Funeral takes place for woman believed to be oldest US vet

Funeral takes place for woman believed to be oldest US vet

DETROIT

Funeral services took place in Detroit for a woman who was believed to be the oldest U.S. veteran at the time of her death.

Relatives and acquaintances of Emma Didlake gathered Saturday at Second Baptist Church. Didlake, of West Bloomfield, died last Sunday at age 110.

She was a 38-year-old wife and mother of five when she signed up in 1943 for the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps. Didlake served about seven months stateside during World War II as a private and driver.

Didlake met last month with President Barack Obama in the Oval Office.

Military jet crashes at air show, killing 7

LONDON

A military jet taking part in a British air show crashed into a busy main road Saturday, killing seven people and injuring more than a dozen others, police said.

The Hawker Hunter fighter jet, which was participating in the Shoreham Airshow near Brighton in southern England, hit several vehicles on a nearby road as it crashed Saturday afternoon. Witnesses told local TV that the jet appeared to have crashed when it failed to pull out of a loop maneuver.

West Sussex Police said seven people died at the scene, and one patient with life-threatening injuries was taken to the hospital. An additional 14 people were treated for minor injuries.

National Zoo says panda gave birth

WASHINGTON

Washington’s National Zoo says its female giant panda has given birth to a cub.

Zoo spokeswoman Pamela Baker-Masson said in an email that Mei Xiang gave birth to the cub Saturday at 5:35 p.m. If the cub survives, it would be the 17-year-old panda’s third surviving offspring.

Pope joins faithful in basilica pews

VATICAN CITY

Pope Francis, who encourages prelates to get closer to rank-and-file Catholics, has practiced what he preaches, taking a place early among surprised faithful in a front-row pew in St. Peter’s Basilica for Mass.

The pope’s presence at an early Mass a day earlier was completely impromptu, a Vatican spokesman said Saturday.

Biden, Warren meet

WASHINGTON

Vice President Joe Biden left the seclusion of the Delaware home where he’s been weighing a presidential run to meet Saturday with Elizabeth Warren – another influential Democrat who has faced calls to enter the 2016 race.

The unusual weekend huddle with Warren, a Massachusetts senator, took place at the Naval Observatory, the vice president’s official residence, said an individual familiar with the meeting.

EPA knew of risk of waste ‘blowout’

WASHINGTON

U.S. officials knew of the potential for a catastrophic “blowout” of poisonous wastewater from an inactive gold mine, yet appeared to have only a cursory plan to deal with such an event when a government cleanup team triggered a 3-million-gallon spill, according to internal documents released by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The EPA released the documents late Friday after weeks of prodding from The Associated Press and other media organizations. While shedding some light on the circumstances surrounding the accident, the newly disclosed information also raises more questions about whether enough was done to prevent it.

Associated Press