🌱 Bus Drops Students Off In Standoff + Youth Sports Safety Training

Hello, everybody. It's me, Danielle Fallon-O'Leary, your host of the Birmingham Patch newsletter — back in your inbox with all the most important things happening in our community.

But first, today's weather:

An afternoon thunderstorm. High: 80 Low: 63.

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Here are the top three stories today in Birmingham:

1. A local program is teaching coaches and parents how to keep youth athletes safe. On Tuesday in the suburb of Fultondale, CoachSafely hosted the first of several "Community Huddles," a training that is mandated by Alabama law. The program demonstrates how to recognize injuries such as concussions, cardiac arrest, and heat stroke in athletes, as youth sports injuries are at "epidemic levels." (WBRC)
2. A Birmingham man has been charged with a dozen counts of felony unlawful breaking and entering of a vehicle. Terrance Wuanya Whatley allegedly broke into dozens of cars in the employee parking lot at the Mercedes-Benz International Plant in Vance on May 12. Several vehicle owners say some of the cars that were left unlocked had items stolen, and some of the cars with the windows smashed had nothing stolen. Terrance is currently on a $25,000 bond at the Tuscaloosa County Jail. (wvua23.com)
3. In nearby Hoover, a school bus driver dropped children off in the middle of a police standoff. Detectives were serving a warrant to an alleged bank robber and setting up a perimeter with the SWAT team as a school bus from Simmons Middle School began unloading at the site. A student stated the bus driver said, “This may be some type of drug bust and sometimes people get shot. So make sure you go straight home.” Parents are concerned about the policies and procedures that would allow the situation. (WVTM13 Birmingham)

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Today in Birmingham:

• Basketball Open Play At Levite Jewish Community Center (6:00 AM)
• Tiny Book Of The Month Club At Avondale Regional Branch Library (9:00 AM)
• Titusville Adult Arts & Crafts Club At Titusville Branch Library (11:00 AM)

From my notebook:

• Missing Person Alert: 21-year-old Casey Skinner was last seen on May 15 at 12:00 p.m. She was dropped off at the Birmingham International Airport for a flight but never boarded the plane and has been missing since. If there is any additional information pertaining to Casey, call 911 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777. (Birmingham Police Department, Alabama via Facebook)
• Congratulations to Dr. Allen Parrish, the University of Alabama’s new interim Vice-President for research and economic development! Dr. Parrish has over 29 years of experience at UA and was appointed by President Bell. (The University of Alabama via Facebook)
• The annual Summer Meals Program is back! Tuscaloosa City Schools is offering free meals to students 18 and younger from May 31 to Jun. 30. Click here for times and site locations. (Tuscaloosa City Schools via Facebook)

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That's it for today! I'll be back in your inbox tomorrow morning with a new update.

— Danielle Fallon-O'Leary

About me: Danielle Fallon-O’Leary is a content manager with content creation agency Lightning Media Partners and assists Patch.com with community newsletter curation. Danielle also holds a Master’s Degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders and works part-time as a pediatric speech therapist.