Nation in brief

Gusts revive wildfire in S. California

SANTA CLARITA, Calif. - Strong, shifting winds Sunday surprised firefighters battling a wildfire in Southern California, forcing officials to reinstate evacuation orders they had lifted a few hours earlier.

About 150 homes in the Placerita Canyon area of northern Los Angeles County were evacuated after an unexpected wind shift brought a 3,250-acre fire closer to the area.

The fire near Santa Clarita was about 35 percent contained Sunday afternoon.

More than 1,000 firefighters were battling the wildfire, which started Saturday. Its cause is under investigation.

About 40,000 acres have burned in California in the last week, from eastern San Diego County to Yosemite National Park.

Elsewhere, fire crews in western Nevada started heading home Sunday after mostly containing an erratic fire that had destroyed at least 15 homes and briefly threatened the governor's mansion in Carson City. The wind-driven fire, which blackened nearly 7,600 acres along a four-mile stretch of the Sierra foothills, was 85 percent contained late Saturday and fire officials said it could be fully contained by Tuesday.

LOS ALAMOS, N.M. - The head of the National Nuclear Security Administration visited Los Alamos National Laboratory Sunday to oversee the investigation into security lapses at the lab.

Linton Brooks is one of the federal officials inquiring into the disappearance of two electronic data storage devices that were reported missing at the lab earlier this month.

Brooks planned no public comment Sunday on the missing devices or the investigation, lab spokesman Jim Fallin said.

"He's here to conduct a very serious first look at the locations involved in this most recent security incident," Fallin said.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Fifty gay and lesbian couples celebrated the U.S. Senate's defeat of the Federal Marriage Amendment by exchanging vows Sunday in the heart of the conservative Christian movement and the shadow of Pikes Peak.

"This is a civil rights issue, not a religious issue," Frank Volz said after saying his vows with partner Brian Lund. "Our marriage isn't going to hurt anyone."

The wedding vows carried no legal weight, since Colorado does not recognize same-sex unions or marriages. Each couple was given a certificate saying the Pikes Peak Metropolitan Community Church recognized their union and love.

Laurie Boschert was among a few same-sex marriage opponents watching Sunday's ceremonies. She stood silently, holding a sign that called on couples to repent and comparing the scene to Sodom and Gomorrah.

SEATTLE - States can take the initiative in transforming the elderly experience by reshaping health care, social services and tax codes to help the rapidly growing population of those 65 and older, governors agreed Sunday at the summer meeting of the National Governors Association.

Outside the downtown hotel, hundreds of disabled protesters in wheelchairs shut down traffic, seeking support from the governors to force Medicaid to more quickly turn to home-based long-term care, rather than relying on institutions.

The three-day gathering, which ends today, brought no sweeping commitments or new programs, but rather a close look at the areas where state government could step in to support the elderly.

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