Goodable

An injured monarch butterfly was miraculously able to fly again after undergoing a wing transplant at a nature preserve in Long Island, New York.

Footage by Sweetbriar Nature Center shows the insect undergoing the procedure, and flying away afterwards.

“When a Good Samaritan called to ask if we could help an injured monarch butterfly, we didn’t hesitate,” the post said. “Using a wing from a deceased butterfly, we carefully matched it to the broken wing and performed a delicate repair. The result? You’d never know this monarch is flying with a replacement wing.”

Monarch butterflies are the only known butterfly to migrate two ways for thousands of miles every year, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.

The monarch population has declined markedly in recent decades as its food source, milkweed, has been annihilated by herbicides. Several charities such as Live Monarch offer low-cost milkweed seeds to US residents in an attempt to save the colorful species.

An injured monarch butterfly was miraculously able to fly again after undergoing a wing transplant at a nature preserve in Long Island, New York.Footage by Sweetbriar Nature Center shows the insect undergoing the procedure, and flying away afterwards.“When a Good Samaritan called to ask if we could help an injured monarch butterfly, we didn’t hesitate,” the post said. “Using a wing from a deceased butterfly, we carefully matched it to the broken wing and performed a delicate repair. The result? You’d never know this monarch is flying with a replacement wing.”Monarch butterflies are the only known butterfly to migrate two ways for thousands of miles every year, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.The monarch population has declined markedly in recent decades as its food source, milkweed, has been annihilated by herbicides. Several charities such as Live Monarch offer low-cost milkweed seeds to US residents in an attempt to save the colorful species.

This Injured Monarch Butterfly Received a Wing Transplant at Long Island Wildlife Center

Hundreds of elite athletes are competing at the 2026 Winter Games, and some of them just happen to be dating, engaged or married. Some train in the same sport, others come from completely different disciplines, but all of them are trying to manage the same challenge, balancing a relationship with the pressure of performing on the biggest stage in sport.

One of the most well known stories belongs to Oksana Masters and Aaron Pike. They met at a Para Nordic competition in 2013 and bonded over a shared love of coffee before things deepened at the 2014 Sochi Games. Masters told NPR that they realised on a gondola ride that their connection was more than friendship. Pike proposed on another gondola in Wyoming in 2022. They have not announced a wedding date, though they have joked publicly about who is doing the planning. Masters said Italy could be the perfect place for it.

Two more familiar faces in Milan are Hilary Knight and Brittany Bowe. Their relationship began during the tightly controlled Beijing Olympics in 2022, when Knight asked Bowe if she wanted to go for a walk. That simple routine became a daily touchpoint. Now they are sharing another Olympics without the pandemic restrictions. Knight, competing in her fifth Games, said having both families there adds to the energy. Bowe said being able to attend each other’s events has been a rare and meaningful change.

In bobsled, Kaysha Love and Hunter Powell are experiencing their first Olympics together as teammates. They met as track and field athletes in college. Love encouraged Powell to try bobsled, pushing him to attend a recruitment event. “She talked me into it, and I'm so thankful that she did,” he said. They got engaged in 2025 and are now living the full Olympic experience at the same time. “It’s the coolest thing in the world,” Powell said.

Snowboarders Red Gerard and Hailey Langland have known each other since age 12. They have been together for eight years, competing side by side at the 2018 and 2022 Olympics. Gerard is competing again this year. Langland is recovering from an ACL injury but is staying in Italy with him and his family.

Ice dancers Madison Chock and Evan Bates started as training partners long before they became a couple. Bates said he told Chock he loved her in 2017, which changed everything. They were engaged in 2022 and married in Hawaii in 2024. “The skating career is short and finite, the relationship is much, much longer,” Bates told NPR. Chock said the sport has strengthened their bond and shaped how they grow together. Another American ice dance duo, Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik, are also partners on and off the ice.

There are international stories too. Two stars of women’s hockey, Marie-Philip Poulin and Laura Stacey, compete together for Montreal and for Team Canada. They have been together since 2017 and married since 2024. Skeleton racers Kim Meylemans and Nicole Silveira represent different countries but married less than a year before arriving in Italy. Swedish hockey player Anna Kjellbin and Finnish player Ronja Savolainen met as teammates in Sweden. Now they are fiancées playing on rival Olympic teams.

