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'Fluffy' finally woke sleeping woman who discovered house was ablaze By Edward C. Fennell (Contact) The Post and Courier Sunday, January 11, 2009 An early-morning fire Saturday burned the house on Red Fox Run in Old Quail Arbor subdivision off Old Trolley Road in Summerville. The family escaped the blaze which had spread the length of the home through the attic. Photos by David Guerin A stray kitten named Fluffy"woke a Summerville family very early Saturday, saving them from a fire that completely destroyed their split-level home. Smoke alarms did not go off as the blaze spread through the attic,...

A man shouting that God would keep him safe was mauled to death by a lioness in Kiev zoo after he crept into the animal's enclosure, a zoo official said on Monday. "The man shouted 'God will save me, if he exists', lowered himself by a rope into the enclosure, took his shoes off and went up to the lions," the official said. "A lioness went straight for him, knocked him down and severed his carotid artery." The incident, Sunday evening when the zoo was packed with visitors, was the first of its kind at the attraction. Lions and tigers...

MANCHESTER, Pa. -- A cat interrupted a catnap, possibly saving two lives. Jean Poole and her 9-month-old granddaughter were dozing Tuesday in Poole's home in the Newberry Estates mobile home park. Poole's 7-year-old cat, Princess, woke them up, meowing loudly. Poole got up, smelled smoke and heard crackling flames. She went to check the wood burning stove in the living room, and saw flames at the picture window. With fire blocking the front door, Poole grabbed the baby and went out the rear door. Then she returned to get Princess. "She woke me up. I don't know if I'd have...

By MARK SCOLFORO, Associated Press Writer HARRISBURG, Pa. - The Pennsylvania attorney general's office Monday sued an online university for allegedly selling bogus academic degrees — including an MBA awarded to a cat. Trinity Southern University in Texas, a cellular company and the two brothers who ran them are accused of misappropriating Internet addresses of the state Senate and more than 60 Pennsylvania businesses to sell fake degrees and prescription drugs by spam e-mail, according to the lawsuit. Investigators paid $299 for a bachelor's degree for Colby Nolan — a deputy attorney general's 6-year-old black cat — claiming he had...

Lansing man arraigned on assault charge By Adam Emerson Lansing State Journal A cat stopped a north-side Lansing man from sexually assaulting a 7-year-old girl he snatched from his front lawn, police said Tuesday. Investigators said Wulfrido Lopez brought the girl inside the home, put duct tape over her mouth and tried to remove her pants just after 6 p.m. Monday. But the girl's cat attacked Lopez, enabling her to break free and escape. "She was damn lucky she had that cat in her hand," Detective Brian Smitherman said. "This could have turned out really bad." Lopez, 36, was arraigned...