military bombing zone. Man.

CNN's @sarasidnerCNN is at the scene of the massive fireworks market blast Tuesday in Mexico https://t.co/erMO1c1H9n https://t.co/R7hZlFktNQ pic.twitter.com/uBnx0qHON2

— CNN (@CNN) December 21, 2016

#BREAKING: Fireworks explosion rips through market outside Mexico City, dozens injured. https://t.co/s4FBLe7XVl pic.twitter.com/3rhxSk4a4Z

— ABC7 News (@abc7newsbayarea) December 20, 2016

Creative Loved Ones Lost to Oakland's 'Ghost Ship' Fire

At the Los Angeles Times, "Artists, college students, music lovers lost to the Oakland warehouse fire":

Artists, college students, music lovers lost to the Oakland warehouse fire https://t.co/Wf6npvV2MY

— L.A. Times: L.A. Now (@LANow) December 6, 2016

Em Bohlka was a poet with a master’s degree in literature who could quote Kurt Vonnegut. Donna Kellogg played the drums and inspired peers with her culinary skills. Feral Pines was a recent Oakland arrival, a bass guitarist, a good listener.

They were artists with day jobs, young creatives living off the grid, students dreaming of unconventional paths — at least 36, all taken by fire.

On Monday their names were scrawled on notes left at memorials that bloomed where flames had ravaged an Oakland warehouse. “Travis, we already miss you.” “Thinking of you, Ara Jo.” “Draven, you weren’t the smartest or the funniest or the bravest. That’s probably why we were best friends.”

Once a bastion of hippies and independent artists, the Bay Area in recent years has been dominated by techies and those with deep pockets who can afford the outrageous rents.

But the Oakland fire ripped through a close-knit community of artists ensconced in an underground music scene and committed to staying in the area. Their makeshift homes, their counterculture social scene, existed in a world invisible to those not searching for it.

It was where they felt accepted and safe.

“It’s an interesting group of people that all come together around the craft of electronic music and digital art,” said Josette Melchor, founder of a San Francisco-based arts nonprofit, who knew many of the victims.

“People have been doing this for decades and have been part of this community for so long. We’re not just talking about a rave, it’s really a group of close people that see each other almost every weekend, just kind of gathering around the creation of their own music.”

Melchor’s organization, Gray Area Foundation for the Arts, was inundated with calls after the fire from people looking for any way to help. In response, it established a fund for the families of victims, which had reached more than $300,000 by Monday night.

They had gathered Friday at a concert whose location, until the last minute, remained a mystery. Then came the name on social media, shortly before the doors opened: the Ghost Ship warehouse in Oakland.

Cash Askew had looked forward to what was to be a gathering of like-minded artists and musicians, many of them “queer femmes.”

A transgender woman, Askew had grown up around independent musicians and it was no surprise when she began to perform. The 22-year-old played in the goth-pop duo Them Are Us Too, which recently released its first LP and had been on tour.

“Everybody just saw this star, just saw this shooting star in her,” said Madigan Shive, a fellow musician who had known Askew for more than a decade.

Askew was accustomed to alternative venues. They felt protected, judgment-free.

“We came to those places and those spaces to share music that was often looked at as strange or esoteric,” said Askew’s girlfriend, Anya Taylor, a performance artist. “A lot of us are people who know music and we’ve been outcast because of who we are. We were making music for us.”

When Askew headed to the Ghost Ship, Taylor stayed behind because of work the next day. “Have fun,” she said. “Be safe.”

News of the fire sent the 23-year-old rushing to the warehouse, where flames had overtaken the building. For four hours, Taylor stood outside.

“I watched the building burn, and I lost the love of my life,” she said...

Keep reading.

Plus, "Building inspectors had not been inside Oakland warehouse in 30 years, officials say."

Death Toll Rises to 36 in Oakland Warehouse 'Ghost Ship' Fire (VIDEO)

Burning to death has gotta be one of the worst ways to go. Perhaps the black smoke overtook some of the victims first, and they passed out before being consumed in flames.

Either way, I'd rather be shot.

Don't mean to be morbid about it, but it's just so horrible.

In any case, at SF Gate, "‘Wobbly’ wall slows work at fire scene as death toll rises to 36":

The death toll in the devastating fire at a converted Oakland warehouse climbed to 36 Monday, and as emergency crews picked through the dangerously unstable rubble they said they found what they suspect is the area where the blaze started.

