USA

Tropical storm Edouard hit the Texas Gulf Coast east of Galveston on Tuesday with winds of 65 m.p.h. and heavy rain, but it did not arrive as a hurricane, as some forecasters thought it might. The storm was expected to weaken later in the day.

A price of a gallon of regular gasoline fell to $3.871 Tuesday, as oil prices continued their downward trend, sinking as low as $118 for a barrel of crude.

Roughly 1,250 marines serving as trainers in Afghanistan will have their stays extended a month longer, until late November, at the request of commanders, according to a senior military official.

Tornado warning sirens sounded across Chicago Monday night, leading to the cancelation of more than 350 flights at O'Hare International Airport, widespread power outages, and the evacuation of fans from the stands at Wrigley Field. The National Weather Service did not immediately confirm any tornado touchdowns.

Utah has become the first state in the country to adopt a four-day workweek for a majority of state employees. By closing most offices on Fridays and working 10 hours other days, officials expect to save $3 million annually in lighting, heating, and air-conditioning bills.

Embattled Sen. Ted Stevens (R) of Alaska returned home Monday and told his supporters that it's "full speed ahead" with a reelection campaign focused on the Aug. 26 primary. His lawyers, meanwhile, filed paperwork to move his trial on charges that he failed to disclose more than $250,000 in gifts and home renovations from Washington to Alaska, arguing that most of the witnesses live in Alaska.

Field testing of a high-tech device for herding cattle remotely is set to begin later this month at a government range in southern New Mexico.

The state of Alaska sued Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne Monday, seeking to reverse a May 14 decision to place polar bears on the endangered species list and to protect their habitat from development. The state wants offshore oil and gas development to proceed in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas.