A 67-year-old man trying to rescue his dog from the currents of Pennypack Creek drowned Monday morning in Northeast Philadelphia, a preliminary investigation by police showed.
The man's body surfaced in the creek along a walking trail through Pennypack Park off of Verree Road in Bustleton about 9:30 a.m. Police and firefighters responded, and called the police Marine Unit in to retrieve the man's body.
Police said later Monday morning that preliminary information revealed the man had been walking his dog through the park when the dog went into the creek -- it's unclear if the dog jumped or fell -- and the man went in after the dog. The current then swept the man away as he tried to save the dog, police said.
Police later found the dog near the man's car.
They have not yet released the man's identity, but NBC10's Mitch Blacher reported from the scene that people -- possibly relatives -- cried along the edge of the creek after Marine Unit officers removed the body from the water.
The man's death comes on the heels of someone finding the body of an unidentified 60-year-old woman in another area of Pennypack Park -- off of Frankford Avenue in Holmesburg -- on Sunday. Police said they don't believe that woman's death is suspicious, but it's unclear how she died and wound up in the park.
The creek where the man drowned Monday runs along a popular trail through the park's dense woods that people use for jogging and biking.
Officials say one dog was killed while three other dogs are secure after they attacked a young girl in Philadelphia late Monday afternoon.
Police responded to a report of a person screaming on 10th and Ontario streets at 4:45 p.m. When they arrived they spotted four dogs biting a 5-year-old girl, according to investigators. The two officers opened fire, striking and killing one of the dogs. The three other dogs were then secured.
Officials told NBC10 the parents of the young girl refused for her to undergo medical treatment. The police officers were not injured during the incident.
Investigators have not yet revealed who the dogs belong to or where the three surviving dogs will be placed.
This story is developing. Check back for updates.
An investigation is underway after officials say a woman was sexually assaulted while attending her reunion at Princeton University over the weekend.
The woman was inside Spelman Hall Sunday when she was sexually assaulted by an unidentified man, according to officials.
The victim described the suspect as a black male standing between 5-foot-8 and 5-foot-9 and weighing around 170 pounds with facial hair and a mole on his face. She also said he was wearing a t-shirt and shorts.
Both the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office and Princeton’s Department of Public Safety are investigating. If you have any information on the incident, please call the Department of Public Safety at 609-258-1000. Officials are also advising students and staff to call 609-258-3333 if they observe anything suspicious, stay alert, avoid walking alone and keep their windows locked.
A massive fire damaged an American Legion Post in the Frankford section of Philadelphia on Memorial Day.
The 4-alarm fire started at the American Legion Post 396 building on 2369 Orthodox Street around 2:45 p.m. Monday. The plumes of smoke were large enough to be visible to drivers on I-95.
"Just smoke and then there were flames coming out of the roof for awhile," said Francis O'Keefe who lives near the building. "But that's about it."
The fire was placed under control at 4:29 p.m. Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Adam Thiel said firefighters will remain at the location throughout the night however.
"It's very difficult when we can't get in there when it's what we call an exterior attack," Commissioner Thiel said. "You honestly can't get in and find the fire so that's why we're going to be here for awhile. The building is just not structurally stable for us to put firefighters in there."
Officials say one firefighter suffered a minor injury and was taken to the hospital but is expected to be released soon. They continue to investigate the cause of the fire.
A home invasion in Delaware County led to a police chase on Interstate 95 into Philadelphia Tuesday night.
Officials say at least three suspects were involved in a home invasion on the 200 block of Lafayette Avenue in Prospect Park. Officers arrived and began chasing the suspects as they fled in their vehicle.
The suspects drove on I-95 north and entered Philadelphia as the pursuit continued. Then then went through I-676 and continued onto I-95 at Callowhill Street before they ran out of the vehicle, officials said. Officials say at least one of the suspects fled on foot southbound toward Delaware Avenue while a second suspect fled westbound on Spring Garden Street.
Police told NBC10 they took a person of interest into custody. They also recovered a shotgun and took a door broken in half from the scene of the home invasion in Prospect Park.
No word yet on the search for the remaining suspects.
Three masked men carjacked three family members, including a man with cerebral palsy, at gunpoint early Monday morning in the Roxborough section of Philadelphia, according to police.
A 40-year-old woman, her 52-year-old brother who has cerebral palsy, and her 25-year-old niece pulled up in front of their home on the 500 block of Gerhard Street around 12:35 a.m. As the trio got out of their vehicle, three masked and armed men approached them, according to investigators.
The 40-year-old woman told police she was attempting to unlock her door when one of the suspects approached her from behind and grabbed her pocketbook. When the woman turned around she spotted a second suspect holding a gun to her brother’s head by their car.
“They pretty much got him and put a gun to his head,” said the woman, who did not want to be identified. “One came up beside me and just asked for my purse and cellphone and the other one got my niece."
Residents in the area heard the man's cries for help as the suspect held him at gunpoint.
"The first thing that came to my mouth was, ‘Oh Jesus! Oh Jesus! Oh Jesus!’ I was so scared," he said.
The three suspects then jumped into the woman’s vehicle, backed up into a car that was parked behind it and traveled westbound on Gerhard Street.
The woman contacted her alarm company who notified police. When police arrived they searched the area but couldn’t find the suspects. None of the victims were injured during the incident.
The suspects stole credit, bank and ID cards from the victims, their glasses, iPhones and their house and car keys. Neighbors showed NBC10 surveillance video of the suspects that they plan on turning over to police. The video shows the three masked men in hoodies going down Gerhard Street from Ridge Avenue. Moments later a man with a gun runs back up the street with the victim’s purse and the two other suspects take off in the family’s car.
News of the robbery sparked outrage on social media.
“We’re a lot scared and a lot afraid for our safety and our children’s safety,” said Maureen Wilson, a neighbor.
