Pittsburgh Post-Gazette from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania • Page 1

Ittte One of America's Great Newspapers VOL 76, NO. 103 1 11 102 HOLIDAY 50 cents MONDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2002 FIT TO BE TIED Cairo summit says Iraq agrees iiwn tt By David Lamb Los Angeles Times CAIRO, Egypt Arab League foreign ministers meeting in an emergency session said yesterday that Iraq is likely to accept the U.N. resolution giving arms inspectors unrestricted access and demanding that Saddam Hussein destroy any weapons of mass destruction. In a final communique, the participants in yesterday's meeting called on Saddam to accept the U.N. terms as part of an effort "to solve all standing issues peacefully in preparation for the lifting of sanctions and the end of the U.N.

embargo as well as the suffering of the Iraqi people." The foreign ministers also asserted their "absolute rejection" of any military action against Iraq. The Iraqi president has until Friday to officially accept or reject the U.N. resolution. If he accepts, the inspectors, led by Hans Bllx, will return to Baghdad by next Monday to set up logistical facilities. They with rv iim mi)' 1 1 Ttja 1 I'll 11 WaWI'if-iin mill 1.

n'mr I drew from Iraq in 1998 after being denied access to Saddam's palaces and being accused by the Iraqi president of being spies. The Iraqi News Agency reported yesterday that Saddam had called an emergency session of Parliament for today to consider the U.N. demands. Arab diplomats noted that the Parliament, which is made up of Saddam supporters, and the Revolutionary Command Council, which Saddam heads, are largely irrelevant. Saddam makes the decisions but calling Parliament is the usual choreography for a simulated public stamp of approval for a decision the regime finds distasteful.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri, after conferring with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and his counterparts at the daylong meeting of the 22-member Arab League, told reporters in Cairo that "no decision has been taken." But Arab League sources said they had received Sabri's assurance of likely SEE IRAQ, PAGE A-4 who was killed after a strong storm toppled his Milton Street home in Clark, near Shenango Lake. Richard Kane, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said forecasters will be in Mercer County today trying to determine whether it was a tornado, mac-roburst or microburst that roared through the area. Clark is located in the west central portion of the county, two miles north of Hermitage. "There's no doubt we had multiple warnings and severe thunderstorms," said Kane. "We need to determine whether it was a strong burst or a tornado.

We had indica- SEE STORMS, PAGE A-5 Steelers receiver Plaxico Burress catches a pass at the 1-yard line on the last play of overtime against the Atlanta Falcons yesterday at Heinz Field. After one quarter of overtime in which neither team could score, the game ended in a tie, 34-34. The tie was the first in the National Football League in five years and only the 16th in league history. A winner was about the only element yesterday's game lacked. Steelers quarterback Tommy Maddox threw for a franchise-record 473 yards as part of a total of 645 yards gained by the Steelers.

But Atlanta scored 17 points in the fourth quarter to send the game into overtime. The Steelers' previous tie was 35-all against Denver in 1974 with Joe Gilliam as the Steelers quarterback. Steelers Extra, Section CC Fast-moving storms bring death, destruction Matt FreedPost-Gazette fort would be state Treasurer Barbara Hafer, a Republican who made headlines by endorsing the former Philadelphia mayor over GOP candidate Mike Fisher. Hafer is a former Allegheny County commissioner. Another co-chairperson is Stephen Frobouck, a telecommunications executive from Fox SEE RENDELL, PAGE A-6 Rendell sets transition team Several current, former Western Pennsylvanians will have roles JL mm TODAY WEATHER A brief shower early, then mostly cloudy.

High 58, low 38. PageA-2 NO. 1 NEXT The Pitt football team is focusing on winning the Big East title and gaining national recognition, but standing in the way are the top-ranked Miami Hurricanes. Sports, Page C-1 NEWSMAKER Today's Newsmaker, U.S. Tim Ryan, is the successor to nine-term congressman Jim Traficant, presently incarcerated, in the district that includes Youngstown, Ohio.

Local, Page A-9 DEBIT'S DOUBTERS Be careful when using debit cards online. Regulations that govern their use are not the same as for credit cards. Personal Business, Page B-1 ROYAL MESS The British royal family is roiled again by a new round of revelations. International, Page A-4 WATERWORKS A symposium spreads the news about the value and limits of passive wetlands to treat mine-polluted water. Science Environment, PageA-8 BREAKFAST Maria Bartiromo, business reporter for CNBC and the first journalist to report daily from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.

Seen, Page D-2 WHAT'S CLOSED Government offices are closed today in observance of Veterans Day. There is no regular mail delivery. For other closings and events, see Page A-10 CORRECTION In yesterday's story on military honors at funerals, Joe Renk was described as commander of American Legion Post 935. He is junior vice commander. Pat Gorman is commander.

