Police have taken to social media to share a rather bizarre story of a recent vehicle seize at a retail park in Harpurhey.
Bizarre is the certainly the right word here.
Officers from the Greater Manchester Police Traffic team were alerted to an ambulance “carrying a family” which pulled into ASDA whilst flashing its emergency lights, before seeing the occupants exit the vehicle and head inside the store.
If seeing an emergency ambulance pull into an ASDA carpark and then nipping in to grab a few bits wasn’t strange enough as it is, that’s not all either, because after being tracked down, police then discovered that not only was driver of the second-hand ambulance disqualified from driving, but they were also wanted by the court.
The ambulance has since been seized, and the driver was arrested.
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The incident took place around 10pm yesterday evening, and was shared on social media shortly after, going onto amass hundreds of interactions, shares and comments by confused and entertained members of the public.
This Ambulance was reportedly carrying a family when it arrived at #Asda Harpurhey with blue lights flashing. Occupants promptly went inside to do their shopping. Our divisional colleagues tracked them down & the driver was found to be disqualified & also wanted by the court. pic.twitter.com/re35wnlYTc
GMP Traffic wrote: “This ambulance was reportedly carrying a family when it arrived at Asda Harpurhey with blue lights flashing.
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“Occupants promptly went inside to do their shopping.
“Our divisional colleagues tracked them down [and found that] the driver was [both] disqualified and also wanted by the court.”
A follow-up tweet in response to the initial reports then confirmed that: “XT74 attended and seized the vehicle which is believed to have been purchased second hand.
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“The driver has been arrested and is now en-route to custody”.
But we still have so many questions.
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Aldi confirms ‘special’ 62-hour closure of all its 1,000+ stores across UK
Emily Sergeant
Aldi has announced that it’ll, once again, be closing the doors of all of its stores across the UK for 62 hours this year.
Christmas is always known to be one of the busiest periods of the year for the retail industry, and Boxing Day has a reputation for being the ultimate day for shopping deals and discounts in the UK – but this year, just like it has done on several years in the past, Aldi has made the decision to close all of its stores nationwide on this bank holiday.
The supermarket retailer says it wants to thank its colleagues ‘for all their hard work’ throughout the year by giving them some extra time to spend with their families.
This means that all Aldi stores will be closed on both 25 and 26 December.
That’s not all though, as stores will also be closed on New Year’s Day, and will reopen once again on Saturday 2 January 2027.
Aldi has announced a ‘special’ 62-hour closure of all its UK stores / Credit: Aldi UK
Opening hours at different Aldi stores across the UK will vary in the lead-up to Christmas, so it’s important to check the times for your local store, but the retailer has confirmed that most branches will be operating extended hours to ‘ensure customers can stock up ahead of the big day’
In the interim period between Christmas and New Year, stores will reopen as usual on Sunday 27 through to Wednesday 30 December, with reduced hours also likely on Sunday and New Year’s Eve.
Speaking on the decision to shut up shop for a full 62-hour period this festive season, Rachel Geary, who is the Communications Director at Aldi UK, said: “Christmas is a special time for our customers, but it is also one of the busiest periods of the year for our teams.
“Our colleagues work incredibly hard to ensure customers can pick up everything they need ahead of the big day.
“We never take that effort for granted. Closing our stores on Boxing Day is one way of saying thank you and giving colleagues a proper chance to rest, switch off and spend more time with the people closest to them.”
Featured Image – Aldi UK
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Three tiny ‘chaos potatoes’ have been born at Chester Zoo and they’re so cute
Emily Sergeant
Three tiny ‘chaos potatoes’ have been born at Chester Zoo… and they’re really flipping cute.
Born to parents Maris and Albert in late summer, the three rock hyrax pups – only affectionately known as ‘chaos potatoes’ – have just passed their first vet check with a clean bill of health, and now weigh roughly 350g.
Hyraxes are found across sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East, where they live among rocky landscapes and are most active in daylight.
The litter includes two boys and one girl, and keepers at Chester Zoo have decided to give them potato-themed names – Russ, Spud, and Jackie.
Three tiny ‘chaos potatoes’ have been born at Chester Zoo / Credit: Chester Zoo
Currently, the three pups are a fraction of the size of the adults, which can weigh up to 4kg, but despite their small stature, they have an unlikely relative.
Believe it or not, rock hyraxes are actually a part of the same evolutionary group as elephants, as well as sirenians, which are the family of aquatic mammals that includes dugongs and manatees.
“Hyraxes are one of those species that you have to look for, but once you’ve seen them, they are fascinating to watch,” explained Megan Carpenter, who is a Keeper at Chester Zoo.
“The pups are little chaos potatoes. They are much more energetic than their parents and sometimes get the zoomies, darting about and testing their climbing and parkour skills.
“In contrast, the adults often wedge themselves into corners and grip on to steep rock faces for hours at a time. They’re incredibly well adapted to living among rocks and are much better climbers than you might expect.”
Emily Sergeant -
28th January 2021 
