Weekend wrap-up: Here are the biggest Arizona stories from May 14-16
May 16, 2021, 6:00 PM
(Courtesy photo/Phoenix Fire Department)
(Courtesy photo/Phoenix Fire Department)
PHOENIX — A stalled roller coaster at Castles N’ Coasters on Saturday evening stranded 22 people, Banner Health is urging caution about over-the-counter green tea extract capsules and Chino Bandido will open a food truck starting Monday until its new location is finished.
Here are some of the biggest stories that headlined the Arizona news cycle over the weekend.
Fire units respond to stalled roller coaster in Phoenix with 22 riders stuck
The Phoenix Fire Department on Saturday evening sent fire units to respond to Castles N’ Coasters for a stalled roller coaster.
A total of 22 people were on board approximately 20 feet up in the air of the park’s Desert Storm coaster, officials said.
Technical rescue teams from both Phoenix and Glendale fire departments set up a high-angle belay to assist riders off the coaster.
The rescue took approximately 1.5 hours and concluded after each rescuee was evaluated once on the ground, officials said.
Chandler man developed liver toxicity from green tea extract
A healthy 47-year-old Chandler man developed liver toxicity from over-the-counter green tea extract capsules, prompting Banner Health experts to urge caution around the supplement’s potentially harmful impacts.
Michael Sisco thought he was taking a harmless amount of energy supplements containing vitamins and caffeine for over ten years, unaware the capsules he’d been consuming also included green tea extracts, according to health experts.
On days where Sisco’s energy ran low, he started taking two additional “immunotherapy support” supplements and three to four packets of green tea energy booster supplements, all purchased from a retail store containing large amounts of green tea extract.
“Because the writing’s so small on some of these products, we didn’t catch that it was in there, at first,” Sisco, the father of twin 13-year-old boys, said in a press release. “One Friday night, I sat down to eat and felt like someone had punched me in the abdomen a bunch of times.”
His condition worsened to include jaundice, severe nausea and flu-like symptoms.
That led to Dr. Chilukuri, a gastroenterologist at Banner Ocotillo Medical Center, to order blood tests, imagining studies and IV treatment for Sisco. A liver biopsy ultimately helped the medical team determine the cause.
“He’s getting better and should recover completely, but it was serious enough that he could have needed a liver transplant and faced life-threatening issues,” Dr. Abdul Nadir, gastroenterologist and transplant hepatologist at Banner Ocotillo Medical Center, said.
Chino Bandido opens food truck at new location in Phoenix
Fanatics of Mexican restaurant Chino Bandido will have access to the company’s food truck starting Monday until its new location is opened.
While finishing touches are still being made at its new location at 310 W. Bell Rd. in Phoenix, the food truck will be set up outside the building serving a limited selection from the menu’s items including jerk chicken, refried beans and snickerdoodles.
Operating hours will be open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Monday through Friday, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday and 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday.
Tempe mother who told police voices told her to kill her children is arrested
Tempe police found the bodies of two children at an apartment after a woman flagged an officer down early Saturday morning letting him know she was hearing voices telling her to kill her children, authorities said.
The mother of the children, 40-year-old Yui Inoue, has been arrested and is charged with two counts of first-degree murder.
Officers arrived at the woman’s apartment near Mill Avenue and Hermose Drive around 7 a.m. and found the bodies of a 9-year-old girl and a 7-year-old boy near the doorway, according to Sgt. Steven Carbajal.
There were significant injuries to the children, including numerous lacerations, incised wounds and some amputations consistent with a violent attack and defensive wounds, Carbajal said Sunday in a press release.
The woman didn’t believe she killed them, but said that she could not remember.
Woman charged in stabbing death of teenage boy at Phoenix Light Rail
A 14-year-old boy was stabbed to death during a fight near the Valley Metro Light Rail station at the intersection of Central Avenue and Indian School Road on Friday night.
According to police, 30-year-old Priscilla Uqualla stabbed the teenager amid a fight between multiple males at around 9 p.m.
Uqualla stayed on the scene until authorities arrived and was charged with second-degree murder.
The 14-year-old was transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.
