ECR's Top 5: Get Fact'd stories for the second week of August
The most famous US building was built using Durban sand.
The week was full of interesting and eye opening facts from Darren Maule.
So we have put together a top five #GetFact'd facts from the week that you may have missed out on:
Read more: ECR's Top 5: Get Fact'd stories for the first week of August
1.
In 1995, panic struck the city of Taiyuan in China after a TV ad warned residents of a "mythical beast" roaming the streets, advising people to stay indoors and board up their homes. Residents were quite miffed when it was later revealed to be a promotional advert for an upcoming beer brand.
Read more: No fan of rats? Canada might be the place for you
2.
White and Yellow Cheddar cheese are the same cheese, except one uses colouring. Dyeing cheddar came about from people realising they could make more money selling the cream extracted from the cheese.
Read more: Would you live in the most surveilled city in the world?
Because people were extracting the cream and selling it, they started dyeing the cheese to give people the impression that it still had the same cream content.
3.
In 2013 in Florida, a sinkhole unexpectedly opened up beneath a sleeping man’s bedroom and swallowed him whole. He is presumed dead. Last week, almost 60 years ago, during the night of 3rd of August 1964, a gigantic sinkhole opened up beneath the home of the Oosthuizen family in the mining town of Carletonville.
Read more: Gigantic sinkhole once opened up the Oosthuizen family home
4.
The Canadian province of Alberta does not have any rats. What is does have though, is an armed border patrol for rats, tons of poison and traps all over as the local population looks to keep this furry little things from invading their space. The few rats which do make it through are swiftly exterminated.
Read more: No fan of rats? Canada might be the place for you
5.
The sand from the Umgeni River was used in the construction of the foundation of the Empire State Building in New York. A ship known as the Sandgate Castle was loaded with the sand in Durban to balance it on a long journey.
Read more: Umgeni sand was used to build the Empire State Building!
The sand was supposed to be dumped at sea before arrival in New York. However, the harbour authorities radioed the ship and asked if it could offload the sand at the quay from where contractors took it.
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