Nation Briefs April 25, 2010

Mississippi tornado death toll at 10

YAZOO CITY, Miss. - A tenth person has been killed in Mississippi by a devastating tornado that flattened homes and businesses in the state. More than a dozen others have been injured.Mississippi Emergency Management Agency spokesman Greg Flynn said five people were killed in Choctaw County and one in Holmes County. Two of those dead in Choctaw county are children.

Yazoo County Coroner Ricky Shivers says the storm has killed four people in his county.No names have been released.

Gov. Haley Barbour said there was "utter obliteration" in parts of Yazoo County, an area where he is from. More than 15 other counties were also damaged.The swath of debris forced rescuers to pick up some of the injured on all-terrain vehicles.

Obama links auto industry woes, financial overhaul WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama on Saturday cited encouraging signs of an auto industry rebound as he promoted stronger financial rules that he said would help prevent a repeat of the crisis that pushed carmakers to the brink.

Senate Democrats have set a test vote Monday on legislation to tighten federal oversight of the financial sector.The auto industry was one of the biggest casualties of a recession fueled by risky lending and speculative trading practices of major financial institutions. But after shedding 400,000 jobs in 2008, bailed-out U.S. automakers are rebounding.

"I knew this wasn't a popular decision, but it was the right thing to do," Obama said of the government's intervention to help automakers.General Motors Co. said this week it will repay $8.1 billion in U.S. and Canadian government loans five years ahead of schedule. Chrysler LLC, now run by an Italian company, said it boosted its cash reserves by $1.5 billion despite a first-quarter loss of almost $200 million.

Refinery fire claims seventh victim

SEATTLE - A seventh person has died from injuries from a Washington state oil refinery blast.

A nursing supervisor at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle says Matt Gumbel died early Saturday. Gumbel had been in the hospital's intensive care unit with serious burns.KOMO-TV reported Gumbel had undergone skin graft surgery a few hours before his death.

An explosive fire at the Tesoro Corp. refinery engulfed seven workers April 2. It was the deadliest event at a U.S. refinery since 15 people died at a BP facility in Texas in 2005.A public memorial for all the refinery victims is set for Sunday at Anacortes High School.

- The Associated Press