Curling also has no shortage of relationship dynamics. Three married couples are competing in the mixed doubles field: Canada's Jocelyn Peterman and Brett Gallant, Switzerland’s Yannick Schwaller and Briar Schwaller-Hürlimann, and Norway’s Kristin Skaslien and Magnus Nedregotten.

And in ice dance, Italy’s own Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri have been together since 2009. Their on ice chemistry has become part of their competitive identity.

From gondola proposals to shared training sessions, quiet walks in Olympic villages and big family gatherings in the stands, these couples add an extra layer to the Games. Behind the medals and the pressure are people navigating long distance, shared ambitions and the rare experience of competing at the highest level alongside someone they love.

The Olympic Couples Bringing Their Love Stories to Milan Cortina

Good News Network

When Storm Goretti battered Europe on January 9 with winds reaching 110 miles per hour, most of the disruption was on the ground. But one young loggerhead turtle ended up hundreds of miles off course, washing ashore on the Island of Jersey near France. The warm water species had been “cold stunned,” a state where turtles become immobile after prolonged exposure to cold temperatures.

A beachcomber found the juvenile reptile and brought it to New Era Hospital, where veterinarian Peter Haworth stabilised it with warmed seawater provided by The Jersey Oyster Company. The turtle, later named Crush after the character from Finding Nemo, was weak and malnourished and needed more care than the small Jersey facility could provide.

A transfer across the English Channel by boat was considered too risky, so Haworth looked to the skies instead. Loganair agreed to fly Crush to Britain as a First Class passenger, allowing the endangered animal to travel calmly and with minimal stress. “This was certainly one of the more unusual passengers we’ve welcomed on board,” said Ronnie Matheson, Loganair’s chief commercial officer. “Our teams worked closely with Peter and his colleagues to ensure that she could travel as calmly and comfortably as possible.”

Crush landed in Southampton, where airport staff coordinated her transfer to the SeaLife Centre in Weymouth, about 90 miles away. “We’re delighted to support this special journey and play a small part in helping this young turtle get the expert care it needs,” said Dan Townsend, head of airside operations at Southampton Airport.

Before her flight, CT scans showed an unusually large amount of sand in her oesophagus. Some of it was removed to prevent complications, and specialists in Weymouth will monitor her long term recovery. The goal is to release her back into loggerhead habitat range this spring.

Crush’s journey from a storm battered beach to a First Class cabin has given rescuers hope that she will make a full return to the ocean.

Airline Welcomes VIP Endangered Turtle Needing Hospital After Powerful Winter Storm

People

James Choate Deeds always stayed on top of his health, so when he turned 50 he asked for a PSA test even though his doctor said the odds of cancer were low and false positives were common. “I’d like to know, so I’ll definitely do it,” he said. The results were higher than expected, though a biopsy came back clean, and for years doctors simply monitored him.

Seven years later, a new physician noticed his PSA levels were rising. A second biopsy confirmed prostate cancer on June 3, 2022, when Choate Deeds was 57. “The good news is, we caught it really early,” his urologist told him. He broke the news to his family in person and tried to stay optimistic. “I was hoping they would see that things are just fine and I’ve got time,” he said.

He spent months researching his options. At a family wedding, a cousin recommended Seattle urologist Dr. James Porter, Chief Medical Officer for Robotic and Digital Technologies at Medtronic. Porter said Choate Deeds was a strong candidate for a clinical trial using Hugo, a robotic assisted surgery system. “It ended up being a really easy decision,” Choate Deeds said.

He underwent Hugo assisted surgery on December 22, 2022. Porter operated from a console about 10 feet away. “The robot is taking my movements and then transferring them into the patient's body,” Porter said. “But in transferring my movements, they’re actually making them better.”

Choate Deeds was walking within 24 hours, with only tiny incision marks. “I was amazed, the recovery time was so quick,” he said. “I’ve had knee surgery, I had an ACL accident, and that was much, much harder than my cancer surgery was.” Porter called the recovery “remarkable” and said the goal is simple, to remove the cancer and get patients back to their lives as quickly as possible.

Because the cancer was fully removed, Choate Deeds did not need chemotherapy or radiation. He soon returned to ice hockey and resumed monthly ski trips to Vail with his son. “There’s nothing I don’t do that I did before, and there’s nothing that has slowed me down,” he said. He credits early detection for making treatment straightforward. “I consider myself extremely lucky because I found it early.”

In December 2025, Hugo received FDA approval for urologic procedures including prostate, kidney and bladder cancer.

