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Show Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2008 World&Hztion Page 15 There's nothing erotic about corporate fascism" Avoid It! AMERICAN AIRLINES REPRESENTATIVES assist travelers at a gate in Terminal C at DallasFort Worth International Airport, Tuesday. AP photo FAA says communication breakdown delayed flights ATLANTA (AP) - An electronic communication failure Tuesday at a Federal Aviation Administration facility that processes flight plans for the eastern half of the U.S. caused mass delays around the country. The Northeast was hardest hit. But by early evening, the FAA said that the situation around the country was returning to normal, with delays remaining in Atlanta and Chicago. At one point, an FAA Web site that tracks airport status showed delays at some three dozen major airports across the country. The site advised passengers to "check your departure airport to see if your flight may be affected." The FAA said the glitch appeared to have involved a software problem at the Georgia facility. FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen in Atlanta said there were no safety issues and officials were still able to speak to pilots on planes on the ground and in the air. She said she did not know exactly how many flights were affected, but she said it was in the hundreds. The FAA did not expect to have total figures until Wednesday. Bergen said that in a 24-hour period the PAA processes more than 300,000 flight plans in the U.S. Bergen said the problem that occurred Tuesday afternoon involved an FAA facility in Hampton, Ga., south of Atlanta, that processes flight plans. She said there was a failure in a communication link that transmits the data to a similar facility in Salt Lake City. As a result, the Salt Lake City facility was having to process those flight plans, causing delays in planes taking off. She said the delays were primarily affecting departingflights.FAA spokeswoman Diane Spitaliere said there were some problems with arriving flights as well. During an early evening conference call with reporters, Spitalk-iv said Tuesday's glitch appeared to be a software problem and the situation was returning to normal, though the Hampton facility was not yet processing flight plans again. "We have our engineers looking at it and we're doing a complete investigation," she said. The communication failure caused delays for departures and arrivals at BaltimoreWashington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, according to airport spokeswoman Cheryl Stewart. However, she did not have a number on delays. Home of LOTOJA 138 N. 200 E., Logan f u u ui-a-t | anyTunc-i Monday-Saturday 10-7 | with this coupon www.sunrisecyclery.net .£& twmmum Nearly 600 detained in Mississippi plant raid VH i i LAUREL, Miss. (AP)-The largest single-workplace immigration raid in U.S. history has caused panic among Hispanic families in this small southern Mississippi town, where federal agents rounded up nearly 600 plant workers suspected of being in the country illegally. One worker caught in Monday's sweep at the Howard Industries transformer plant said fellow workers applauded as immigrants were taken into custody. Federal officials said a tip from a union member prompted them to start investigating several years ago. Fabiola Pena, 21, cradled her 2-year-old daughter as she described a chaotic scene at the plant as the raid began, followed by clapping. U I was crying the whole time. I didn't know what to do," Pena said. "We didn't know what was happening because everyone started running. Some people thought it was a bomb but then we figured out it was immigration." About 100 of the 595 detained workers were released for humanitarian reasons, many of them mothers who were fitted with electronic monitoring bracelets and allowed to go home to their children, officials said. About 475 other workers were transferred to a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Jena, La. Nine who were under 18 were transferred to the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement. John Foxworth, an attorney representing some of the immigrants, said eight appeared in federal court in Hattiesburg on Tuesday because they face criminal charges for allegedly using false Social Security and residency identification. He said the raid was trau- matic for families. "There was no communication, an immediate loss of any kind of news and a lack of understanding of what's happening to their loved ones," he said. "A complete and utter feeling of helplessness." The superintendent of the county school district said about half of approximately 160 Hispanic students were absent Tuesday. Roberto Velez, pastor at Iglesia Cristiana Peniel, where an estimated 30 to 40 percent of the 200 parishioners were caught up in the raid, said parents were afraid immigration officials would take them. "They didn't send their kids to school today," he said. "How scared is that?" Those detained were from Brazil, El Salvador, Germany, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, and Peru, said Barbara Gonzalez, an ICE spokeswoman. Elizabeth Alegria, 26, a Mexican immigrant, was working at the plant Monday when ICE agents stormed in. When they found out she has two sons, ages 4 and 9, she was fitted with a bracelet and told to appear in federal court next month. Her husband, Andres, was not so lucky. "I'm very traumatized because I don't know if they are going to let my husband go and when I will see him," Elizabeth Alegria said through a translator Tuesday as she returned to the Howard Industries parking lot to retrieve her sport utility vehicle. "We have kids without dads and pregnant mothers who got their husbands taken away," said Velez's son, Robert, youth pastor at the church. "It was like a horror story. They got handled like they were criminals." DALE Raleigh venture 3.0 Reg. $325 NOW $279.99 Huge of Sigg Aluminum Bottles I I S . TRASK Raleigh Mojave 2.0 Reg. $265 NOW $229.99 Huge Selection of Metis & womens Sanuk Shoes Simple M Free Timbuk2 wallet with any Timbuk2 bag purchase $25 value! 129 N. Main Downtown Logan WexttoSENeedhams Store Hours: TUe-Frl9arri-7pm Mon&sat9am-6pm Ihnberiand clothings shoes •equipment |