Nation & World

Bridge topples in Mo. crash

Minor injuries reported after railroad cars hit highway overpass pillars

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- A highway overpass in southeast Missouri collapsed early Saturday when rail cars slammed into one of the bridge's pillars after a cargo train collision, authorities said. Seven people were injured, though none seriously.

Vintage Apple computer auctioned off for $668,000

BERLIN -- An auctioneer says one of Apple's first computers -- a functioning 1976 model -- has been sold for a record 516,000 euros ($668,000).

Protesters march vs Monsanto in 250 cities, including Portland, Seattle

LOS ANGELES -- Marches and rallies against seed giant Monsanto were held across the U.S. and in dozens of other countries Saturday.

Graduates in tornado-raked Okla. town vow to stay

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Seven tornadoes have swept through their town since they were born, but as new graduates donned caps and gowns to say goodbye to their high schools Saturday, they vowed they wouldn't say goodbye to Moore.

NTSB: Bridge collapse in Wash. is wake-up call

SEATTLE -- The chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board said Saturday the bridge collapse in Washington state is a wake-up call for the nation.

Whatever cause, bridge collapse points to bigger problems

The collapse of an interstate highway bridge in Washington state brings new attention to the limits of the country's infrastructure, especially older structures that were designed with little room for error and were never intended to carry the number of cars and trucks they see today.

Damage reported from magnitude-5.7 quake in Calif.

GREENVILLE, Calif. (AP) — Residents in rural northeastern California assessed damage to their homes and businesses Friday from a magnitude-5.7 earthquake, one of the strongest temblors to hit the densely forested region in decades.

U.K.-bound Pakistan plane diverted, 2 men arrested

LONDON — Britain scrambled fighter jets Friday to intercept a commercial airliner carrying more than 300 people from Pakistan, diverting it to an isolated runway at an airport on the outskirts of London and arresting two British passengers on suspicion of endangering the aircraft.A British security official said the situation involving the Pakistan International Airlines flight did not appear terror-related, though police were still investigating, but the incident further rattled the U.K. just days after a soldier was killed on a London street in a suspected terror attack.

26 killed by car bombs in Niger

Surviving attacker takes a group of soldiers hostage

NIAMEY, Niger — Suicide bombers in Niger detonated two car bombs simultaneously on Thursday, one inside a military camp in the city of Agadez and another in the remote town of Arlit at a French-operated uranium mine, killing a total of 26 people and injuring 30, according to officials in Niger and France.

House backs variable rate student loans

WASHINGTON — House lawmakers on Thursday approved legislation that links student loan rates to the ups and downs of the financial markets in spite of a veto threat from President Barack Obama.

Boy Scouts approve plan to accept openly gay boys

GRAPEVINE, Texas -- The Boy Scouts of America's National Council has voted to ease a long-standing ban and allow openly gay boys to be accepted as Scouts.

Storm took town's youngest as it swept through

MOORE, Okla. — One loved the spotlight. Another was nicknamed "The Wall" because of the force he brought to the soccer field.

For Philadelphia bicyclist, a cat is his co-pilot (with video)

PHILADELPHIA — For bicyclist Rudi Saldia, you could say a cat is his co-pilot.

Obama endorses more oversight of drone strikes

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama on Thursday defended America’s controversial drone attacks as legal, effective and a necessary linchpin in an evolving U.S. counterterrorism policy. But he acknowledged the targeted strikes are no “cure-all” and said he is haunted by the civilians unintentionally killed.

Pakistan arrested American who was killed by drone

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — An American citizen killed in a U.S. drone strike in Pakistan in 2011 was arrested by Pakistani authorities three years earlier but escaped after being released on bail, officials said Thursday.