Clinton plays round of golf before Thanksgiving dinner
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Clinton played a round of golf and then joined his family for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner at Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland's Catoctin Mountains.The president's holiday began on the golf course, where he and several companions ignored Thursday's overcast skies and chill to get in 18 holes of golf. Clinton was joined by his brother Roger and stepfather Dick Kelley at the Maple Run Golf Course, a 10-minute drive from Camp David near Thurmont, Md.
"Keep warm now," he remarked to onlookers before teeing off, slamming a long, gentle drive to the right center of the fairway.
"I'll play that one," he announced, obviously pleased with his opening shot.
Light earthquake widely felt in Oregon and Washington
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- A minor earthquake measuring 3.5 on the Richter scale shook Washington and Oregon Thursday morning but caused no damage or injuries, the U.S. Geological Survey said.
The quake hit at 6:46 a.m. and was centered on the Washington-Oregon border north of Salem, Ore., said Trudy Harlow, a spokeswoman for the geological survey.
The quake caused "no damage or casualties because it was so small, but it was widely felt," Harlow said.
It was felt from Salem to Portland in Oregon and in Brush Prairie, Wash., Harlow said.
Homeless woman burned while riding subway in Bronx
NEW YORK (AP) -- A homeless woman was set afire and critically burned early today as she rode a subway train.
A subway worker helped put out flames that were engulfing Corona Thomas, 42, as she stepped off a southbound train at a Bronx subway station at about 1 a.m., said Sgt. Ellen Tietjen, a New York City police spokeswoman.
Emergency workers took Thomas to Jacobi Hospital, where she was in critical condition with third-degree burns over 60 percent of her body.
Police were looking for the attacker, who was described as a man wearing a red parka and a beige hat.
7 killed when rig slams into van, car in Louisiana
NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- A tractor-trailer rig slammed into a van and a car on an elevated stretch of I-10, killing seven people.
Six other people were injured in the accident, which happened about 11 p.m. Thursday.
All of the dead were passengers in a minivan that was crushed by the rig against a guard rail, police said. One other person in the van survived with injuries, while all five occupants of the car that was struck were also injured.
The rig driver was not hurt, police said.
A portion of the freeway was closed today as investigators tried to sort out what happened, said Sgt. Lewis Coleman, a police spokesman.
The injured were taken to Charity Hospital. Their conditions were not immediately available.
Chicago Con Edison revamp costs jobs of 5 executives
CHICAGO (AP) -- A reorganization at Commonwealth Edison prompted by two summer blackouts in the city has cost five more executives their jobs.
The five were asked to resign on Monday in what ComEd spokesman Steven Solomon called "part of the reorganization of our transmission and distribution group."
In July, a severe heat wave left more than 100,000 customers without power for up to three days when ComEd's overloaded cables and transformers failed.
An August blackout hit a portion of a 30-square-block area in downtown Chicago for up to 11 hours. Then, a museum and court building were both darkened for several hours in the middle of busy days.
A report by ComEd details how it says power lines and transformers had been allowed to deteriorate.
California doctor denies guilt over diluted vaccines
SAN RAFAEL, Calif. (AP) -- The attorney for a California doctor charged with cruelty to children for allegedly diluting vaccines says his client is not guilty.
"We absolutely and completely deny the charges," said John Wagner, attorney for Dr. William Liebman, who is accused of using saline solution to weaken vaccines for hepatitis, polio, diphtheria and other diseases.
Both Wagner and Marin County Assistant District Attorney Edward Berberian declined to discuss a possible motive. But Wagner told the Bay City News Service that it wasn't a cost-cutting move.
Liebman, 59, was investigated after one of his nurses reported discrepancies in the serum levels in vaccine vials last spring, according to an affidavit filed in superior court. The Food and Drug Administration confirmed the vaccines had been diluted, the affidavit said.
Jet aborts landing in N.C. to avoid another plane
MORRISVILLE, N.C. (AP) -- A Midway Airlines jet aborted a landing at Raleigh-Durham International Airport to avoid another plane on the same runaway.
The pilot of Flight 372 from Tampa, Fla., circled the airport for about 20 minutes Thursday morning after finding a Northwest Airlines DC-9 on the runway, according to Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen.
Bergen called the episode "an operational error" by an air traffic controller who mistakenly thought the Northwest jet was on the runway parallel to the one where the Midway jet was trying to land.
Woman sues over arrest as result of a police sting
SAN RAMON, Calif. (AP) -- A woman who was lured into a police sting by the promise of a free computer and arrested for a crime she didn't commit has filed a damage claim with the county.
Sharon Renae Ruth drove 327 miles to San Ramon from her home near the Oregon border on Sept. 19 after receiving a notice that said she had won a computer in a sweepstakes. She said she was met by people wearing sweepstakes T-shirts who sent her behind a curtain, where a woman grabbed her by the wrist and arrested her on a warrant for possession of methamphetamine.
According to her claim, she was later told she had been mistaken for a different Sharon Ruth.
'Fantasy Island' creator Gene Levitt dies at 79
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Gene Levitt, a veteran television writer, director and producer who created the 1970s hit TV series "Fantasy Island," died at his Los Angeles home Nov. 15 of prostate cancer. He was 79.
Levitt's biggest hit came in 1978 when he created "Fantasy Island," a show about a faraway resort where guests' wishes were fulfilled by a character played by Ricardo Montalban. Montalban's assistant, played by Herve Villechaize, greeted guests with the phrase "Da plane! Da plane!"
Hunter kills childhood friend after mistaking him for deer
SPRING HILL, Fla. (AP) -- A bow hunter shot and killed his childhood friend with an arrow through the neck after he mistook the other man for a deer, police said.
Simm Spratling, 32, was shot Wednesday by Bobby Merrill, 33, as Merrill sat in a tree about 15 feet above a trail in a forest near Florida's Gulf Coast, authorities said.
Sgt. Craig Baxley of the Hernando County Sheriff's Office said no foul play is suspected, but deputies are investigating the shooting.
Fire at Michigan kennel claims 58 dogs, 7 cats
DEWITT TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) -- An early morning fire at a central Michigan kennel killed 58 dogs and seven cats while many of their owners were away celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday.
Only 31 pets escaped the blaze at the Samarkand Kennel, just north of Lansing, DeWitt Township veterinarian Dr. Stephen Thimmig said Thursday.
The cause of the fire was not immediately known.
"The owners of the kennel are beside themselves with grief and can barely speak," Thimmig said.
Couple forced to land on Tennessee highway
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) -- An Oklahoma couple flying a rented plane to visit relatives for Thanksgiving had to make an emergency landing on a Tennessee highway.
The plane was clipped by a car after it came to a stop beside the road. No one in the plane was injured, but one passenger in the car was treated at a nearby hospital and released.
Brian and Chastity Driver, of Tulsa, Okla., landed on Highway 50, about 70 miles west of Driver's parents' home in Murfreesboro, Wednesday night after noticing mechanical problems with the plane.