NATION IN BRIEF : LOUISIANA : Fuel Spilled Into Mississippi River

A freighter collided with a brace of barges on the Mississippi River near the New Orleans French Quarter. The accident tore the ship open and it dumped 60,000 gallons of fuel oil that formed a slick 60 miles downstream. Workers were transferring the ship’s remaining fuel to other tanks and shifting cargo and ballast to keep the damage above the water line. A number of communities including New Orleans draw their drinking water from the river. But the accident happened below the New Orleans intakes and only threatened one intake: for the town of Pointe a La Hache, officials said.