Austin American-Statesman from Austin, Texas • 4

A4 Austin American-Statesman WORLD NATION Sunday, May 11, 2008 Tornadoes leave at least 18 dead across the Midwest I 7- By Marcus Kabel ASSOCIATED PRESS 5 r. 1 I 1 Medical workers set up a triage unit to treat the injured after a tornado hit near Seneca, Mo on Saturday. Roger Nomer THEJOPUN GLOBE i SENECA, Mo. A deadly tornado spun across the Oklahoma-Missouri border as severe storms raked the nation's heart Saturday, taking at least 18 lives, mangling buildings and trapping people in rubble in the storm-weary region. At least 12 people were killed in southwestern Missouri as severe storms spawned tornadoes and high winds, the State Emergency Management Agency said.

"The last two years we've had floods and tornadoes it's just one right after another," the agency's Susie Stonner said. At least six other people were killed as a tornado flattened the northeastern Oklahoma town of Picher. The same twister apparently skipped across the state line into Missouri and hit near Seneca, about 15 miles away, where 10 were killed, National Weather Service meteorologist Bill Davis said. The total number of injuries across the area wasn't immediately available. The Joplin Globe reported that more than 90 people were being treated at Joplin, hospitals.

The death toll in northern Oklahoma could climb, said Oklahoma Emergency Management spokeswoman Michelann Ooten. The tornado in Picher a depressed and pollution-scarred mining town that many residents had already fled caused major damage across a 20-block area, she said. "I know they are going through the rubble, trying to find people missing," Ooten said. "There are numerous injuries." fighters said. The region has already been hit hard by severe weather this year.

Tornadoes killed 13 people Feb. 5 in Arkansas, and seven more were killed in an outbreak May 2. In between were freezing weather, persistent rain and flooding that damaged residences and slowed farmers in their planting. meteorologist The storms remained active late into the evening as they swept eastward, with watches and warnings abundant across a wide swath of the Plains and South. Rescuers were trying to free a man trapped in his vehicle in western Tennessee after a tree fell on it during thunderstorms, Memphis fire Other tornadoes were reported near McAl-ester and Haywood in Pittsburg County and in rural Pushmataha County, both in southeastern Oklahoma.

In storm-weary Arkansas, a tornado collapsed a home and a business, and there were reports of a few people trapped in buildings, said John Robinson, another Weather Service Myanmar elections continue amid cyclone relief efforts mixed with propaganda. The military appeared to be diverting some resources from cyclone victims to the referendum. A resident of Yangon, speaking by telephone, said that refugees seeking shelter in schoolhouses were evicted so they could be used as polling places. In Datgyigone, a farming village 35 miles north of the capital, a precinct captain burst into laughter when asked if he thought most people would vote for the constitution. "Everyone will vote yes," he said.

"Of course yes." But he said most of the voters had no idea what they were voting for, and that neither he nor most people he knew had actually read the proposed constitution. "The government says vote, so we vote," he said with a shrug. He spoke openly, but asked that his name not be used for fear of government retribution. Most villagers, when asked about their votes, declined to speak. A man selling batteries, combs The military rulers of Myanmar, also known as Burma, have turned cyclone relief efforts into a propaganda campaign.

In some cases, generals' names were scribbled onto boxes of foreign aid before being distributed. In one of the hardest hit areas, the southern reaches of the Irrawaddy delta, bodies floated down rivers and washed up on riverbanks. They were mostly ignored by stunned survivors who have quickly grown used to seeing the dead floating past them. "When we first saw the bodies floating past, we were sad and afraid," said Aung Win, a 45-year-old rice farmer. "Now we just say, 'Here comes another A week ago, Cyclone Nargis hit and left more than 60,000 people dead or missing.

But the focus for the junta was on the referendum for a constitution that is designed to legitimize and perpetuate military rule. Residents said the vote followed a campaign of coercion THE NEW YORK TIMES YANGON, Myanmar The military junta forged ahead Saturday with a constitutional referendum intended to cement its power after a campaign of arm-twisting and intimidation, even as it continued to restrict foreign aid shipments to survivors of last week's devastating cyclone. Myanmar's ruling junta is refusing to grant entry to foreign aid workers who relief officials say are crucial to preventing further deaths from disease among 1.5 million people who the U.N. estimates have been severely affected. By Saturday, the military hadn't released two World Food Program aid shipments that arrived Friday, according to a spokesman for the U.N.

food program. Several aid flights have landed in Yangon or are en route, the spokesman said. But the aid amounted to about one-tenth of what is needed, said Paul Risley, a spokesman for the World Food Program. INSIDE Cyclone Nargis was a massive storm of historical proportion, A18 and flip-flops from a small pushcart hurried off when he was asked about the referendum, saying he was afraid to speak about it. The referendum is intended to lead to a multiparty election and a nominally civilian government.

But it allots 25 percent of parliamentary seats to the military, gives the military control of key ministries and allows the military to seize control in a time of emergency. It would also bar Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace prize-winning opposition leader whose party won an election in 1990, from public office. She has been under house arrest for 12 of the past 18 years. Additional material from The Associated Press. Mugabe's opponent will return for Zimbabwe presidential runoff 1 By Robyn Dixon LOSANGrXl'STlMKS PRETORIA, South Africa Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai announced Saturday that he has decided to take part in a runoff election against President Robert Mugabe, saying he thinks the vote "could finally knock out a dictator for good." Tsvangirai had ruled out participating in a runoff, saying he had won outright in the disputed March 29 elections.

