Rain plagues Vancouver Olympics opening
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Feb. 12 (UPI) -- Warm, wet weather caused concern Friday some skiing events would have to be rescheduled at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
Hours before the opening ceremonies, rain and fog continued vexing organizers on Whistler and Cypress Mountains, where crews and volunteers have been scrambling to dump thousands of cubic yards of snow in a battle against thawing, The (Vancouver) Province reported.
"Weather has not been our friend and it's continuing to challenge us," Cathy Priestner Allinger, the organizing committee's head of sport, said at a news conference.
She said the International Ski Federation had the option of rescheduling races based on conditions.
Meanwhile, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger ran the Olympic Torch through the city's Stanley Park at sunrise Friday and handed it off to British Olympian Sebastian Coe, the head of the London 2012 Organizing Committee, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported.
Thousands of politicians, celebrities and public officials have converged on the city amid a large security contingent of Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the military.
The games run through Feb. 28 and include 2,500 athletes from 82 countries competing in 15 sports for 86 medal events.
Organizers estimate the international television audience will surpass 3 billion.
Deep South to get rare, measurable snow
MDALLAS, Feb. 12 (UPI) -- A record snowfall in northern Texas left at least 170,000 people powerless, canceled flights and closed schools, officials said Friday.
Regular and backup repair crews for Oncor Electric Deliver were working to restore power, Oncor spokeswoman Carol Peters told The Dallas Morning News.
Thursday's storm dumped 12.5 inches of snow at the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport in a 24-hour period ending at 4 a.m. Friday, weather officials said.
Tree limbs were yielding to the heavy snow, breaking off and snapping power lines, power companies said.
State transportation and local law enforcement agencies reported no major weather-related accidents, but the storm did knock out some traffic signals.
About 200 flights were canceled Friday morning at the Dallas-Fort Worth airport but were getting back online, airport spokesman David Magana said. About 350-400 of 850 scheduled flights were canceled Thursday, he said.
School districts, private schools, community colleges and universities throughout the region were closed Friday, officials said. The city of Dallas had already declared Friday a "furlough day," closing all non-essential offices as a cost-saving measure.
Meanwhile, the Deep South braced for a potent storm predicted to spread snow along the Interstate 20 corridor.
Accuweather.com said snow and sleet would fall on the northern shores of the Gulf of Mexico, including Mobile, Ala., and Tallahassee, Fla.
European Parliament OKs resolutions
BRUSSELS, Feb. 12 (UPI) -- The European Parliament approved three human rights resolutions concerning media in Venezuela, the political crisis in Madagascar and a prisoner in Myanmar.
The members expressed concern about the movement toward authoritarianism by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's government, the European Union said Thursday in a release. In January 2010, six cable and satellite television channels were ordered off the air after they were criticized for failing to broadcast Chavez's speech on the 52nd anniversary of the overthrow of Perez Jimenez.
Members of the European Parliament, sitting in Brussels, called on Venezuelan authorities to review the decision and the obligation to broadcast all presidential speeches.
In a second resolution, members of European Parliament condemned Andry Rajoelina's seizure of power in Madagascar "in flagrant violation of the provisions of the Madagascan Constitution," calling his actions "an outright coup d'etat."
In the third resolution, the European Parliament called for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, criticizing the order barring her from participating in the next Myanmar election, scheduled for some time in 2010.
Lynching in S.C. prompts 15 arrests
CONWAY, S.C., Feb. 12 (UPI) -- Police in Horry County, S.C., say they have arrested 15 people in an alleged attempted lynching of a male victim.
Police Sgt. Robert Kegler said nearly 20 people allegedly attacked the victim, whose identity was not released, at a Horry County home last week, the Myrtle Beach (S.C.) Sun News reported.
Kegler said during the incident last Friday, a number of the alleged attackers pointed guns at the victim and his parents, who attempted to intervene.
The crowd dispersed when the victim's mother took out a shotgun.
Kegler said the incident apparently was the result of a disagreement among members of a local fight club.
Those arrested in the attack were identified as Tyler Bingham, 17; Joshua David Smith, 18; Richard Edwin Carmichael, 17; Chelsie Ann Fortner, 18; Meredith Leigh Fortner, 17; Corey Alan Parag, 17; Peter Emanuel Franco, 17; Travis Heil, 16; Nick Scott Windham, 16; Edward Kyle Fisher, 16, and Jason Alexander, 22.
The Sun News said two 14-year-olds and two 15-year-olds also were arrested, while authorities are still searching for five additional suspects in the case.
Haiti holds day of mourning over quake
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, Feb. 12 (UPI) -- The United Nations said the Haitian government declared an official day of mourning Friday for the one-month anniversary of the Jan. 12 earthquake.
The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in a release the day of mourning will be recognized by Haitian President Rene Preval at a ceremony, which will remain small due to available space constraints in the quake-stricken country. In addition, all Haitians aiding international aid organizations were allowed to skip work Friday as part of the official day of mourning.
UNHAS officials canceled all of the agency's helicopter cargo flights, truck movements and warehouse operations in Haiti for the day.
As of Tuesday, search and rescue teams have managed 211 live rescues from the wreckage of last month's devastating earthquake.
Meanwhile, recent rainfall and concerns about the spread of disease have made shelter and sanitation pressing concerns for national and international humanitarian workers.
