WEST

CALIFORNIA AIRPORTS HAVE COUNTRY’S WORST RUNWAY SAFETY RECORDS

LOS ANGELES – Among the country’s 25 busiest commercial airports, John Wayne Airport in Orange County, Long Beach Airport, and Los Angeles International Airport ranked one, two, and three in runway incursion rates – measured by incidents per 100,000 flights – since 1999. The three airports also topped the list for the total number of incidents, regardless of size. Nationwide, the number of incursions has dropped about 20% from its 2001 peak. Airports in Boston, Philadelphia, and Newark had unusually high numbers of incursions in fiscal year 2005; those in Denver, San Francisco, and New York’s La Guardia had none, according to federal records.

– Associated Press

MIDWEST

NTSB STAFF CONDUCTING PROBE INTO CRASH NEAR CHICAGO

ELMWOOD PARK, Ill. – National Transportation Safety Board investigators interviewed emergency workers, hoping to learn why a commuter train slammed into vehicles at a backed-up intersection, injuring 16 people, officials said yesterday. The train struck five vehicles and set off a chain reaction during Wednesday’s evening rush hour that ultimately involved as many as 15 vehicles, a Metra spokeswoman, Judy Pardonnet, said. Ms. Pardonnet said yesterday that 13 of the 16 injured were taken to hospitals, and three people remained hospitalized yesterday morning. Two of the people were in serious condition, and the condition of the third was unknown, she said.

– Associated Press

WASHINGTON

NIXON WHITE HOUSE CONCERNED ABOUT A NUCLEAR ‘HORROR OPTION’

President Nixon fretted privately over the notion of any no-holds-barred nuclear war, newly released documents from his time at the White House reveal. Visions of such an all-out war involving nuclear missiles were unpalatable from the first days of Nixon’s presidency. Recently declassified papers from the time show that he wanted an alternative to the option of full-scale nuclear war – a plan for a gentler war, one that could ultimately vanquish the rival Soviet Union while still avoiding the worst-case scenario.

– Associated Press

LAWMAKERS HELPED ABRAMOFF TRIBES GET FED MONEY

More than a dozen members of Congress intervened to help Indian tribes win federal school construction money while accepting political donations from the tribes, their lobbyist, Jack Abramoff, or his firm. The lawmakers hailed from both parties, including the House Appropriations subcommittee chairman, Charles Taylor, a Republican of North Carolina, and Senator Dorgan of North Dakota, the top Democrat on the Senate committee currently investigating Mr. Abramoff.

– Associated Press