Random News and Notes 16 August
On this date:
- 1513 – Henry VIII of England and Emperor Maximilian defeat the French at Guinegatte, France, in the Battle of the Spurs.
- 1780 – American troops are badly defeated by the British at the Battle of Camden, South Carolina.
- 1812 – American General William Hull surrenders Detroit without resistance to a smaller British force under General Issac Brock.
- 1858 – U.S. President James Buchanan and Britain’s Queen Victoria exchange messages inaugurating the first transatlantic telegraph line.
- 1896 – Gold is discovered in the Klondike of Canada’s Yukon Territory, setting off the Klondike Gold Rush.
- 1914 – Liege, Belgium, falls to the German army.
- 1940 – The US Army makes its first official Parachute jump.
- 1945 Lieutenant General Jonathan Wainwright, who was taken prisoner by the Japanese on Corregidor on May 6, 1942, is released from a POW camp in Manchuria by U.S. troops.
- 1948 – Baseball legend George Herman Ruth dies at age 53 in New York City. The Babe had been diagnosed with throat cancer the year before.
- 1977 – Elvis Presley dies of a heart attack in the upstairs bedroom suite area of his Graceland Mansion in Memphis, Tennessee.
- 1984 – After close to 30 hours of deliberation, a jury of six men and six women unanimously acquits the former automaker John Z. DeLorean of eight counts of drug trafficking in Los Angeles, California,
As noted in the history section above, today marks the first official US military parachute jump. 16 August has been National Airborne Day since 2002. That first official jump was made by the US Army Parachute test platoon. 48 volunteers jumped out of B-18 Bolo bomber at Ft. Benning Georgia. You will note the careful use of “official”. There had been several unofficial jumps prior to the 16 August jump.
Your editor is a graduate of every US Army parachute course less one: Rigger school and has several hundred military jumps including a combat jump in his logbook.
AATW!
We start the news with an update in a story from yesterday. 19-year-old non-student Camron Harris was arrested in the shooting at VSU that left 5 injured. He was found hiding in a dorm closet more than 14 hours after the shooting.
Harris faces eight felony charges including malicious wounding and firearm use.
And yes, Harris looks just like you think.
Hawaii is currently in the grips of Hurricane Lala. The storm hit the big Island yesterday as a category 1 hurricane. It dropped as much as 30″ of rain in spots on Hilo.
Power is out to as many as 60,000 homes.
Meanwhile, there is historic flooding along Indiana’s White River. More than a foot of rain has fallen and the resulting flooding has killed at least 5 people including a 4 year old boy. Authorities are still rescuing people from the high water.
Severe storms since August 11, 2026, dumped over 11 inches of rain in parts of Indiana, causing the White River to reach record crests above 24 feet, surpassing the previous record set in 1913, and triggering flash flood emergencies across the Midwest.
Sheryl Williams Stapleton, a longtime Dem New Mexico House leader and Albuquerque schools official, has just been convicted on 31 felony charges. Stapleton steered $3.25 million in school district contracts—including federal Perkins funds—to her friend Joseph Johnson’s company. In return, she received $1.15 million through her businesses, a family restaurant, and a shared nonprofit, while the pair hid their ties with false filings and tax returns.
The nine-day trial ended with guilty verdicts on charges like conspiracy, bribery, fraud, and money laundering; both await sentencing, which could mean decades in prison.
A rookie made Major League baseball history yesterday. Joshua Baez, a top Cardinals outfield prospect hit 3 homers in his first three Major League plate appearances, a feat never before seen.
The 23-year-old Cardinals prospect, leading Triple-A in homers with 34 before his call-up, went 3-for-4 with 5 RBI in an 8-4 win over the Cubs.