NATION NEWS BRIEFS

NEVADA / Bomb threat at casino

A man claiming to have a bomb around his chest prompted an evacuation of a Las Vegas casino for several hours. The Las Vegas Review-Journal and Las Vegas Sun report that the threat Saturday turned out to be a hoax and the man was arrested after the incident at Arizona Charlie's Hotel and Casino. Police say the man apparently wanted to commit "suicide by cop." His name wasn't immediately released. Police say the man walked up to the security desk inside the casino and showed a security guard what he said was an explosive device. Guards persuaded him to go outside and evacuated the resort.

ARIZONA / Tanker crash kills 2 babies

Two babies have been killed in a three-vehicle collision involving a gas tanker in Phoenix. An Arizona Department of Public Safety spokesman says a car slowed on Interstate 10 on Saturday afternoon to look at a minor collision and cut off a minivan, which braked to avoid a crash. A small sedan then hit the minivan and a gas tanker hit the two vehicles and overturned on its side. A 13-month-old girl, a 3-week-old boy and a woman believed to be their mother were critically injured in the sedan and taken to hospitals; the babies died around 3:45 p.m. A woman in the minivan suffered nonfatal injuries, and the tanker driver was not hurt. The male driver of the white or gray Dodge Magnum is being sought by Arizona authorities.

ALASKA / Palin neighbor moves out

Sarah Palin can take down the fence. Palin's neighbor of three months on Wasilla's Lake Lucille, author Joe McGinniss, is packing his bags and notebooks. He's leaving Sunday for his home in Massachusetts to write the book he has been researching on the former governor and GOP vice presidential candidate. His arrival in May made headlines and drew an indignant reaction from Palin and a visit from her husband, Todd. The Palins even tacked an extension onto an 8-foot board fence between the homes.