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News Digest Friday, September 17,1999 Page 2 Floyd threatens north east coast New York and New Jersey authorities declare states of emergency MONTAUK, N.Y. (AP) - Creating havoc even at half-strength, Tropical Storm Floyd raced into the Northeast on Thursday, grounding hundreds of flights, closing school for 3 million stu dents and even postponing a U.N. meeting on war. Its winds falling below hurricane force to 65 mph by evening, Floyd headed for Long Island and New England after rolling through the Carolinas in the morning. At least seven deaths have been blamed on Floyd, six from traffic acci dents in the Carolinas and one man presumed to have drowned in the Bahamas. While still a hurricane, Floyd drilled ashore at Cape Fear, N.C., knocking out power to more than 1.4 million in the Carolinas and flooding highways and basements with more than a foot of rain. But damage to buildings was mod est. “We’re most fortunate,” said George Lemons, a National Weather Service forecaster in Raleigh, N.C. From there, Floyd’s winds weak ened steadily to less than half its fear some peak of 155 mph. The minimum wind speed for a hurricane is 74 mph. At 5 p.m. EDT (4 p.m. CDT), the storm was 10 miles south of Atlantic City, N.J., moving north-northeast at nearly 30 mph. But even the gentler Floyd was threat enough for New York and New Jersey authorities, who declared states of emergency. Public schools were closed in Washington, Baltimore, all of New Jersey, Philadelphia and New York City, a part of the country more accus tomed to snow days. It was the first time anyone could recall all schools in New Jersey and New York City closing because of a hurricane. Hundreds of airline flights were canceled along the East Coast, ground ing tens of thousands of passengers. Amtrak suspended all train service south of Washington, and service far ther north was disrupted by a mudslide and fallen trees. Ferry service was can celed from Cape Cod to Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. “The message is, don’t fool with Mother Nature,” said New York City Council Speaker Peter Vallone. “Stay home if you can.” The New York Stock Exchange stuck to regular hours, but the U.N. Security Council suspended its delib erations at 2 p.m. and postponed a meeting on protecting civilians in war zones. « I’m going to ride this one out. We re going to spend our time watching the storm. We have a perfect view ” Dave Feraro Fire Island resident U.N. officials said it was the first time in recent history that a formal, open meeting of the Security Council was derailed by bad weather. On the eastern end of Long Island, directly in the storm’s projected path, residents made last-minute runs for flashlights and emergency supplies and hammered plywood over win dows. It was expected to be Long Island’s harshest storm since September 1985, when Hurricane Gloria caused an esti mated $130 million in damage and knocked out power to 750,000 homes and businesses. Authorities ordered the evacuation of Fire Island, off the south coast of Long Island, but not all its 2,000 resi dents obeyed. Dave Feraro, armed with candles, flashlights, batteries and a cell phone, hunkered down with his wife in their Fire Island home a mere 150 feet from the white-capped Atlantic. “I’m going to ride this one out,” said Feraro, who risked a ticket for ignoring the order. “We’re going to spend our time watching the storm. We have a perfect view.” In Atlantic City, N.J., the Miss America Pageant had no immediate plans to curtail Saturday’s indoor pageant, but city officials feared the storm might force them to cancel today’s pageant parade. The Pentagon said 8,000 members of the National Guard in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia were mobilized to help communities recover from Floyd. National Guardsmen in Delaware, New Jersey and New York were put on alert. Gates makes pledge to offer scholarships SEATTLE (AP) - Microsoft that really builds a strong Chairman Bill Gates pledged America.” Thursday to donate $1 billion for The gift is the couple’s largest college scholarships for minority single philanthropic contribution students. * and among the largest ever, rival He said he wants to change the ing a $ 1 billion commitment by face of American leadership - CNN founder Ted Turner to the including that of his own compa- United Nations, ny. The United Negro College The “Gates Millennium Fund will administer the scholar Scholars Program,” supported by ship program starting next year, the world’s richest man, a Harvard Those three organizations’ dropout, and his wife, Melinda, combined scholarship budget is will provide 1,000 scholarships a $51 million. Gates will almost year for 20 years to Asian- double that with his donations of American, black, Hispanic and $50 million a year. American Indian students. The scholarships, to be award “This country is in an incredi- ed primarily for academic achieve ble time period. The advances in ment and financial need, will sup technology are really quite breath- port four years of undergraduate taking,” Gates said at a news con- education, plus graduate studies in ference. “Is everybody getting a education, library science, engi chance to benefit from this? The neering, math and science, answer is really no. Eligible students must have a “I do hope in the years ahead 3.3 GPA, be nominated by a that as you Iook at the kids in teacher or principal and commit to school and you look at our indus- performing community service, try, you will see a broad, diverse Scholarship winners would have representation, because I 'think to maintain a 3.0 GPA. I " 1 1 1 11 ■ — ■ '■ -— ■ Police say shooter was Very troubled’ FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) - Police picked through Larry Gene Ashbrook’s trashed home and old jour nals on Thursday, but found no explana tion for why he opened fire in a church, killing seven people and himself. Police did find holes