European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 31, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 6 the stars and stripes thursday october 31,1991 Baleful halloween in a season dominated by ghosts and goblins these1 Ere Liberty City Ala. Passers by made Hay of the grinning actions of the Adams family stole the show tuesday in Bales among Many decorating the family a Field. Sparks from Barbecue pit suspected in Oakland Blaze Oakland Calif. Apr investigators said Sparks from a crude Barbecue pit May have ignited the grass fire that rekindled into the deadly Oakland Blaze. State fire marshal James f. Mcmullen said tuesday that the pit was found at a construction site where investigators believe the Blaze broke out. He described it As a a Hole in the ground something someone dug to Cook in not a portable  investigators said previously that the fire that killed 25 people and destroyed More than 3,000 Homes oct. 20 May have been set. They said it began As a grass fire that was quickly extinguished but flared up a Day later. Lightning or other acts of nature have been ruled out said Mcmullen head of the governors special arson task Force. Investigators looked into reports that construction workers May have started the fire by burning Brush illegally Mcmullen said. Two construction workers passed lie Detector tests and also have been ruled out. A they said they were not cooking on the Barbecue a Mcmullen said. A a we re still interviewing the owner of the property in connection with the  damage from the fire has been estimated at $1.5 billion to $2 billion. Nearly 150 people were injured and three remain missing. While investigators were trying to determine the cause of the Blaze Oakland police were dealing with the onslaught of sightseers that flocked to the area to see the destruction. A anyone who is not a resident of the area or an agent for a resident should stay out of the fire area a Oakland police chief George Hart said. A we Are having a tremendous amount of trouble with sightseers. We even had several incidents this past weekend involving tour buses. Its really insensitive. A Hart said 22 arrests had been made in the fire area but Only one was for looting. In Sacramento state sen. Nicholas Petris a Oak land introduced several Bills tuesday to Aid fire victims. One of the measures would Levy a $25,000 penalty More than 7 35 fires damage w. Virginia Charleston . A fires blamed on arsonists and soldering Coal mines have damaged More than 70,000 acres in Southern West Virginia. More than 135 fires have been spotted since the weekend in 31 counties. Some of the blazes Are a week old said Alan Miller head of fire control for the state division of forestry. A we done to have enough personnel to adequately get to the fires Ana contain them a Miller said. A fall of them Are trying to do their jobs. But when you have 25 to 30 fires a Day its hard to get enough manpower to get to  Quot on tuesday gov. Gaston Caperton banned All outdoor burning. Authorities Nave estimated damage at More than $20 million. Fires in abandoned mines that begin when piles of Coal refuse spontaneously combust have flickered through openings in the ground and spread said Bob Brunner a spokesman for Caperton. At least one person was arrested on arson charges. Keith Perkins 22, of Princeton set fires so he could help put them out hoping to impress other firefighters and land a firefighting Job an official said. On any apartment owner found guilty of unfairly raising rents on vacant units in the Oakland Hills area. A a in a shocked by reports in a hearing on Price gouging a said Petris who lost his Home in the Blaze. �?o1 think this behaviour is criminal and should be treated As  Epa plans incentives to Cut acid rain Washington up a the environmental Protection Agency is planning a Market run incentive system to greatly reduce Fulfur dioxide emissions from the nations utilities by the year 2000 in an Effort to help reduce acid rain. The Epa said tuesday that it hoped to Cut the emission of Fulfur dioxide a major contributor to acid rain by 10 million tons by the end of the decade. That would place it at nearly half of 1980�?Ts level. The basis of the new plan is a system of a a allowances that can be sold or traded by utilities that Cut emissions easily to those that have a More difficult and costly procedure. The plan which the Epa said was adopted As part of the clean air act last year applies mostly to utilities that account for 70 percent of the Fulfur dioxide emissions. The Epa plans to put a permanent Cap of 9 million tons on annual emissions. The plan would generally work this Way a Utility would receive an a allowance a each equal to 1 ton of annual emission. How much each Utility would receive would depend on a formula that takes past usage into account. Once the allowances Are allocated they could be sold based on the Market Price. This would allow a Utility that cuts its Fulfur dioxide emissions below the level required by Law to sell leftover allowances to another company that could not immediately meet the requirements. The plan is designed to Reward utilities that Cut emissions deeply to be Able to profit. Those exceeding their allowance face a $2,000 Fine for every ton Over the limit the Epa said. The plan however will not go into effect until 1995 when the 110 biggest Power plants most Coal burning utilities in 21 Eastern and midwestern states will be covered. At the end of the Century these plants will be required to make further reductions and another 700 smaller plants will also be  Beach s mayor indicted for racketeering from wire reports Miami a Miami Beach mayor Alex Daoud was indicted tuesday on Federal charges of racketeering extortion and Money laundering. Daoud faces a 41-count Federal grand jury indictment charging that he a conducted the affairs of the City government of Miami Beach through a pattern of racketeering  Daoud could not be reached tuesday for comment. Portions of the indictment charge that Daoud unlawfully obtained personal benefits including Money property and services from contractors developers unions and other people and organizations by improperly using his Post As mayor. If convicted on All counts Daoud 48, could be sentenced to up to 528 years in prison and fined up to $12.5 million. Daoud announced last november that he would not seek re election after a record three terms As mayor and almost 12 years on the City commission of this resort of 93,000 people. He said he wanted to spend More time with his family teen guilty in Ltd Case Pontiac Mich. A a jury convicted a former High school student tuesday of spiking her English teachers Coffee with Ltd. Linda Marie Conflitti 18, of Troy could be sentenced to five years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for dec. 6. The Oakland county circuit jury reached its verdict during the second Day of deliberations. Conflitti a first trial in May ended when the jury could not reach agreement. She was accused of dropping the hallucinogenic drug into the Coffee cup of Troy Athens High school teacher Robert Heffeman during class dec. 7.rescuers called heroes Elizabeth City . Nine people rescued tuesday after abandoning a Hurricane tossed yacht in the Atlantic credited their survival to coast guard heroics. All nine were reeled to safety after jumping from the vessel Anna Christina and into the Stormy Atlantic. Two coast guard helicopters mane Vered around the schooners 85-foot masts in 70 Mph winds Early tuesday. A they risked their lives for us a said Peter Abelman of new York City. The yacht was in route from Bermuda to new York when it ran into High wind and 25-foot Waves generated by Hurricane Grace about 300 Miles off the Virginia coast monday. The storm knocked out the 95-foot yachts pumps. The nine were taken to the aircraft Carrier America for medical attention before being flown to a coast guard station in Elizabeth City . None was  of wife nets prison fort Lauderdale Fla. A Man has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for raping his wife. Broward circuit judge Dale Ross on monday sentenced Gregory Duane Carroll 32, of Davie for three counts of sexual Battery and one count of Battery. Although they were living together they were seeking a divorce prosecutors  hikers found Sonora Calif. A rescuers found three More hikers tuesday who had been missing in the snowy Sierra Nevada. A search continued for a father and son lost while Hunting. In All 12 hikers were rescued monday and tuesday in the stanislaus National Forest about 150 Miles East of san Francisco. Four had spent two Days hiking through the Snow Tuolumne county assistant sheriff Mike Costa said. The three found tuesday including a 9-year-old boy All suffered frostbite Costa said. Two to 3 feet of Snow fell Over the sierras during the weekend As bitter cold blasted eastward. Rescuers searched the Banks of Niagara Creek for a 51-year-old Man and his 21-year-old son who were reported missing monday