Nation briefs 8/13/04

Retail sales rebound in July, unemployment falls

WASHINGTON -- Shoppers who disappeared from the stores in June returned in July, snapping up cars and other big-ticket items while raising hopes the worrisome economic slowdown in the early summer will not last long. The Commerce Department reported Thursday that retail sales rebounded by 0.7 percent last month. Consumer demand for autos was strong with the return of attractive incentive offers from dealers. The Labor Department also reported that the number of laid-off workers filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell by 4,000 last week to 333,000, the smallest total in five weeks. Economists said both reports should help relieve worries that an early summer slowdown could broaden into a more serious threat to the economic recovery.

Next NASA mission calls for camera on fuel tank

NEW ORLEANS -- A video camera on the space shuttle Discovery's external fuel tank will record the launch planned for spring 2005, including any flyaway foam of the sort that led to last year's Columbia disaster. The camera, to be placed in a recessed spot toward the top of the fuel tank, will transmit live footage for about 15 minutes after launch, Neil Otte, chief engineer on Lockheed Martin's external tank project, said Thursday. A group of NASA officials will review the images and determine how much insulating foam flew off the tank. An investigation into the Columbia disaster led to an overhaul of the way workers apply the foam to the tanks and to heightened inspection systems at the New Orleans plant where the tanks are put together. Engineers still expect small pieces of the foam to fly off after launch, but they should be harmless, many about the size of popcorn kernels, Otte said. Next year's launch, planned for March or April, will be the first since the Columbia disaster on Feb. 1, 2003.

Couple electrocuted during NYC downpour

NEW YORK -- A young couple who leapt from their car as a flash flood engulfed it at a New York City intersection were electrocuted by a downed power line, authorities said. Witnesses said the passenger, 19-year-old Alana Berenson, sprang from the car first Wednesday and was swept into the waist-high torrent. Her boyfriend, 23-year-old Joseph Cheethman, jumped out after her. Authorities believe the couple, both students at SUNY Maritime College, were electrocuted by a downed power line at the intersection in the borough of Queens.

Sources: Jackson plans to attend special hearing

SANTA MARIA, Calif. -- Michael Jackson has decided to come to court Monday to hear the testimony of the man prosecuting him on child molestation charges, according to sources. Santa Barbara County District Attorney Tom Sneddon will be testifying in an unusual pretrial proceeding. Reliable sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Associated Press Thursday that Jackson will be on hand for the session. Also expected to attend are his parents, sisters Janet and LaToya and brother Jermaine. Michael Jackson is not required to attend but made a last-minute decision to appear, a source said.

Dust storm triggers three fiery wrecks in Arizona

PHOENIX -- A blinding dust storm rolled across an interstate highway, causing a string of fiery crashes that killed four people and injured 42. Twelve big rigs, along with a bus and nearly a dozen other vehicles, crashed Wednesday night on Interstate 10, authorities said. Five wrecks on the interstate happened within 15 minutes of each other Wednesday -- four in the Tonopah area about 45 miles west of Phoenix and a fifth 75 miles west of Phoenix. The accidents shut down the interstate, and emergency crews initially had a tough time reaching the crash scene, according to the Phoenix Department of Public Safety. One pileup began when a passenger vehicle stopped in the middle of the road, authorities said.

-- From wire reports