By Steve Sybert INDEX Brian O'Neill Lottery A-10 Bridge D-7 Magazine 0-1 Business B-1 Movies 0-5 Classified Obituaries 1 Comics 0-6 Perspectives A-1 5 Crosswords Science A-8 Editorials A-1 4 Scoreboard Horoscope Seen D-1 Kids 0-6 Sports C-1 Life Support Television D-8 Local Jl-9 Weather A-2 post-gazettecom For local business news, trends and profiles, plus interactive stock reports, market indices and breaking news throughout the trading week, check out our business section online. Visit www.post-gazette.com Questions about delivery or service? Call 1-800-228-NEWS (6397) tor of his transition team will be David Sweet, who formerly represented Washington County in the state House of Representatives. Sweet became a Harrisburg lawyer and lobbyist after leaving the Legislature in 1988. He was Rendell's campaign manager for his victories in both the primary and general elections. Rendell said one of the six co-chairpersons of his transition ef Florence Shutsy-Reynolds in World War II and today "Glamour? Hell, it was hard work" ff a By Gary Rotstein Post-Gazette Staff Writer Several present and former Western Pennsylvanians who helped Ed Rendell win election Tuesday now have roles in helping the next governor plan his administration.

At a news conference yesterday in Philadelphia, Rendell announced that the executive direc Farmer used cows to milk his creditors, feds charge One person killed in Mercer County By John Seewer The Associated Press One person was killed, several others were injured and at least six buildings were destroyed in Mercer County last night after a storm ripped through tiny Clark. The storm was part of a front that sent tornadoes and severe thunderstorms through Tennessee and Ohio before hitting Pennsylvania, killing at least 10 other people. The Mercer County victim was identified as Charles Templeton, 81, Annie O'NeillPost-Gazette WORLD VIEW Earth warming could open up a Northwest Passage By Robert S. Boyd Knight Ridder Newspapers WASHINGTON A centuries-old dream of merchants and sailors, the fabled Northwest Passage across the ice-covered top of the world, may become open for commercial snipping as soon as five summers from now. Climate records show that the Arctic zone is warming much faster than mid-latitude and tropical regions of our planet, causing the ice to melt at an accelerating rate.

Some experts say the polar ice cap could disappear during the peak months of summer well before the end of this century. The ice reportedly shrank more dramatically this year than at any time since detailed records have been kept "The extent of Arctic ice appears to have reached a record low in 2002," said Mark Serreze, a researcher at the National Snow and Ice Data Center in Boulder, Colo. In addition, there is a Northeast Passage along the upper rim of Siberia that is even more likely to open up than the Northwest Passage above Canada, according to a report released this year by the U.S. Arctic Research Commission, a federal agency. SEE ARCTIC, PAGE A-3 WASP put sting in war effort Fayette woman tells story of females flying on the home front ByTorsten Ove Post-Gazette Staff Writer Down on the Over family's 300-acre dairy farm outside Sligo in Clarion County, there's at least one cow everyone agrees has never gone anywhere.

That's the 20-foot statue of a Hol-stein standing guard next to the barn on Over Road off Route 68, a testament to milk production if not good taste. But what about the 200 real dairy cows, the ones that vanished back in 1994? For years their fate was a mystery. Vera E. Over, the heavyset, 60-something farmer whose family has owned the property for a couple of generations, said repeatedly that he just couldn't remember what became of his cows after he declared bankruptcy eight years ago. Federal agents didn't believe him.

Describing his explanation as "selective amnesia," prosecutors said his memory is just fine and he knew darn well what happened. They were right. Next month, Over will be sentenced for bankruptcy fraud and concealment of assets, and he's probably headed to prison for at least a year. In court papers, the government has detailed Over's history of fabrications stemming from his 1994 SEE COWS, PAGE A-12 nellsville. "Before we are all gone, we're trying to get the word out we were there." Shutsy-Reynolds was one of 1,100 women who flew for the WASP, an organization formed by the Army Air Forces to free America's male pilots for overseas combat For two years, the WASP flew all over the United States, ferrying or towing aircraft from factories to bases and iater towing targets for anti-aircraft and gunnery training, testing new or repaired planes and even teaching male cadets.

The WASP, as well as its two experimental predecessors the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron and the Women's Flying Training Detachment flew everything from small trainers to the B-29 Superfortress long-range bomber. After some male pilots balked at flying the B-29 because they By Cindi Lash Post-Gazette Staff Writer Florence Shutsy-Reynolds wasn't out of grade school when she sat down to supper one night and announced to her family her intention to learn to fly. "They all laughed," she said, grinning at the 70-year-ol memory. "I wasn't laughing." Fifteen years later, the determined little girl became the first woman to earn a pilot's license at her local airport and was headed to join the first-ever group of U.S. women military aviators.

Today, living again in her childhood home in Fayette County, she has made it her mission to spread the story of how the Women Airforce Service Pilots served their country during World War II. "They kept us a secret, and a lot of people didn't know about us," said Shutsy-Reynolds, 79, of Con- SEE WASH PAGE A-6 6.