Hermine spins away from East Coast

Hermine spins away from East Coast

NORFOLK, Va.

Hermine spun away from the East Coast on Sunday, removing the threat of heavy rain but maintaining enough power to whip up dangerous waves and rip currents and keep beaches off-limits to disappointed swimmers and surfers during the Labor Day weekend.

As it churned hundreds of miles off shore in the Atlantic Ocean, the system picked up strength, and forecasters said it could regain hurricane force later as it travels up the coast. It was expected to stall over the water before weakening again to a tropical storm by Tuesday.

“It’s just going to meander for a few days,” said Dennis Feltgen of the National Hurricane Center, explaining that Hermine was unlikely to make landfall again but was positioned to batter the coast with wind and waves.

Nationalists overtake Merkel’s party in state vote

BERLIN

A nationalist, anti-immigration party performed strongly in a state election Sunday in the region where German Chancellor Angela Merkel has her political base, overtaking her conservatives to take second place amid discontent with her migrant policies.

The 3-year-old Alternative for Germany, or AfD, won 20.8 percent of votes in the election for the state legislature in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Merkel’s Christian Democrats polled 19 percent, their worst result yet in the state.

The center-left Social Democrats, who led the outgoing state government in a coalition with the conservatives, remained the strongest party with 30.6 percent support.

Jail reviews security after officers shot

FRESNO, Calif.

A central California jail was examining security measures after an ex-convict shot and wounded two unarmed officers in the lobby, but officials said Sunday that they did not plan any immediate changes.

After reviewing Saturday’s shooting that left correctional Officers Juanita Davila and Toamalama Scanlan in critical condition, authorities will decide whether to alter procedures in the public area of the Fresno County jail, sheriff’s spokesman Tony Botti said.

Unarmed officers guard the facility, and visitors go through metal detectors leading to secure areas, Botti said.

Threats against Jewish, Muslim students probed

DUNCAN, S.C.

Authorities say they are investigating online threats to kill Jewish and Muslim students at a South Carolina high school.

Spartanburg School District 5 said in a news release that a Byrnes High School student reported the threats Friday evening. The threats said Byrnes High would be attacked Tuesday and included pictures of a person in a gas mask and a knife with a swastika on the handle.

Superintendent Scott Turner says Spartanburg County deputies are patrolling the school this holiday weekend, and there will be security sweeps and extra officers on hand when school returns Tuesday.

The sheriff’s office says it is investigating the threats, but no arrests have been made.

Byrnes High has about 2,300 students and is one of the largest high schools in South Carolina.

Associated Press