punched in walls, concrete poured in toilets and shredded family photographs. The 47-year-old Ashbrook appeared to be “a very troubled man who... sought to quiet whatever demons that bothered him,” FBI agent Robert Garrity said. “I don’t know that we’ll ever know the answer to the question of why it happened.” Ashbrook, dressed in blue jeans, a black jacket and smoking a cigarette, entered the Wedgwood Baptist Church in Fort Worth on Wednesday evening as teen-agers listened to a Christian rock band in the sanctuary. In the church lobby, Ashbrook con fronted his first victims with a question: “What’s the program?” Then he shot a janitor who approached him and killed two other people before walking into the crowded sanctuary. The 150 teen-agers gathered inside initially thought Ashbrook was part of a Editor: Josh Funk Managing Editor: Sarah Baker Associate News Editor: Lindsay Young Associate News Editor: Jessica Faigen Opinion Editor: Mark Baldridge Sports Editor: Dave Wilson _ „ „ ^ „ A&E Editor: Liza Holtmeier Questions? Comments? Copy Desk Chief: Diane Broderick Ask for the appropriate section editor at (402) 472-2588 Photo Chief: Matt Miller or e-mail (fa)9uni.edu. Design Chief: Melanie Falk »Art Director: Matt Haney Web Editor: Gregg Steams ‘fSySS'h^ay G^tSSmUgan KfsST uuiHiy uib acaueimu year, sesstons.The public Ras access Publications Board Jessica Hofmann, Qoa/We orn -ir-^ Chairwoman: (402)477-0527 Readers are and comments to the Daily Nebraskan Professional Adviser: Don Walton (402)473-7248 Advertising Manager: Nick Partsch, __ 1,1400 (402)472-2589 R St., Lincoln NE 68588:0448. Periodfcd postage paid afLln Asst Ad Manager: Jamie Yeager ALL MATERIAL COPYRK5HT1999 Classifieid Ad Manner: Mary Johnson THE DAILY NEBRASKAN skit as he began cursing and spouting derogatory comments about Baptists. They scrambled for cover as Ashbrook opened fire, pausing at least twice to reload. “The guy pointed at me and shot at me!” an out-of-breath man told a 911 dispatch operator. “I saw the flash of a muzzle and headed the other direction.” Ashbrook lit and rolled a home made pipe bomb down an aisle at one point. It exploded but did not harm any one. Seven people - choir members, seminarians and high school students - were killed. Seven others were wound ed, three seriously. Ashbrook then killed himself in a rear pew. Authorities said Ashbrook carried two weapons, a 9mm Ruger semiauto matic handgun and a .380-caliber AMT handgun. Investigators found six loaded 9mm clips in his jacket pocket but were unsure if the .380 was fired inside the church. Acting police Chief Ralph Mendoza estimated there were 30 spent 9mm shell casings inside the church. The .380 was purchased legally from a now-closed flea market shop, Mendoza said. Officials still were researching die purchase of the 9mm. Bomb-makingrtools, including files, pipes, fuses and gunpowder, were found inside Ashbrook’s modest wood frame home in the working-class sub urb of Forest Hill. The journals indicated that Ashbrook had been upset about his inability to keep a job. Mendoza said Ashbrook’s only known police record was a 1971 arrest for marijuana possession. Ashbrook never married or had children, and he lived alone since his 85-year-old father died in July. While some neighbors had dismissed him as a harmless eccentric, others said he had become erratic, even abusive, after his mother died nine years ago. ■ Indonesia Indonesia troops to begin East Timor withdrawal DILI, Indonesia (AP) - Indonesia’s military commander in East Timor promised Thursday he would begin withdrawing his troops from the devastated province next week, ending a long, bitter occupation and making way for a multinational peacekeeping force. Indonesia invaded the former Portuguese colony in 1975, and the United Nations has never recog- ' nized Indonesian authority there. Indonesia will start withdraw ing its 9,000 soldiers from East Timor when a U.N.-approved peacekeeping force arrives, most likely on Sunday or Monday, said Maj. Gen. Kiki Syahnakri, the army commander in East Timor. He said he hopes the withdrawal will take only a week. However, armed forces com mander Gen. Wiranto remained cautious about the withdrawal timetable. Wiranto said he would coordi nate the withdrawal with the U.N. approved forces and added that his soldiers were planning to take part in the peacekeeping force. ■Nm|Kmi Typhoon’s winds devastate Hong Kong ^ HONG KONG (AP) - Typhoon York roared across Hong Kong on Thursday - the first direct hit by such a powerful storm in 16 years - knocking windows out of skyscrap ers and yanking trees from the ground as the normally bustling city collapsed into a chaotic mess. One man died after being struck by flying debris, three peo ple were missing and at least 493 people were injured, 11 seriously, as York pounded Hong Kong with hurricane-force winds for nearly 11 hours. The typhoon triggered floods across the territory, cutting off power to remote villages. It blocked roads with uprooted trees, huge shards of glass and bamboo scaffolding that was ripped violent ly off of buildings. ■Russia Putin gives government 3 days to bolster security VOLGODONSK, Russia (AP) - President Boris Yeltsin, facing a political crisis after a fourth bomb ing in a month killed 17 people and wounded 180 others Thursday, said he has “enough will and enough resources for the struggle against terrorism.” His statement came after the latest early-morning explosion at an apartment building. The four explosions together have killed at least 292 people. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin gave government agencies three days to come up with plans for strengthening security in industry, transport, communications and energy installations, as well as in residential areas. During a meeting of his Cabinet, he turned to the television cameras and appealed to citizens to protect themselves. “I want to turn to military veter ans, police veterans. Take the initia tive on yourselves ” he said. h