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“Curious” 4-year-old accidentally breaks a 3,500-year-old jar at a museum
A young child accidentally broke a centuries-old jar while visiting the Hecht Museum at the University of Haifa in Israel, museum officials said Wednesday.
The jar is at least 3,500 years old, the museum told CBS News in a statement, and dates back to the Middle Bronze Age.
The 4-year-old boy “pulled the jar slightly,” his father Alex told CBS News partner BBC News. The boy was “curious about what was inside,” Alex said, and the movement caused the jar to fall, smashing into several large pieces.
Alex told the BBC he was “in shock,” but that he and his son spoke to the security guard immediately after the incident.
The jar was likely meant for the storage and transportation of supplies like wine and olive oil. The lack of damage to the jar and its size made it “an impressive find,” the museum said. Until mid-August, it was on display at the entrance to the Hecht Museum along with several similar artifacts.
Hecht Museum
Despite its rarity, the jar was not protected by glass, the museum said, because the establishment’s founder believed “that there is a special charm in experiencing an archaeological find without any obstructions.”
The museum said that when display items are “intentionally damaged,” they respond with “great severity, including involving police,” but said such a response would not be warranted because of the accidental nature of the incident.
Hecht Museum
A specialist was called to restore the jar, the museum said. The repair process was expected to be short, and the jar “will be returned to its place in a short time,” the museum said. The museum will also document the conservation work and present it to the public alongside the restored artifact. Once again, the jar will not be kept behind glass, calling the accident a “rare incident.”
Dr. Inbal Rivlin, the general director of the museum, has invited the child and his family to visit the museum and see the jar again once it has been restored. The family will also receive a tour of the building “to sweeten together the previous experience at the museum.”
Michal Ben-Gal contributed reporting.
A Georgia county’s emergency call center was overwhelmed by calls on Sept. 4 about a school shooting at Apalachee High School that killed four people and wounded nine others, records released Friday by Barrow County show.
Local news organizations report many of the 911 phone calls were not released under public record requests because state law exempts from release calls recording the voice of someone younger than 18 years old. That exemption would cover calls from most of the 1,900 students at the school in Winder, northeast of Atlanta.
Calls spiked around 10:20 a.m., when authorities have said that 14-year-old suspect Colt Gray began shooting. Many calls were answered with an automated message saying there was a “high call volume,” WAGA-TV reported.
One man called 911 after receiving text messages from a girlfriend. He was put on hold for just over 10 minutes because of an influx of calls at the time of the shooting, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
“She hears people yelling outside, so I don’t know if that’s officers in the building or that’s — I don’t know,” he said, adding that she was eventually evacuated out of the school.
Other adults also called 911 after their children contacted them.
“My daughter calling me crying. Somebody go ‘boom, boom, boom, boom,'” one mother said. The 911 operator responded: “Ma’am we have officers out there, OK?”
Parents of students at an elementary school and middle school neighboring Apalachee also flooded 911 seeking information.
“Sir, my daughter goes to school next door to Apalachee. Is there a school shooter?” one caller asked.
“We do have an active situation (at) Apalachee High School right now,” the operator responded. “We have a lot of calls coming in.”
More than 500 radio messages between emergency personnel were also released Friday.
“Active shooter!” an officer yells in one audio clip while speaking with a dispatcher, CNN reported. Another officer responds, “Correct. We have an active shooter at Apalachee High School.”
The shooting killed teachers Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Cristina Irimie, 53, as well as students Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, both 14. Another teacher and eight more students were wounded, with seven of those hit by gunfire.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation reported Thursday that the suspect rode the school bus on the day of the shooting with the assault-style rifle concealed in his backpack.
He then asked a teacher for permission to go to the front office to speak with someone, and when he received it, he was allowed to take his backpack with him, GBI said. He then went to a restroom, where he hid, and then eventually took out the weapon and started shooting, investigators said. A knife was also found on him when he was arrested.
According to investigators, the suspect enrolled at Apalachee High on Aug. 14, and between Aug. 14 and the day of the shooting, he was absent for nine days of school.
The family told CBS News that the suspect’s maternal grandmother had visited the school the day before the massacre to discuss the suspect’s alleged behavioral issues.
The suspect has been charged as an adult with four counts of murder, and District Attorney Brad Smith has said more charges are likely to be filed against him in connection with the wounded. Authorities have also charged his father, 54-year-old Colin Gray, alleging that he gave his son access to the gun when he knew or should have known that the teen was a danger to himself and others.
The 13,000 students at Barrow County’s other schools returned to class Tuesday. The 1,900 students who attend Apalachee are supposed to start returning the week of Sept. 23, officials said Friday.
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