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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

In brief: Man finds iPhone after 9,300-foot drop

From Wire Reports

WICHITA FALLS, Texas – A Texas businessman used an app to find his iPhone in a rural pasture after it fell about 9,300 feet during a flight from Houston.

Ben Wilson said his cellphone still works, the Wichita Falls Times Record News reported Thursday.

Wilson said he and a pilot were traveling home Monday in a Beechcraft Bonanza when a pressure change caused the passenger door to open slightly. Wilson didn’t realize his cellphone fell out until after landing.

Wilson and an employee used an app to narrow the search to near Jacksboro, more than 50 miles away.

The pair began on their search Tuesday, and they found the cellphone under a mesquite tree in a pasture.

Shark near, distance swim abandoned

SAN FRANCISCO – A great white shark thwarted a Northern California man’s quest to become the first person to swim from the Golden Gate Bridge to the Farallon Islands.

Corte Madera marathon swimmer Simon Dominguez was trying to swim about 28 miles when his teenage daughter, in a support boat, spotted the great white just 3 1/2 miles from his goal, KPIX-TV reported Thursday. After 18 hours in the frigid ocean, Dominguez reluctantly climbed into his support boat as the 12- to 15-foot shark circled it.

Out of the water, the 49-year-old said he was disappointed that he didn’t finish the swim.

“It was hard. But a shark is a shark,” Dominguez said.

The Farallon Islands are a breeding ground for great whites. Dominguez said he had decided to make the attempt in the summer before breeding season begins in the fall.