Choate Deeds said staying positive, doing careful research and leaning on family helped him through treatment. One of the most supportive things his family did, he said, was to keep life normal. “I wasn’t being treated like I had cancer, we did all the stuff we normally did,” he said.

His message to other men is simple. “Get it done,” he said. “Be proactive.”

A Robotic Surgery System Named Hugo Helped This Man Overcome Prostate Cancer With a Swift Recovery

Sunny Skyz

At a Publix in Acworth, Georgia, the longest line in the store is often the most popular one. Shoppers routinely wait 30 to 40 minutes just to check out with cashier Michael Masterangelo, who has worked at the same store for a decade and has built a loyal, deeply supportive following.

“They will come here specifically just to get in his line… It means everything. I am so proud of him,” said his mom, Dayna Peshel. Michael, who has an intellectual disability, says the job has been a source of joy from the start. “I like ringing people up and seeing people every day,” he said. “I’m just so happy to be here, every day to work.”

For many customers, spotting him is part of the routine. “As soon as I walk in the door, I look for him,” one shopper said. “And if he’s here, it just changes everything.”

Store Manager Courtney McGuinness said Michael brings something no amount of training can teach. “His positivity that he comes in every day with, it makes working and shopping here enjoyable,” she said. “He’s always smiling. He’s always interacting.”

This year, Michael set a personal fundraising goal at his register for Special Olympics, an organisation he has been involved with since childhood. Between scanning groceries and making small talk, he invited customers to give. Then he exceeded every expectation. “I can’t believe I did 31,603 dollars by myself, at my register,” he said. “My personal goal is crazy. And I did that in 6 days.”

McGuinness said he raised more than some districts in the region. The response was not just financial. Customers emphasised that their support came from knowing him. “He’s my buddy,” one said. “He is one of the few people I trust.”

McGuinness said his caring nature is what sets him apart. “He truly cares about every single person he comes in contact with,” she said. “Whether it’s a child or an adult, he genuinely cares about everyone.”

That care flows both ways. Customers attend his basketball games and cheer from the stands. “Next coming weekend, they’re coming to watch me play basketball,” he said. “They make me so happy and cheer me on.”

For his mom, seeing that support has been emotional. “It makes me feel amazing,” Peshel said. “I feel like I raised him right, and he is just a light to everyone… I don’t worry about him. I know he is going to be okay.”

Michael says he feels that support every day. “It feels like I am so special, helping people and others,” he said. “And I love this whole community, and everyone loves and supports me.”

Customers Are Waiting 40 Minutes For This Cashier Who Raised 31,000 Dollars for Special Olympics

Fox News

China just sent a clear signal about how it sees the future of transportation. AutoFlight, a Shanghai based aviation company, has revealed Matrix, now recognised as the world’s largest flying car. This is not a concept or a one off demonstration. Matrix has already completed full scale flight tests near Shanghai, marking one of the biggest steps yet toward commercial electric aviation.

The launch fits into China’s broader effort to build what officials call the low altitude economy. The sector focuses on short range flights that move passengers or cargo above crowded roads using electric aircraft. While other countries debate how such systems might work, China is writing the rules now.

Matrix stands out immediately by its size. The aircraft weighs nearly 11,000 pounds, measures about 56 feet long, stands roughly 11 feet tall and spans close to 66 feet. That makes it substantially larger than most electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft today, which typically seat four to six people. Matrix comes in two models, one for passengers and one for heavy cargo. The passenger version can carry up to 10 people, a capacity that makes commercial operations more feasible and lowers the cost per passenger.

Power is what makes the design possible. AutoFlight is backed by CATL, the world’s largest electric vehicle battery manufacturer. CATL holds a major stake in the company and drives battery development. Battery performance shapes almost every part of electric flight, from range to safety margins and payload limits. Stronger batteries make it easier to carry more weight over longer distances, turning designs like Matrix from experiments into practical aircraft.

China is also working on the regulatory side. Officials plan to introduce baseline rules for the low altitude economy by 2027 and develop more than 300 technical standards by 2030. These rules will govern aircraft types, safety systems, air traffic management and the infrastructure needed to support operations. The goal is to prepare cities for cargo flights, air taxis and eventually wider public use.