The number of victims recovered from the gutted building grew by three overnight, but work on retrieving more bodies was stopped around midnight because of a “wobbly” wall that made the situation dangerous for firefighters and Alameda County sheriff’s deputies, said Battalion Chief Melinda Drayton of the Oakland Fire Department. The wall was stabilized and work resumed at 9 a.m.

A few hours later, another wrinkle arose when the Pacific Gas and Electric Co. cut power to the area so potentially live power lines wouldn’t endanger workers as they brought in a crane to move the rubble. The outage was expected to affect between 50 and 500 customers in the Fruitvale area for as many as 12 hours, said Officer Johnna Watson, spokeswoman for the Oakland Police Department.

So far, a total of 11 victims have been identified and their families notified.

More, plus additional video, at the link.

Oakland Ghost Ship Warehouse Fire

Horrific tragedy.

In fact, it's possibly criminal.

At LAT, "Site of deadly Oakland fire is known as the GhostShip."

So far, 4 bodies have been removed from the burned Oakland warehouse as cadaver dogs are brought in to help https://t.co/TNi6iunyrB pic.twitter.com/FCs5j8UJJs

— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) December 4, 2016

Here's why officials don't know how many people died in the Oakland warehouse fire https://t.co/ahFsbIQ8TQ pic.twitter.com/bcQgADDEP5

— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) December 4, 2016

Horrific Tour Bush Crash in Desert Hot Springs: 11 Dead

You can see from the photos that the bus driver rear-ended the semi at full speed.

BREAKING UPDATE: Tour bus crash on I-10 has killed at least 11 people. https://t.co/uN4vLKMC0a

— The Desert Sun (@MyDesert) October 23, 2016

The bus was just moved away from the big rig @MyDesert pic.twitter.com/yj35wb6uE6

— Colin Atagi (@TDSColinAtagi) October 23, 2016

I-10 CRASH UPDATE: At least 10 people killed in crash involving tour bus and semi-truck on WB side, @KESQ reports https://t.co/Voc8NIxo6G pic.twitter.com/aQ6j5BZFFS

— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) October 23, 2016

Schlitterbahn Water Park Update: 10-Year-Old Caleb Schwab 'Decapitated' by Attraction's 'Safety' Netting

Well, I guess we know what happened now.

Here's my previous entry, "10-Year-Old Caleb Schwab Killed at Schlitterbahn Water Park in Kansas City (UPDATED)."

And the update, at ABC News 7 Los Angeles, "GRUESOME DETAILS REVEALED IN BOY'S WATER SLIDE DEATH AT KANSAS PARK."

Just read it all at the link.

Apparently, the boy's brother witnessed the incident. I can't even...

10-Year-Old Caleb Schwab Killed at Schlitterbahn Water Park in Kansas City (UPDATED)

Well, there's just a tad more information out today than there was yesterday.

One person claims she saw the boy's "crumpled shorts or bathing suit" at the bottom of the water slide, as well as "blood on the white descending flume" of the structure.

If true, that rules out that the poor kid fell off the top of the structure, getting killed slamming to the ground.

Also, guests ride down the slide in rafts that require at least 400 pounds of passenger weight (apparently to keep the fucking thing from flying out of control off the damned thing.

But if the boy Caleb wasn't riding with two large adults, it's not possible that his raft met the weight requirements. May he flew out or was dragged down the slide?

In any case, at the Kansas City Star, "Questions swirl as grief falls over family of Caleb Schwab, 10-year-old killed at Schlitterbahn."

That slide doesn't look so safe, that's for sure.

UPDATED and BUMPED: At AP, "Police: Kansas boy suffered fatal neck injury on waterslide."

Deadly Tour Bus Crash on California's Highway 99 (VIDEO)

This wasn't too far north of Fresno.

At the Los Angeles Times, "'Catastrophic' charter bus crash leaves five dead, L.A. driver seriously injured":

At least five people were killed and numerous people seriously injured early Tuesday when a violent crash tore a charter bus down the middle on Highway 99 in Merced County, the California Highway Patrol said.

The northbound bus struck the support pole for a sign marking the Hammatt Avenue exit near the town of Livingston, CHP Officer Moises Onsurez told The Times. The crash occurred about 3:35 a.m., authorities said.