But when he announced his decision to return to Zimbabwe in coming days, he said that, despite the risks faced by opposition activists, it would be a betrayal of Zimbabweans not to contest the runoff. "The people are victorious, and they are being punished for their victory," he said at a Pretoria news conference Saturday. "We must free ourselves from those who would steal victory from fellow brothers and sisters by using guns, sticks and screwdrivers. Promising a "victory tour" of his country, he said, "We know a runoff election could finally knock out a dictator for good." Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change won the most parliamentary seats and controls parliament with the help of another opposition faction. According to official results, Tsvangirai also won the most presidential votes, but fell just short of the 50-percent-plus-one vote required to win outright, necessitating a runoff.

The runoff election date hasn't been announced, but under law it should be held within 21 days of the first election results, which were announced just more than a week ago. Tsvangirai said the vote should be held May 24. But Zimbabwean government officials have said the electoral commission has up to a year to hold the vote. Tsvangirai called on Zimbabwe's security forces, ruling party youths and war veterans to stop attacking civilians. "For those carrying out the violence on the ground the police, the militia, the army and the so-called war veterans now is the time to give very serious thought to the implications of further attacks on innocent civilians.

You are breaking Zimbabwean and international law, and the whole world is watching." Tsvangirai also called for regional peacekeepers to be send to Zimbabwe to prevent further violence. Zimbabwe Doctors for Human Rights, a human rights organization in Zimbabwe that has monitored the casualties in post-election violence, said Friday that more than 900 people have been treated for injuries such as fractures and deep tissue damage as a result of beatings but said that actual numbers were much higher because many had no access to medical care. Additional material from The Associated Press. i ops WE'VE LOWERED OUR RATES 0.25 IN THE LAST TWO WEEKS. Save more than ever with our lowest rates in years at the Chase Spring Home Equity Sale.

Consolidate your bills, begin a home improvement project, or make a major purchase. But hurry, the sale ends soon. To Apply: Call 1-800-800-LOAN Stop by a branch VisitChase.com A GREAT RATE MATTERS. CHASE WHAT MATTERS" Garcia's name appeared at the top of a hit list found several months ago at a monument to slain police officers. Several people on it have been killed, and none of the perpetrators has been caught.

WORLD DIGEST NATION DIGEST ON A2 MEXICO Son of drug cartel suspect killed MEXICO CITY Gunmen in the northern city of Culiacan killed the son of a man reputed to be one of Mexico's most-powerful drug lords, a government official reported. Edgar Guzman, son of suspected Sinaloa cartel chief Joaquin Guzman, was shot dead in a shopping center's parking lot Thursday, said an official with the federal attorney general's office who wasn't authorized to be quoted by name. About 500 bullet casings from AK-47 rifles were found at the site, Mexico's El Universal and Reforma newspapers reported. Top police officer slain in Juarez JUAREZ, Chihuahua A senior Mexican police officer whose name appeared at the top of a hit list has been shot dead in Juarez, a border city across from El Paso. City officials said gunmen sprayed Juan Antonio Roman Garcia's car with bullets early in the morning outside his home.

He was the city's No. 2 police officer and at Jpast the fourth high-ranking officer to be killed in Mexico in a week. Roman AFGHANISTAN Coalition accused of civilian deaths KABUL Dozens of protesters blocked a road in eastern Afghanistan, saying that U.S.-led coalition forces killed three civilians, and a local official said police fatally shot one of the protesters and injured three of them. Villagers from the area carried three bodies to a major highway during the protest. Police allegedly opened fire, killing one and wounding three.

The coalition has said its troops were attacked Friday while searching compounds in the Shin war district of Nangarhar province. "Several militants were killed" and nine insurgents were arrested, according to the coalition said. Interior Ministry spokesman Zemeri Bashary said the government is investigating fhe claims. Compiled from wire reports Subject to credit and property approval. Program terms and conditions are subject to change at any time without notice.

Not all products are available in all states or for all amounts. Other restrictions and limitations appy Property insurance is required; collateral in special flood hazards areas requires flood insurance. 'The Best Rate Line of Credit features variable rates based on the Prime Rate (as published in The Wall Street Joumal)vAvd as of 5208, range from 4.49 APR to 6.60 APR, for line amounts of $50,000 up to $500,000. Stated rate ranges apply to lines secured by owner-occupied, single family (includes townhomes and rowhomes) TX collateral Ask us about our collateral and combined-loan-to-value (CLTV) ratio requirements to be eligible for these rates. Advertised rates include a 25 rate discount which requires a new or existing Chase personal checking account is good only on new home equity lines, and cannot be combined with any other offer.

Lifetime APR will not exceed 21 The product requires an Origination Fee of $399, which may be financed (for TX homestead properties, financing of the ongination fee requires that you take a minimum draw of $4,000 at closing). Borrower is responsible for a $50 annual fee after the first year, except for TX homestead properties. If you close your line of credit within 36 months of the date upon which it is opened, you wHI be required to pay an early account closure fee, equal to the lesser of 1 of the line amount or $400 (except for TX homestead properties). Purchase money lines are excluded from this offer. I 53 'Please consult your tax advisor regarding the deductibility of interest L.

beposrt products provided by'jPMorgar. Chase Bank, NA Member FDIC. 2008 JPMorgan Chase Co..