 Mom hospitalized after 5 days in ravine
 Associated Press
A 21-year-old mother of two who survived five days in her wrecked pickup truck was in serious condition Wednesday after being pulled from a North Carolina ravine.
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Louisiana eyes Gustav, activates Guard troops
NEW ORLEANS, 6:46 p.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
On the eve of Hurricane Katrina's third anniversary, a nervous New Orleans watched Wednesday as another storm threatened to test everything the city has rebuilt, and officials made preliminary plans to evacuate people, pets and hospitals in an attempt to avoid a Katrina-style chaos.
Forecasters warned that Gustav could grow into a dangerous Category 3 hurricane in the next several days and hit somewhere along a swath of the Gulf Coast from the Florida Panhandle to Texas – with New Orleans smack in the middle.
More National News
DALLAS, 5:54 p.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Lone Star State serves up frightening Fair fare: Everything is bigger in Texas, especially the calorie counts at the State Fair, which will offer such delicacies this year as deep-fried s'mores and a fried banana split.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn., 5:29 p.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
TVA asks NRC to renew build permits for 2 reactors: The Tennessee Valley Authority, faced with growing electricity demand and rising coal costs, asked regulators Wednesday to renew construction permits for two unfinished nuclear reactors it virtually abandoned 20 years ago.
TUCSON, Ariz., 5:24 p.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
More charges against accused driver in Ariz. crash: A Mexican man who had been accused of transporting illegal immigrants after a rollover crash killed nine people faces new charges that could bring the death penalty.
BOISE, Idaho, 5:16 p.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Professor's body found in burned Idaho home: The air was still thick with the smell of smoke when fire crews allowed Christopher Lee and his wife to return to their charred neighborhood and collect their belongings – or what was left of them.
CLOVIS, N.M., 4:49 p.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
4 inmates accused of helping with NM jailbreak: Four jail inmates who authorities say helped eight others make a brazen escape were charged Wednesday, as officials kept up the search for the five prisoners who remain on the loose, including a convicted murderer.
LAUREL, Miss., 4:08 p.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Factory had tension between union, immigrants: Union bosses in this region of rural Mississippi have long grumbled that the largest factories here hire illegal immigrants, and that the immigrants were starting to get more overtime and supervisory positions.
LOS ANGELES, 3:54 p.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
L.A. park to stand as tribute to Robert F. Kennedy: With a band of traditional Korean drummers, a Latin dance group and a martial arts exhibition, city officials broke ground Wednesday on a small urban pocket park at the site where Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated 40 years ago.
BOISE, Idaho, 3:37 p.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Death for man who kidnapped, murdered Idaho boy: A longtime sex offender was sentenced to death Wednesday for the 2005 kidnapping, torture and murder of a 9-year-old northern Idaho boy after federal jurors who watched video of some of the brutality deliberated just three hours.
WASHINGTON, 3:33 p.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Durable goods post strong gains in June, July: U.S. factories saw a surprisingly hefty increase in their orders for big-ticket products in July, reflecting continued strength in export sales and a boost to business investment from the government's tax stimulus package.
BOSTON, 12:33 p.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Soros behind Mass. effort to decriminalize pot: A measure that would decriminalize minor marijuana-possession cases is on the ballot in Massachusetts largely because of one man: billionaire financier and liberal activist George Soros.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., 12:09 p.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Husband gets guardianship in Schiavo-like case: A judge on Wednesday granted temporary guardianship to the husband of a woman on a feeding tube in a case similar to the lengthy legal dispute over whether Terri Schiavo should be kept alive.
CHARLESTON, S.C., 12:06 p.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Public defender to take ex-prof's appeal in scam: The federal public defender for South Carolina will handle the court appeal of Al Parish, the former college professor convicted of bilking hundreds of investors out of $66 million.
NEW YORK, 11:55 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
In NYC, new HIV infections 3 times national rate: New data shows New York City residents are contracting the virus that causes AIDS at three times the national rate.
WASHINGTON, 11:55 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Judge fears secret hearings over Guantanamo Bay: A federal judge overseeing cases against dozens of Guantanamo Bay detainees said Wednesday that he fears the public – and the detainees themselves – will be locked out of the courtroom when evidence in the case is scrutinized for the first time.
WELLESLEY, Mass., 11:40 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Wellesley museum loses prized 1921 cubist painting: Wellesley College has lost a 1921 painting by French cubist Fernand Leger that was likely worth millions of dollars, officials said.
ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla., 11:26 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Study: Bankruptcies soar for senior citizens: First came the health problems. Then, unable to work, Ada Noda watched the bills pile up. And then, suffocating in debt, the 80-year-old did something she never thought she'd be forced to do.