Before shifting to passenger aircraft, AutoFlight proved its capability with cargo. An earlier model called CarryAll received full certification in China and completed a real world 100 mile cargo run between two cities in about an hour. That flight showed regulators the technology could be used outside controlled testing. Now, the company says about 70 percent of its total orders are for passenger aircraft. Certification is still underway, but leaders expect approval in one to two years. The company has already begun accepting orders.

Matrix represents one end of the market. Smaller craft, such as the Pivotal flying car, focus on personal flight and cover short distances with lightweight frames and minimal systems. Matrix takes the opposite approach, operating more like a conventional aircraft with electric propulsion. Together, the designs show how the industry is splitting into two tracks, personal mobility and commercial electric aviation.

Industry analysts see 2026 as a turning point. Several companies plan to begin deliveries in China that year, and the country could see its first paid flying car routes. Infrastructure will grow alongside demand, with landing pads and charging stations expected to appear in major cities. AutoFlight is also looking outside China, targeting markets in island nations, mountain regions and areas with limited ground transport. The company sees strong potential in Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

Flying cars still feel like science fiction to many people, but the technology is edging closer to everyday use. Early routes will likely handle cargo, emergency services and premium passenger travel. If battery performance continues to improve and regulations keep pace, costs could eventually reach the level of high end ride services on the ground. Even for people who never board one, electric aviation is set to reshape how cities move goods and people.

Matrix is more than a large prototype. It is a sign that flying cars are shifting from futuristic ideas to real aircraft being built, tested and prepared for certification. China’s approach, building the technology and the rules at the same time, is accelerating that transition.

China Unveils the World’s Largest Flying Car as It Pushes Toward a New Era of Electric Air Travel

The Guardian

David Keohan walked across a County Waterford beach and spotted what he was looking for, an oval limestone boulder weighing about 115 kg, half buried in sand. He pried it loose with a crowbar, dusted it off, chalked his hands and then lifted it in a slow, deliberate sequence that ended with the stone pressed to his chest before he let it drop back onto the sand.

It was not a stunt. It was a demonstration of an Irish tradition that had almost vanished. Keohan, better known online as Indiana Stones, has become the unlikely figure bringing stone lifting back into national consciousness and drawing global attention along the way. “It’s not just about strength. Every single lifting stone has an amazing story attached to it,” he said. “It’s opened up a whole culture that was lost.”

Stone lifting was once woven into Irish life. Communities used boulders to test strength and mark important moments. Some stones were lifted at funeral games, some during harvest celebrations, others when a chieftain rose to power. In one case, lifting a stone served as a kind of job interview for stonemasons. A stone raised a few inches was called “getting the wind under it”. Reaching the knees meant champion status. Hoisting one to the chest made you a phenomenon spoken about for generations.

Guided by folklore, community tips and the National Folklore Collection, Keohan has now identified 53 lifting stones across beaches, graveyards and fields. He believes dozens more are out there. Lifting one today, he said, connects you to everyone who ever managed the same feat. “Isn’t that amazing?”

Keohan discovered the practice during the pandemic. When gyms shut in 2020, the former kettlebell champion used stones in his garden for training. He became more interested after learning about stone lifting traditions in Scotland, Iceland and the Basque region, and eventually travelled to Scotland to attempt the 127 kg Fianna stone. “It was strength, mythology, history. I fell in love with it.”

A fictional story helped steer him to one of Ireland’s real stones. After reading Liam O’Flaherty’s 1937 short story The Stone, he found a pink granite boulder on Inishmore that matched the description of the tale’s “manhood stone”.

Interest has grown quickly. Irish Stone Monsters, a group of enthusiasts, now hosts competitions. A Dublin gym has a stone lifting studio sponsored by Lyft. A boulder known as Cloch Bán was shipped to Boston last year. A stone in County Clare associated with a woman named Mrs Kildea, who supposedly lifted an enormous boulder, has encouraged more women to take part.

Cultural historian Conor Heffernan of Ulster University said stone lifting traditions span Europe, Asia and Africa. Ireland’s rocky identity can be seen in stories like the legend of Finn McCool laying down a path in the sea that became the Giant’s Causeway. Heffernan noted that stone lifting in Ireland sometimes became a proxy for rebellion. In one story, a community sought the strongest Catholic man to lift a stone no Protestant could move.

Keohan and Heffernan are now trying to have the practice added to Ireland’s inventory of intangible cultural heritage, a step toward Unesco recognition.

For Keohan, a father of three who works at a construction depot in Waterford, the rush of information and rediscovered sites feels like a reconnection with something older. “It has given me purpose and a reattachment to what it means to be Irish,” he said. The stories have become as important to him as the lifting itself. A book he has written, The Wind Beneath the Stone, is due out soon. He jokes that if his PhD application succeeds, he may yet become Dr Indiana Stones.

Meet The Man Reviving Ireland’s Ancient Stone Lifting Tradition

Maxim Naumov stepped onto Olympic ice on Feb. 13 with a message that said everything he needed to say. Before his free skate in Milan, the 24 year old posted his note to the arena Jumbotron: “Mom and Dad, this is for you.” His parents, Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, who were also his coaches, were killed in the Washington, D.C. plane and helicopter collision in January 2025. He has carried their photo with him at every event since.

Naumov struggled in his free program, falling several times after delivering one of the strongest short programs of his career. He scored 137.71 points in the second round, bringing his total to 223.36. Still, he finished with a smile and waved to a crowd that rose to its feet inside the Milano Ice Skating Arena.

“It is a couple technical mistakes, of course, but I have had the chance to gain a lot of perspective on my life this season. For me, this skate, this whole experience at the Olympics, means so, so much to me,” he told reporters including PEOPLE. “I did not give up, from the start to the finish. That is something I can be proud of.”

Ranked 14th after the short program, Naumov said reaching the Olympics had been a lifelong goal. In the kiss and cry zone, he held the photo of himself at age 3 with his parents, then kissed it when the scores appeared. He keeps the photo in a cross-body bag so it rests against his chest. “I wanted them to sit in the kiss and cry with me and experience the moment, look up at the scores. They deserve to be sat right next to me, like they always have been,” he previously said.

His parents were 55 and 52 when they died in the collision involving American Airlines flight 5342 and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter. Naumov said he hears their voices every time he trains. “I hear their voices, like what they say to me, all those lessons that we had every single day for years,” he said. “I have memories that are burned into my head, of certain corrections on jumps and things like that... or they are laughing about something or telling me, ‘Do not forget to point your toes.’”

Naumov said he learns something new about himself in every competition. This one, he said, was no exception. He plans to keep skating and keep moving forward. “I am just a guy that had some really crazy things happen to, but I picked myself up and I continued to move, even when it was the last thing that was on my mind,” he said. “I am not special in that. I think everyone has the ability to do that and I just hope and I pray that I can inspire someone to see that in themselves and to know that they can do it as well.”

He recently launched a GoFundMe campaign called “Building Stronger Minds for Young Athletes,” which will support the early development of a mental wellness program for young competitors. He said the idea came from the challenges he faced after losing his parents and from the pressure young athletes often feel in elite sport.

Naumov’s Olympic run ended on Thursday night, but he said the experience changed him. And as he left the ice, the photo stayed in his hand, the same way it has since he first stepped back into competition.

Olympic Skater Maxim Naumov Honors Late Parents with Emotional Final Performance

Residents in Demarest filled a local restaurant recently, all hoping for a photo or a hug from Joe DiTore. After 33 years on the same route, the town’s most recognisable mailman is retiring, and people wanted one last chance to thank the man who shaped their community in ways that went well beyond daily deliveries.

DiTore started walking Demarest’s streets in 1992, after leaving behind a small house-painting business. He liked helping people, but he did not like charging them. Becoming a mailman let him keep doing what he felt called to do, and he never stopped. “I always tell people I'm around if you need me,” DiTore told CBS News.

Neighbors took that seriously. Residents said DiTore became the person they trusted with personal news, medical updates, small tasks and even home safety. He would flag an open garage door, check in if something felt off, and give people a sense of comfort that had nothing to do with the mail. One resident said they would list him as an emergency contact.

His kindness often showed up in small gestures that landed with much more weight. When Erin Kitzie’s dog Cooper died, she told DiTore before anyone else. He arrived soon after with a bracelet engraved with the dog’s name. Kitzie said of DiTore, “I love my dad, but I honestly see him as sort of a father figure.”

Over the years, he became the steady presence people relied on, the person who remembered details, noticed changes, and treated every stop like more than a job. Many residents said they wanted this gathering so that DiTore could see, clearly and all at once, what his compassion meant to them. They said that because he genuinely cared, they cared for him in return.

Even with retirement ahead, DiTore said he hopes to stop by when he can, just to check in. He left the crowd with a final message of his own. “They say you get back what you give, but in my case, I received it tenfold,” he said. “I will miss you more than I can say.”

