SC wildfire spreads near Myrtle Beach tourist spot; hundreds flee as dozens of homes burn

NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — A coastal wildfire spread Thursday near one of the busiest tourist stretches in South Carolina, burning dozens of homes and forcing hundreds to flee in the middle of the night. No injuries were reported and officials said the blaze appeared to be heading several miles north of the most densely populated areas.

Brutal heat, rebel attacks lead to low voter turnout in round 2 of Indian elections

PATNA, India — A brutal heat wave, together with threats of violence from communist guerrillas, kept millions away from the polls Thursday in India’s monthlong election.

Federal government to release meager water supplies to California farms in time for summer

FRESNO, Calif. — Farmers in California’s drought-stricken agricultural basin finally will get a meager supply of federal water to nurture their crops this summer.

Tim Wakefield, Brad Penny pitch Red Sox to doubleheader sweep of Twins, 10-1 and 7-3

BOSTON — Brad Penny pitched six solid innings after Tim Wakefield won a rain-shortened complete game, and the Boston Red Sox finished a doubleheader sweep of the Minnesota Twins with a 7-3 victory Wednesday night.

Wind-whipped SC wildfire chars 3,000 acres, destroys home; smoke blows over busy tourist spots

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — A rapidly spreading coastal wildfire destroyed one home and forced dozens of people to flee their houses Wednesday as high winds fanned the flames and blew walls of smoke over some of the busiest tourists spots in South Carolina.

Red Sox hit 3 homers, beat Twins 10-1 in rain-shortened opener of split doubleheader

BOSTON — Tim Wakefield pitched a five-hitter for his second consecutive complete game and the Boston Red Sox earned their sixth straight victory, beating the Minnesota Twins 10-1 in seven innings Wednesday as rain shortened the opener of a scheduled day-night doubleheader.

Texas group to sue feds for putting $450M biolab in Kan., says politics trumped tornado risk

SAN ANTONIO — A group of Texas research facilities announced Wednesday that it plans to sue the Department of Homeland Security over its selection of a Kansas site for a planned $450 million biodefense laboratory, claiming political connections led federal officials to overlook the site’s tornado risk.

Valley City ND allows businesses to reopen after temporary fix of flood-damaged sewer system

FARGO, N.D. — Parts of North Dakota recently threatened by river flooding have begun to clean up in hopes of quickly returning to business as usual.

FEMA nominee promises Senate panel to improve the agency’s disaster response

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama’s pick to head FEMA promised senators Wednesday that he would hold the disaster relief agency to a much higher standard than it displayed in the wake of the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes.

The Nation’s Weather

Most of the nation will experience a chilly Columbus Day with areas of scattered, mixed precipitation throughout Monday afternoon. A very cold high pressure area in the northern Midwest will advance eastward, spreading into the Northeast during the day.

ND towns hopeful flood threat has eased after bridge opens, water forecast at dam lowered

VALLEY CITY, N.D. — North Dakota towns battling floods felt more hope Tuesday after officials said a bridge would reopen into one stricken town and the flood threat eased at a dam protecting another town.

Study shows decline in flow of many major rivers, which scientists blame on climate change

WASHINGTON — The flow of water in the world’s largest rivers has declined over the past half-century, with significant changes found in about a third of the big rivers.

Great Wall of China even greater: high-tech study shows wall longer than previously known

BEIJING — The Great Wall of China is even greater than once thought.

Officials: 5 Texas children die after driver answering cell slides car into rain-swollen ditch

HOUSTON — Five Houston children died Saturday after their sedan slid into a rain-swollen ditch when the driver lost control while trying to answer a cell phone, authorities said.

Fire official says 5 Houston children feared dead after high water sweeps away their car

HOUSTON — Five Houston children were feared dead after the car they were riding in was swept away by high water Saturday evening, a fire official said.

Myanmar lifts alert as Cyclone Bijli veers away from western coast

YANGON, Myanmar — Myanmar lifted an alert Saturday after Cyclone Bijli veered away from the western coast of the country, which was battered almost a year ago by deadly Cyclone Nargis.

Spring snowstorm starts to weaken after closing stretch of Colo. I-70, stranding travelers

DENVER — A spring storm was weakening after dumping up to 3 feet of snow on the foothills west of Denver — stranding hundreds of people in shelters and forcing the closure of an 80-mile stretch of Interstate 70.

Cyclone Bijli crosses Bangladeshi coast, does little damage

Bangladesh sees little damage from Cyclone Bijli

DHAKA, Bangladesh — Cyclone Bijli briefly made landfall in Bangladesh early Saturday without causing any serious damage before heading toward neighboring Myanmar, officials said.

Hundreds stranded at Colo. shelters after spring snowstorm shuts down 80-mile stretch of I-70

DENVER — Hundreds of people were stranded at shelters Friday night after transportation officials shut down an 80-mile stretch of Interstate 70 between Vail and Golden because of wet, heavy snow and multiple accidents.