The victim told NBC10 that while she’s upset about what happened she’s happy her and her family were unharmed.
“Thank God they spared our lives,” she said. “It could have turned out so much worse.”
The first suspect is described as a man in his 20s with a thin to medium build standing between 5-foot-9 and 5-foot-10. The second suspect is described as a thin man in his 20s standing between 5-foot-9 and 6-feet. The third suspect is described as a thin man in his 20s standing 6-feet. All three suspects were wearing masks and all-black clothing.
The family's vehicle is a blue, 2008 Acura MDX with the Pennsylvania tag, GVH0977.
If you have any information on the incident, please call Philadelphia Police.
An unidentified body was found on a street in Maplewood, New Jersey, Monday morning, authorities said.
Authorities discovered the body of a man on Wyoming Avenue near Hickory Drive at about 4 a.m., police said.
The victim has not been identified, according to the Essex County Prosecutor's office.
It was not immediately clear if the victim was hit by a car or died from other causes, authorities said.
Police officers knocked on neighbors' doors as they investigated.
"They asked us if we knew about a hit-and-run outside the house," said a resident named Nat Francis.
"We heard four guys in a car stopped and they thought it was a deer, then saw the guy who was unconscious," he added.
The prosecutor's office couldn't confirm it was a hit-and-run and said it's waiting on an autopsy.
The body was found feet from Dave Pressel's home but he said he didn't hear anything.
"I have absolutely no idea what happened, how it happened, really when it happened," he said. "All I know is someone unfortunately died from it."
Pressel said the street was a "very typical residential, suburban neighborhood," with many joggers, dogwalkers and bikers around.
Police and EMS rescued a teenage hiker who fell down Peanut Leap Falls in New Jersey, a popular attraction along a hiking trail inside Palisades Interstate Park, officials say.
The 17-year-old boy from Elmwood Park was hiking with friends when he fell shortly after 4 p.m. and got hurt, police said. He was swinging from a tree and landed on a rock, and the rock gave way, causing him to plunge down the waterfall.
He sustained internal injuries and became trapped 70 feet up the waterfall, police said. He was found kneeling on a rock formation, unable to move.
Police marine units had to bring paramedics and EMS workers in rappel gear to the area because of the remote location and shallow depth. Rappel crews lowered themselves to the boy, secured him, and brought him down.
Chopper 4 followed the rescue as the teen was loaded into a boat waiting in the Hudson River at the base of the cliffside, then transported over water to nearby Alpine Boat Basin Marina, then to Hackensack University Medical Center by ambulance.
Officials would not offer a condition on the hiker, but he appeared to be conscious and moving during the transport.
Hikers say the it's about an hour-and-a-half hike to reach Peanut Falls, which is described online as difficult and strenuous.
Here are the 10 things you need to know to start your day from your friends at NBC10.
TODAY'S TOP STORY
Man Drowns Trying to Rescue Dog From Philadelphia Creek: A 67-year-old man trying to rescue his dog from the currents of Pennypack Creek drowned Monday morning in Northeast Philadelphia, a preliminary investigation by police showed. The man's body surfaced in the creek along a walking trail through Pennypack Park off of Verree Road in Bustleton about 9:30 a.m. Police and firefighters responded, and called the police Marine Unit in to retrieve the man's body.
YOUR FIRST ALERT FORECAST
Expect a warm-up and clearing conditions as fog and clouds give way to plenty of sunshine later in the day Tuesday as highs push into the upper 80s. Get your full NBC10 First Alert forecast here.
WHAT YOU MISSED YESTERDAY
Massive Memorial Day Fire at Philly American Legion Post: A massive fire ripped through the American Legion Post in the Frankford section of Philadelphia on Memorial Day. The 4-alarm fire started at the American Legion Post 396 building on 2369 Orthodox Street around 2:45 p.m. Monday. The large flames and smoke that rose from the building were visible to drivers on I-95. "Just smoke and then there were flames coming out of the roof for awhile," said Francis O'Keefe who lives near the building.
AROUND THE WORLD
Australia to Sell Bitcoins Confiscated as Proceeds of Crime: About $13 million in bitcoins will be auctioned in Sydney in June after Australian police confiscated the digital currency as proceeds of crime, an official said Tuesday. Ernst & Young was running the process, which is only the second such bitcoin auction in the world after the U.S. Marshals Service sold 144,000 bitcoins over a two-year period that had been confiscated from Ross Ulbricht, who founded the online drug bazaar Silk Road, the accountancy firm's transaction partner Adam Nikitins said.
Prince Harry Photobomb's 'ANTM's' Selfie: Leave it to Prince Harry to turn a cute selfie into a royal photobomb moment. The 31-year-old was snapped making a funny face all while "America's Next Top Model" star Winnie Harlow was attempting to pose for a photo with her agent during the Audi Polo Challenge.
SPORTS SPOT
Phillies Losing Streak Continues: The Phillies dropped their fourth-straight as a normally reliable reliever couldn't hold the lead. Get your full sports news at CSNPhilly.
PHOTO OF THE DAY
See more Top News Photos here.
THROUGH IGER'S EYES
@Pharrisphotos snapped this family photo in front of the Liberty Bell.
Have an awesome Instagram photo you'd like to share? Tag it with #NBC10Buzz.
TODAY'S VIRAL VIDEO
Check out this cake attack. Watch the full video here.
Lady Gaga Lays Down Her Latest Track at Indy Speedway: Already a regular singing partner with Tony Bennett, Lady Gaga found another golden oldie chart topper to pair with: Mario Andretti. Gaga was at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the 100th running of the Indy 500 on Sunday, though she kept a fairly low profile, dressed down in jean shorts with her hair pulled back in a tight ponytail. Read more here
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