USA
Mandatory evacuation orders in Key West, Fla., led some 15,000 tourists to flee the area Sunday as states of emergency were declared in Florida and Louisiana, with hurricane Ike lurking in the Caribbean. Forecasters say it could strike sometime this week anywhere between Texas and Florida. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) urged residents along the Gulf Coast to get ready to move north again for the second time in 10 days.
Washington Mutual Inc., the nation's largest savings and loan, Monday replaced Kerry Killinger as chief executive, adding him to the growing list of banking bosses ousted by their boards. The company's shares fell almost 12 percent.
Construction crews putting the final touches to the new I-35W bridge in Minneapolis, which replaces the one that collapsed Aug. 1, 2007, could finish 100 days early. The construction company earns a $200,000 bonus for each day the work is completed ahead of schedule.
Sen. Edward Kennedy (D) of Massachusetts, who has been recuperating from brain surgery, said he will postpone his return to Capitol Hill, originally expected this week as Congress reconvenes, to January. He will, however, work from home.
Serena Williams secured the ninth major tennis title of her career Sunday by defeating Serbia's Jelena Jankovic 6-4, 7-5 in the finals of the US Open in New York. The victory lifted Williams back to the top of the world rankings for the first time in over five years.
After 12 years on Broadway, the rock musical "Rent" closed Sunday in a final performance dedicated to Jonathan Larson, who wrote the show's book, music, and lyrics. He died after its final dress rehearsal in 1996. The show is about artists and street people living in New York's gritty East Village.
"Electronic ink" is used on the the cover of a limited number of copies of Esquire magazine's 75th anniversary issue, which was unveiled Monday. A collage of illuminated images consists of microcapsules of ink that are controlled by an electric charge from a small battery pack.
Astroland, a famous Coney Island amusement park in Brooklyn, N.Y., closed permanently Sunday night when the family that owned it for nearly 50 years gave up on negotiating a new lease with a developer. The Cyclone roller coaster and 150-foot-tall Wonder Wheel Ferris wheel, which enjoy landmark status and are separately owned, will remain open, but not the Tilt-A-Whirl.
