Inside The 13 Weirdest News Stories To Come Out Of 2021

Published December 28, 2021

Dolphins Help Rescue Swimmer Stranded For 12 Hours

Fenit Lifeboat Station

Fenit Lifeboat Station/ FacebookThe Fenit Lifeboat Station (pictured) saved a man’s life when it spotted a pod of dolphins surrounding a drowning swimmer.

When volunteers of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) found a drowning swimmer on Aug. 22, 2021, the man had been missing for nearly 12 hours. Drifting helplessly off the Irish coast, he was remarkably only spotted because of a pod of dolphins — which had protectively surrounded him.

“At 20:30, the volunteer lifeboat crew with Fenit RNLI spotted a pod of dolphins and a head above the water about two-and-a-half miles of Castlegregory beach,” the RNLI said. “The casualty was conscious and immediately recovered onto the lifeboat and brought to Fenit Harbour to be taken to hospital.”

Identified as County Londonderry man in his 30s, the swimmer had suffered from both hypothermia and exhaustion when he was saved. In nothing but a bathing suit, he had endured nearly half a day in frigid Irish waters after attempting to reach Mucklaghmore Rock more than five miles from the beach he had visited.

Fortunately, a responsible beachgoer had noticed the man’s abandoned clothing and contacted authorities who set out to find the swimmer. Fenit RNLI’s Gerard O’Donnell said he and his peers had been “scanning the water for any sign of movement and were worried with light fading that they would not find anyone.”

In a heartening example of humanity’s coexistence with the animal kingdom that surrounds us, a life was saved by friendly bottlenose dolphins who noticed a swimmer in despair.

Russian ‘Popeye’ Full Of Petroleum Jelly Fears For His Life

Kirill Tereshin Grimacing In Russian Clinic

@ruki_bazuki_official/InstagramThe petroleum jelly in Kirill Tereshin’s body could lead to infection and result in amputation or death.

Kirill Tereshin began injecting himself with petroleum jelly in 2016. Then 20 years old, the former Russian soldier felt his cosmetically enlarged biceps would help him in his duties. In September 2021, the fledgling MMA fighter said those injections have begun to threaten his life, instead.

Petroleum jelly is commonly found in products like Vaseline and is made of Synthol oil. Unfortunately for Tereshin who has since become known as the Russian “Popeye” on social media, the jelly is merely cosmetic and doesn’t actually strengthen the muscles — while side effects include infection, stroke, or heart attack.

On the contrary, its fusion of lidocaine, benzyl alcohol, and oil began to destroy Tereshin’s tissue and weaken his muscles. It was two years ago that Russian doctors told him that the three liters of Synthol oil in each of his arms had solidified and was cutting off the internal blood supply.

“Soon I will have a very complicated, hard third surgery,” he said. “I don’t know how it’ll end up. I bulked up my arms when I was 20 due to my own stupidity. I did not think about the consequences…God forbid something happens to this nerve and I cannot move my arm.”

Faced with potential amputation of both 24-inch biceps or even death, he opted to undergo three surgeries to remove the substance. The first two operations successfully excised 25 percent of the dead muscle and jelly, while the coronavirus pandemic has precariously delayed his third.

‘Magic Mushrooms’ Grow In Blood Of Man Who Injected Them

Psilocybin Mushrooms In The Wild

Johns Hopkins UniversityWhile “magic mushrooms” can offer enormous mental health benefits, they’re meant to be taken orally.

While research has shown psilocybin in “magic mushrooms” to be incredibly effective at treating numerous mental health issues, the substance is meant to be taken orally. Unfortunately, one unidentified Nebraska man decided to boil them down and inject them — to near-fatal results.

A bipolar opioid addict, the Nebraskan had stopped taking his medication in an attempt to ween himself off. A subsequent manic-depressive episode during which he read about the benefits of magic mushrooms saw him embark on the intravenous decision — which led to organ failure within days.

Plagued by nausea, diarrhea, early signs of jaundice, and the vomiting of blood, his family rushed him to the emergency room. His liver and kidneys were near failure, leading him to spend eight days in the intensive care unit and more than three weeks on a ventilator.

Before doctors flushed his system and placed him on a course of antibiotics, they took a blood test and discovered the staggering truth. He had tested positive for Psilocybe cubensis, which confirmed the man injected himself with mushrooms — which had begun to grow in his blood.

Fortunately, the team of highly-professional doctors managed to save his life after 22 long days in the hospital.

author
Marco Margaritoff
author
A former staff writer for All That’s Interesting, Marco Margaritoff holds dual Bachelor's degrees from Pace University and a Master's in journalism from New York University. He has published work at People, VICE, Complex, and serves as a staff reporter at HuffPost.
editor
Leah Silverman
editor
A former associate editor for All That's Interesting, Leah Silverman holds a Master's in Fine Arts from Columbia University's Creative Writing Program and her work has appeared in Catapult, Town & Country, Women's Health, and Publishers Weekly.