A New Jersey Town Says Goodbye to the Mailman Who Delivered Far More Than Letters

Some towns decorate for Christmas or Halloween, but the Wiltshire village of Lover has firmly claimed Valentine’s Day as its own. Every February, thousands of cards are stamped with a special Lover postmark and sent to recipients on every continent, even Antarctica.

The tradition has turned the quiet hamlet into what residents call the world’s most romantic village. Visitors travel from across the UK to mail cards from Lover, including Lindy Nock, who came from Surrey after seeing the tradition online. “I saw it on Instagram and I couldn’t make it last year,” the 54 year old said. “So I thought I would come here and send a card to my pen pal friend in Denmark. The fact they celebrate Valentine’s Day, being called Lover, is fantastic.”

Locals decorate homes and shops with red and pink hearts, and the mailing effort has become so large that it moved out of the village Post Office a decade ago. Residents formed the Lover Community Trust, which now runs the annual operation with dozens of volunteers. More than 10,000 cards are processed each February. People no longer need to visit in person. Anyone can order a card online and have it stamped in Lover before it is posted.

The Darling Cafe opens to handle the Valentine’s crowds, and volunteers help manage cards from around the globe, including orders from China that require specially printed Mandarin characters so addresses can be read. All proceeds from cards and souvenirs support community projects. Revenue has already funded major renovations to the Old School building, now used as a community centre.

Nick Gibbs of the Lover Community Trust described the village as the world’s most romantic, although the cards include options meant for friends too. “We are trying to promote Valentine’s Day as a way of sending a little love to everyone,” said the 78 year old. He noted that one of this year’s cards is travelling as far as Japan.

Volunteers say the work brings the village together. Debbie Harper, who runs the Darling Cafe, said she usually misses the mail processing but still managed to buy a card for her husband. “I got to put the stamp on,” she said. “I love playing post office.”

Janet and Bob Halliday, both in their seventies, help decorate the village each year. “It is going from strength to strength,” Bob said. “When we first started it was just the cards. Now we’ve got jewellery, cards and linens that say, ‘Lots of love from Lover’. It is a very gregarious village and it’s nice being involved.”

Next year marks the 50th anniversary of the Lover Valentine Post. Locals plan to create a tapestry tracing the history of the day, drawing on the work of 14th century writer Geoffrey Chaucer, who helped establish the link between Valentine’s Day and romantic love. For now, volunteers are still researching the storyline and deciding how to design it.

Visitors should note one detail before they send their own card from Lover, the name is pronounced to rhyme with Dover.

Brits Flock To Lover Town For Valentine's Day Cards At World's Most Romantic Post Office

Firefighters in Cincinnati used a calm and deliberate plan to rescue an 11 year old girl with autism who was found standing at the edge of an icy pond on Wednesday evening. The goal, they said, was to reach her without startling her into the water.

Crews were called to Bramble Park around 6 p.m. on Feb. 11, where they found the child “standing precariously close” to the frozen pond, according to local outlets WLWT and WXIX. She had been wandering before first responders spotted her alone near the water.

Because unexpected movement or loud commands could have frightened her, firefighters coordinated with her father before attempting the rescue. They placed an extension ladder down a steep slope to create a stable path to the shoreline. Two firefighters descended the ladder, one wearing a protective suit, and secured a life jacket around the girl before guiding her back up to safety.

She was reunited with her father and had no injuries, according to the reports.

The incident highlights the risks faced by children with autism who wander away, a behavior the National Autism Association refers to as elopement. The organization says the risk of drowning is 160 times higher for children with autism compared to the general child population. In 2024, 91 percent of elopement fatalities were due to drowning. On average, seven children with autism die each month after wandering.

Experts say preparation can make a difference. The National Autism Association encourages families to develop safety plans, understand the risk areas near their homes and workplaces, and consider tools like door alarms or GPS trackers. Swimming lessons are also recommended.

“Parents cannot always be there to save their kids. We try as we might, you know, we do everything in the world that we can,” Leslie Williams, president of the Empath for Autism Foundation, told WLWT. She said many families take significant precautions. “These parents are taking a lot of safety measures, door alarms, having GPS tracking on their children. Sometimes, it does not work, but if they do find themselves in that situation, how are they going to survive being in the water?”

The Cincinnati Fire Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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