MIAMI, 10:39 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Fla. prosecutor: handyman tried to kill songwriter: Latin songwriter Estefano was shot twice and nearly killed at his waterfront mansion last year by a trusted former handyman who carefully plotted his death but miraculously failed, prosecutors said in closing arguments Wednesday at the handyman's trial.
VALLEY CITY, N.D., 9:07 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Godly or gimmick? Churches offer free gas: Carol Umsted got more than the word of God during services this summer at the Congregational United Church of Christ of Valley City.
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., 8:33 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Officer pleads not guilty to body-slam of woman: A New York policeman pleaded not guilty Wednesday to a charge that he body-slammed an unarmed woman to the floor, breaking her jaw.
NEW YORK, 8:02 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Oil rises after crude supplies fall unexpectedly: Oil prices are rising after the government reported that U.S. crude supplies fell unexpectedly last week.
DENVER, 7:39 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Is Denver big enough for Sean Penn and Obama Girl?: Is this town big enough for both Sean Penn and the Obama Girl? Entertainers at all levels of political seriousness are finding their niches on the sidelines of the Democratic National Convention.
ATLANTA, 7:04 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
FAA says communication breakdown delayed flights: Numerous flight delays caused by an electronic communication failure at a Federal Aviation Administration facility drew new criticism for an agency that has been scrutinized over air traffic controller staffing levels and inspection standards for its ground-based equipment.
NEW ORLEANS, 6:29 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Louisiana, Mississippi keeping eye on Gustav: As Friday's third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina approaches, officials in Louisiana and Mississippi are keeping an eye on storm Gustav.
HOUSTON, 6:18 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Correction: Whales-Oil Exploration story: In the first paragraph of an Aug. 21 story about how sperm whales may be affected by seismic testing for hydrocarbons in the Gulf of Mexico, The Associated Press overstated the conclusions of a federally funded study.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska, 4:29 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Alaska voters decide mining over fish: Alaskans were given an option when voting for an initiative in their primary election: mining or fish.
FORT JACKSON, S.C., 3:58 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Army opens prep school for dropouts to fill ranks: Austin Swarner left high school to care for his mother while she fought a losing battle with cancer. Tony Brown wanted to begin supporting himself and left two classes shy of a diploma. Haelee Holden got tired of trying to make it through school while flipping burgers until 1 a.m.
DENVER, 3:53 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
AP News in Brief: Hillary Rodham Clinton closed the book on her 2008 presidential bid with an emphatic plea for the party to unite behind Barack Obama.
ALBANY, N.Y., 1:49 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Board members quit, suspends government in NY town: Only eight months on the job as supervisor of the small town of Ancram, Thomas Dias finds himself faced not with a crisis in government but no government at all.
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich., 1:37 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Incomes fall in Michigan, number in poverty rises: Government data painted a bleak economic picture for Michigan, where the auto industry's downward plunge has rippled across the state.
HICKMAN, Neb., 1:16 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Nebraska city council votes to evict aging horse: This one-horse town is looking like becoming a no-horse town. The owner of a 32-year-old horse named Peter Rabbit wasn't able Tuesday to buck a local ban on livestock within city limits.
DETROIT, 12:53 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Mich. governor, Detroit mayor have strained past: Gov. Jennifer Granholm and Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick come from the same powerful Democratic political machine, yet they have had a strained relationship for years.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska, 12:39 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Arctic sea ice drops to 2nd lowest level on record: Arctic Ocean sea ice has melted to the second lowest minimum since satellite observations began, according to scientists at the National Snow and Ice Data Center.
AKRON, Ohio, 12:30 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Akron eyes sewage system deal for scholarships: Some people dub it “stools for schools,” yet a plan to lease the city's sewage system gets high marks from others.
COLUMBUS, Ohio, 12:20 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Homeowners mix vegetables, flowers to save money: Tidy lawns have been replaced by a jumble of hot peppers, tomatoes, peas, peaches, berries and plums in the front yards of two next-door neighbors.
NEW ORLEANS, 12:17 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
Memorial to Katrina victims taking shape: Six mausoleums for the unclaimed dead of Hurricane Katrina stand on what was vacant land just five weeks ago, as New Orleans – in what could be a testament to its determination – scrambles to complete a memorial by Friday's third anniversary of the storm.
TRUMBULL, Conn., 12:13 a.m. Aug. 27 (AP)
State news of national interest: Police said they arrested a young man after he boasted of eluding authorities during a high-speed chase. Officers said Michael Giurintano, 18, of Monroe crashed his car and successfully fled on foot last week. Police said they found his cell phone number in the car and called him. Thinking it was a friend, Giurintano bragged about the incident, police said.
