February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A7 The U.S. Marine Corps jet that sliced through the cables of a ski lift in Italy, killing 20 people, was well below its approved altitude when the accident happened, the …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A7 Sierra Leonians observe the arrival of United Nations special envoy to Sierra Leone, Francis Okello, to the Freetown Central Hospital on Wednesday. Photo by Associated Press

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A8 President Clinton often has used town hall meetings to navigate through difficult moments in his political career, but his top foreign policy advisers learned Wednesday that even a trusted format …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A10 El Nino may be wreaking havoc on U.S. coastal properties and the federal program that insures them, but it shouldn’t be much of a storm for private insurance companies, the …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A10 The biggest plunge in energy prices since the 1991 Persian Gulf War sent wholesale inflation skidding by 0.7 percent in January, and construction of single-family homes shot higher on the …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A10 MPM Technologies, Inc. of Spokane announced Wednesday that it will purchase the assets of a New Jersey air pollution control company for an undisclosed amount of cash. The acquisition will …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A10 Southwest Airlines is adding nonstop Saturday service from Spokane to Las Vegas. Starting April 11, passengers can take the Saturday flights for an introductory one-way fare of $69. To get …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A10 If El Nino-fed storms keep pounding California, farmers won’t be able to plant vegetables on time and bees won’t pollinate fruit and nut blossoms properly. So far, the February storms …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A10 Welcome to the Digital Coast. That’s the nickname the Los Angeles New Media Roundtable has chosen to describe the Los Angeles high-tech industry. The name was formally unveiled Wednesday.

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A10 Federal Express Corp. officials Wednesday told a Federal Aviation Administration hearing that its 727 cargo jets are safe and shouldn’t be held to proposed load restrictions. The FAA has proposed …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A10 U.S. Sen. Patty Murray and a group of federal agency officials met with business and community leaders in Spokane Wednesday in a day-long economic development summit. “In the Puget Sound …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A10 Alaska Airlines will offer nonstop service between Spokane and Los Angeles from June 1 to Sept. 12. Flight 334 will depart Spokane daily, except Sunday, at 6:25 a.m., arriving in …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A10 Hewlett-Packard Co. said it will eliminate 1,000 jobs, or a third of the work force, at its Vancouver, Wash., plant amid a shift in customer taste to lower-priced ink-jet printers. …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A11 The dollar slipped slightly against major currencies Wednesday amid profit-taking ahead of U.S. trade deficit figures, the unveiling of the Japanese fiscal stimulus package and the weekend meeting of the …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A11 The Dow Jones industrial average rose to its sixth straight record Wednesday. The Dow climbed 52.56 to 8,451.06, continuing a trend of small-to-modest gains that’s added just 155 points to …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A13 International Business Machines Corp. is doling out $1.3 billion in bonuses to most of its 270,000 employees, the most in recent history despite an uneven financial performance last year. IBM’s …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A14 For the past 120 years, visitors to the Warrenton (Va.) Cemetery have paid homage to 600 unknown Confederate soldiers buried in a mass grave underneath a simple marble monument. Now, …

February 19, 1998 in Nation/World on Page A14 A military helicopter crashed in central California’s Sequoia National Forest on Wednesday, killing at least four people, authorities said. Sheriff’s Lt. Mike Gutsch said the helicopter, from the China Lake …

February 19, 1998 in City on Page B1 David Laabs displays two vintage Ku Klux Klan brass belt buckles. The Rathdrum, Idaho, native wante to trade them for “a little pistol of some kind.” Photo by Doug Clark/The …

February 19, 1998 in City on Page B1 Numbers game. Christian Doering, left, was one of dozens of taxpayers who capitalized on IRS Problem Solving Day on Wednesday in Spokane. Photo by Jason Clark/The Spokesman-Review

February 19, 1998 in City on Page B1 Dr. Henry Berman, the pediatrician who built Group Health Northwest into the largest health maintenance organization in the Inland Northwest, says he’ll retire as president of the HMO next month. …

February 19, 1998 in Idaho on Page B1 Rep. Jim Clark won the House’s support Wednesday for his plan to force the state to build a large savings account. “It’s good common sense,” said Clark, R-Hayden. Opponents worried …

February 19, 1998 in City on Page B1 Three Spokane police officers received the Medal of Valor Wednesday, one of the highest honors given to an officer for courage in the line of duty. Officer Tracie Meidl and …