Hurricane Zeta speeds toward a storm-weary Louisiana

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Hurricane Zeta sped toward storm-weary Louisiana on Wednesday with New Orleans squarely in its path, threatening to push up to 9 feet of sea water inland and batter homes and businesses with fierce winds in a Gulf Coast region already hit by multiple storms during a historically busy...

The Latest: Zeta just shy of reaching Category 3 status

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The Latest on Hurricane Zeta (all times CDT): 3:15 p.m. NEW ORLEANS — Hurricane Zeta is just short of being considered a major hurricane as it speeds toward storm-weary Louisiana with New Orleans squarely in its path. Forecasters say the storm is expected to make landfall in...

The Latest: Trump admires roaring jet flying by Ariz. rally

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the presidential campaign (all times local): 4:25 p.m. President Donald Trump paused a campaign speech in the battleground state of Arizona to admire what he identified as a fighter jet flying by. Trump said Wednesday as the jet roared by his rally in Bullhead City:...

NASCAR set to resume Texas playoff race 3 days after start

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — The misty conditions moved out and the track was finally drying at Texas Motor Speedway, where NASCAR was set Wednesday to resume its playoff race that started three days earlier. While the race didn't resume at the scheduled time, there was no precipitation in the area and no more...

AP Explains: Power shutoffs to prevent California wildfires

LOS ANGELES (AP) — California's largest utilities have staged power shutoffs this year to prevent their equipment from sparking wildfires during the worst fire season on record. Here's a look at the temporary blackouts: WHAT ARE THE SHUTOFFS? A public safety power shutoff, or PSPS, involves a utility...

Calmer California winds help firefighters beat back 2 blazes

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Calmer weather on Wednesday helped firefighters beat back two wildfires that drove nearly 100,000 Southern Californians from their homes amid fierce winds and extremely dry conditions. Authorities lifted some evacuation orders Tuesday as winds began subsiding and containment was...

Strong typhoon slams Vietnam; at least 2 dead, 26 missing

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Typhoon Molave slammed into Vietnam with destructive force Wednesday, killing at least two people and sinking two fishing boats with 26 crew members in what was feared to be the most powerful storm to hit the country in 20 years. Winds of up to 150 kilometers (93 miles) per hour...

Zeta re-strengthens into a hurricane, forecast to bring life-threatening storm surge, high winds

Utility: Winds too weak to cut power before California fire

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Facing extreme wildfire conditions this week that included hurricane-level winds, the main utility in Northern California cut power to nearly 1 million people while its counterpart in Southern California pulled the plug on just 30 customers to prevent power lines and other electrical...

Gulf Coast braces, again, for hurricane as Zeta takes aim

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Residents of the storm-pummeled Gulf Coast steeled themselves Tuesday for yet another tropical weather strike as Tropical Storm Zeta took aim at southeast Louisiana, fraying the nerves of evacuees from earlier storms and raising concerns in New Orleans about the low-lying city’s...