NATION BRIEFS

LOUISIANA/Oil leaking from well after blast

The Coast Guard discovered Saturday that oil is leaking from the damaged well underneath a massive rig that exploded this week off Louisiana's coast, while bad weather halted efforts to clean up the mess that threatens the area's fragile marine ecosystem. For days, the Coast Guard has said no oil appeared to be escaping from the well head on the ocean floor. Rear Adm. Mary Landry said the leak was a new discovery but could have begun when the rig sank on Thursday, two days after the initial explosion. Eleven workers are still missing from the Deepwater Horizon rig that sank Thursday about 50 miles from Louisiana's coast. They are presumed dead, and the search for them was called off Friday. BP PLC, which leased the rig and is taking the lead in the cleanup, and the government have been using the remotely operated vehicles to try to stop the leak by closing valves on the well deep underwater.

CALIFORNIA/7 arrested in DEA marijuana sweep

Authorities arrested seven Sacramento-area residents suspected in two indoor marijuana-growing operations. The Drug Enforcement Administration said agents seized more than 4,300 plants, about $83,000 in cash and one vehicle during a two-day sweep. Authorities began investigating the first operation in the Sacramento suburb of Elk Grove in November. The second investigation began in Sacramento a month later. Six people were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to grow and manufacture at least 1,000 marijuana plants and knowingly maintaining a place for manufacturing marijuana. One man was charged with manufacturing at least 1,000 plants. The DEA says the two growing operations had the capacity to produce nearly 2 tons of marijuana annually.

ALASKA/Dog honored for heroics

Buddy the German shepherd was hailed Friday as a hero for guiding Alaska state troopers through winding back roads to a fire at his owners' workshop. "Buddy is an untrained dog who for some reason recognized the severity of the situation and acted valiantly in getting help for his family," Col. Audie Holloway, head of the troopers, said Friday at a ceremony for the 5-year-old dog, who stood quietly before an adoring crowd. Buddy, whose good deed was caught on a patrol car's dashcam video, received a stainless steel dog bowl engraved with words of appreciation from troopers for his "diligence and assistance." Buddy also received a big rawhide bone, and his human family got a framed letter documenting his efforts. "He's my hero," owner Ben Heinrichs said, his voice breaking. "If it wasn't for him, we would have lost our house."