Newsbytes – Theater Evacuation, E. coli, Plane Crash, and Buying Back Candy

By: Staff Writers Ashley Chang and Michelle Dalarossa

Local: Great Mall Theater Evacuated After Bomb Threat

Milpitas’s Century 20 Great Mall movie theater was evacuated on October 31 due to a bomb threat. The theater’s management received a phone call at 8:25 p.m. informing them of a bomb inside the theater, and within five minutes the theater and its surrounding areas were evacuated. After fruitless searching, the businesses reopened at 9 p.m. Police are working with phone companies to locate the phone call.

National: Chipotle Closes Restaurant After Suspected E. Coli

After an E. coli outbreak, 43 Chipotle restaurants in Oregon and Washington have temporarily closed as of October 30. Of the reported E. coli cases, 39 have been linked back to those restaurants. No one has died from the infection, but 10 of the victims are currently hospitalized. Chipotle is collaborating with health officials to determine the source of contamination and to set potential reopening dates. This is not the first time the restaurant chain has had food-safety issues, as there were salmonella and norovirus outbreaks in August for which Chipotle is now facing lawsuits.

International: Russian Plane Crash Kills 224

A Russian passenger plane flying from Egyptian resort Sharm el-Sheikh to St. Petersburg broke apart in midair and crashed over Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula on October 31. All 224 passengers on board were killed and the crash has become Russia’s worst aviation disaster. Officials say it is too early to confirm the cause of the crash but continue to investigate.

Quirky: Dentist Gifts Troops with Buy Back Candy

Dentist Byron Wall from Albuquerque, New Mexico offered to buy back candy from trick-or-treaters on November 1 to prevent Halloween-induced cavities. Wall collected candy last year as well, amassing more than 1,000 pounds. He said that children ages 14 or younger were allowed to trade in their sweets for money at his office, and he paid $1 for every pound. The candy was donated to Blue Star Moms, a nonprofit organization that gives the candy along with clothes and food to New Mexico’s troops.