World/Nation Briefs October 27, 2011

Rina hits Cancun area as tourists flee from resorts

PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mexico - Tropical Storm Rina brushed between Mexico's Caribbean coast and the island of Cozumel Thursday, lashing the area with wind and rain, as the Mexican Navy moved to forcibly evacuate some residents who refused to leave a low-lying island well north of the storm.

Playa de Carmen, a resort town across from Cozumel, was left without electricity and streets were largely empty as Rina swept the coast just 20 miles west of Cozumel with winds of about 60 mph.

The storm was moving north about 7 mph and was expected to move inland and start weakening early today.

Many tourists had already abandoned resorts around Cancun and the Riviera Maya ahead of what once threatened to be a Category 3 hurricane.

The Mexican Navy took mandatory evacuation orders so seriously that it sent boats to Holbox island, about 100 miles north of where the storm was expected to hit, to haul out by force about 80 residents who had refused to leave and hidden on the island during an earlier evacuation of about 2,300 people.

Lines snaked from ticket counters in Cancun's crowded airport Wednesday as jumbo airliners heading to Canada and Europe waited in pouring rain.

State Tourism Director Juan Carlos Gonzalez Hernandez estimated 10,000 tourists had left by Wednesday night.

Turkey survivor emerges from quake rubble

ERCIS, Turkey - Rescuers, working under floodlights, pulled a 13-year-old boy alive from the rubble of a collapsed apartment building early Friday, more than 100 hours after a massive earthquake leveled many buildings in eastern Turkey, killing at least 550 people.

A picture by the state-run Anatolia news agency showed a rescue team carrying Ferhat Tokay out of the debris, wearing a neck brace. In other pictures from a field hospital, he appeared conscious and looking at his rescuers.

Tokay's rescue came 108 hours after Sunday's 7.2-magnitude earthquake, the agency said.

The agency said the boy was injured but did not give further details. The collapsed building from which Tokay was rescued was in Ercis, the town worst hit by the quake.

The temblor has killed at least 550 people and injured 2,300 others, according to the country's disaster management, AFAD, website updated Thursday evening. Thousands of homeless in tents were struggling in the bitter cold as rain and snow brought on more hardship.

Emergency officials said 187 have been rescued from the rubble. About 2,000 buildings have been destroyed and authorities declared another 3,700 buildings unfit for habitation.

Obama renews push for solar energy in West

WASHINGTON -The Obama administration on Thursday identified 17 sites in six Western states as prime candidates for solar energy projects on public lands, continuing a push for solar power despite the high-profile bankruptcy of a solar panel maker that received a half-billion dollar federal loan.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said the latest "Solar Energy Zones" refine and improve on a draft released in December that identified two dozen areas in California, Nevada, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Arizona.

Five sites in Nevada, four in Colorado, three in Utah, two each in California and Arizona, and one in New Mexico were identified as ideal for solar development.

The sites comprise 285,000 acres, down from about 677,000 acres in December, and reflect the department's judgment that the targeted land has the highest potential for solar development with the fewest environmental conflicts.

The plan is intended to promote development of large, utility-scale solar projects on public lands that will generate thousands of megawatts of electricity. The zones are intended to maximize electricity generation while minimizing conflicts with wildlife and cultural and historic resources.

The administration's push for renewable energy has come under attack since California-based Solyndra Inc. closed its doors two months ago after receiving a $528 million federal loan. The company declared bankruptcy and laid off its 1,100 workers.

Roommate: Hurt vet felt strongly about protests

OAKLAND, Calif. - The Iraq War veteran injured in clashes between police and anti-Wall Street protesters felt so strongly about economic inequality that he wanted to do something to change it, his roommate said Thursday.

Scott Olsen, 24, joined the protests as he worked his day job as a network engineer and left his apartment each night to sleep alongside protesters in San Francisco and Oakland, Calif., Keith Shannon said.

Olsen apparently suffered a fractured skull Tuesday during the clashes.

It's not known exactly what type of object struck Olsen or where or from whom it came from. The group Iraq Veterans Against the War said officers were responsible for his injury.

Oakland police Chief Howard Jordan said officials will investigate whether officers used excessive force.

Medicare monthly premium increase less than thought

WASHINGTON - Good news for seniors: The government says Medicare's basic monthly premium will rise less than expected next year, by $3.50 for most.

It could be good, too, for President Barack Obama and Democrats struggling for older Americans' votes in a close election.

At $99.90 per month, the 2012 Part B premium for outpatient care will be about $7 less than projected as recently as May. The additional money that most seniors will pay works out to about 10 percent of the average Social Security cost-of-living increase they'll also be due.

Some recently enrolled younger retirees will actually pay less. They were charged $115.40 a month this year, and they'll see that go down to $99.90.

- The Associated Press