The pole split the white bus down the middle, tearing through it as it kept moving forward after impact, Onsurez said. Video images from the Merced Sun-Star showed firefighters climbing through windows in the early morning darkness, and a road lined with ambulances.

“This collision is a catastrophic event,” Onsurez said.

About 30 passengers were aboard the vehicle, and some suffered major injuries, Onsurez said. About five injured people were flown to hospitals, officials said. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.

Northbound Highway 99 was closed in the area throughout the day.

Authorities have identified the bus driver as 57-year-old Mario David Vasquez from Los Angeles, Onsurez said. Vasquez “sustained major injuries” and was hospitalized Tuesday morning, he said.

The bus originated in Mexico and had stopped in Los Angeles on Monday night, Onsurez said. It made a stop in Livingston and was headed to Pasco, Wash., Onsurez said...

Keep reading.

17-Year-Old Loses Right Hand in Long Beach in Yet Another Preventable Fireworks Tragedy

I've been posting on these horrific mishaps all weekend, preventable tragedies.

At the Long Beach Press-Telegram, "Boy, 17, loses hand in Central Long Beach fireworks accident."

Parents.

Where were the parents of all the kids, now maimed from parental negligence?

Texas Teenager Rowdy Radford Loses Leg and Fingers in Homemade 'Sparkler Bomb' Explosion

He may be blind as well. Folks are waiting for those eye-patches to come off.

Watch, at USA Today, "Sparkler explosion gravely injures teen."

And London's Daily Mail, "Texas teenager, 15, loses his leg and fingers and could go blind after 'bomb' made from 180 sparklers explodes in his hand."

Previously, "9-Year-Old Girl Loses Left Hand in Illegal Fireworks Explosion in Compton."

Father Accidentally Kills 14-Year-Old Son at Florida Gun Range (VIDEO)

So sad.

But the father refused to tow the depraved leftist gun control line.

At London's Daily Mail, "'The gun didn't kill my son. I did': Distraught father blames his 'operating error' for accidentally shooting dead his boy, 14, at the 'world's safest gun range'."

And watch, at Fox News 13 Tampa Bay:

9-Year-Old Girl Loses Left Hand in Illegal Fireworks Explosion in Compton

She lost some fingers on her right hand too.

God, this is horrible!

Watch, at ABC News 7 Los Angeles, "9-YEAR-OLD GIRL LOSES HAND, FINGERS IN COMPTON FIREWORK EXPLOSION."

Frantic Efforts to Contain the Erskine Fire in Southern Sierra Nevada (VIDEO)

CBS News 2 Los Angeles has the video.

And from the front-page of today's L.A Times, "Kern County fire evacuees struggle with another trauma — uncertainty."

Dad Tries to Save Baby Left in Hot Car by Putting Her in Fridge (VIDEO)

At CBS News 11 Dallas, "Panicked Dad Put Baby In Fridge After Finding In Hot Car":

MCKINNEY (CBSDFW.COM) – A North Texas father and former teacher in the Celina Independent School District is free on bond. Michael Shannon Thedford was arrested after his 6-month-old daughter died after being left in a hot car yesterday.

Thedford posted $20,000 bond late Tuesday night. He has been charged with manslaughter.

Thedford told investigators he dropped off his three and 5-year-old children at a daycare center, while his wife was at work. He said he went home and went to sleep, forgetting his 6-month-old daughter was still strapped in car seat inside the minivan.

Thedford said when he went outside and found the baby not moving, he immediately took her indoors and put her in the refrigerator, with the door open. He then called his wife and 911, and attempted CPR...

More.

Via Drudge.

Alligator Drags 2-Year-Old Boy Into the Water at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort (VIDEO)

It's in Orlando, of course.

What a terrible, terrible story.

At the Orlando Sentinel, "Alligator attacks 2-year-old boy at Disney's Grand Floridian":

[Orange County Sheriff Jerry] Demings said the Nebraska family of five was relaxing on the shoreline when the alligator attacked the boy. The father entered the water and tried to grab the child from the gator, but was not successful. He had scratches on his hands after the ordeal.

Reporter Christal Hayes tweets, "#Orlando has turned into a media circus with all this terrible news lately. This is the scene as we wait for info."

More, at FOX 5 News Atlanta: