Ferry sinks near island; at least 5 people killed

Ferry sinks near island;at least 5 people killed
JAKARTA, Indonesia -- A ship packed with up to 200 passengers heading home for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan sank near Ambon island in central Indonesia, killing at least five people, officials said today.
Ambon police spokesman Lt. Tony Sugadra said that emergency vessels and local fishermen picked up 117 survivors after the ferry went down late Sunday. Most of them were being treated at hospitals in the region.
The fate of the remaining people on board remained unclear.
There were conflicting reports about the number of people on board the ferry, which sank just 15 minutes after leaving the port of Ambon.
Sugadra said police believe there were 200 people aboard, and that overloading may have played a role in the accident. But the skipper and six arrested sailors maintained the 30-ton wooden boat was carrying 125 passengers and crew.
Sugadra suggested many could have swam ashore and gone home without reporting to authorities.
Sugadra said the ship, which was heading for the town of Masohi on Seram island, had 105 paying passengers listed on the manifest.
Description of suspectreleased in DJ's slaying
NEW YORK -- Police on Sunday released the first description of the gunman who killed Run-DMC disk jockey Jam Master Jay as fans and loved ones of the pioneering rapper prepared for his wake today.
Detectives conceded they had few leads and pleaded for the public's help in solving the slaying of the 37-year-old entertainer, who was born Jason Mizell.
"It's pretty much dead in the water," a police source said Sunday night. "We don't have much."
Cops described the suspect as black, 6-feet to 6-feet-2 and 180 to 200 pounds. He was wearing a black sweat suit and a black wool cap, police said.
Detectives said the description came from two women and a man inside Jay's Jamaica, Queens, recording studio when the slaying occurred Wednesday.
But police have not ruled out the possibility that two men were involved in the shooting.
Meanwhile, detectives said they have found no link between Jay's killing and the slaying of rap-music promoter Kenneth Walker, 31, in the South Bronx early Saturday.
Walker -- who promoted Jay's prot & eacute;g & eacute;, the rapper 50 Cent -- was shot numerous times as he sat in his van at Rider Ave. and E. 140th St.
A wake for Jay was set for today in Jamaica. His family will hold a private viewing from 2 to 6 p.m., while the public is invited to pay respects from 7 to 9 p.m.
Study: Spouses canmake back pain worse
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Paying too much attention to a spouse's back pain can make it worse, and leaving the spouse alone can make it better, according to a study presented by German psychologists.
Patients with back problems showed almost three times as much brain activity when their spouses were in the same room, but that activity dropped when the spouses left, according to research presented Sunday at the annual conference of the Society for Neuroscience.
The study was conducted by researchers at the University of Heidelberg. "It's as if the spouse has become a stimulating cue for the pain," said Herta Flor, the psychologist who ran the study.
"A spouse can be overly supportive almost to the point where they're enabling the pain," said Dr. Eugene Melvin, an Orlando pain specialist. "Just a little bit of pain on the patient's part can cause a severe overreaction to the point where they don't let the patient do anything for themselves."
Suspicious bag forcesevacuation of 3 planes
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Parts of Mineta San Jose International Airport and three planes were evacuated because a suspicious bag set off an explosives alarm.
The bag tested positive for explosives residue during a routine test Sunday, but a second screening was negative, and the passenger was allowed to pass through.
A Transportation Security Administration supervisor ordered the evacuation after being told of the screener's decision to let the passenger past security.
The incident delayed at least 56 afternoon and evening flights and affected more than 2,500 passengers. Hundreds of people were rescreened.
At least one flight had departed before the supervisor was told of the security breach, police spokesman Joseph Deras said. Passengers on that plane were rescreened after it landed in San Diego.
Combined dispatches