In brief: Three children die in mobile home fire

HOUMA, La. – A mobile home fire in Louisiana killed three children and injured seven others early on Christmas Day, fire officials said.

Two brothers, ages 12 and 11, and their 13-year-old sister died at the Whispering Oaks Trailer Park in Houma, said District Chief Lance LaMarca of the state fire marshal’s office.

Another sibling, the children’s parents and four other children were taken to a Baton Rouge burn unit, LaMarca said.

All the survivors are expected to recover.

The mother and another child escaped through a window, while relatives sleeping in a bedroom at the opposite end of the home got out through a back door.

LaMarca said the deceased children and their parents were visiting from Alabama for Christmas, and there were 12 people in the trailer.

Strip club shooting leaves three dead

IRVINGTON, N.J. – Three men were fatally shot during a Christmas morning fight at a New Jersey strip club that began when a man apparently tried to enter the bar with a gun but was stopped by a bouncer, authorities said.

Two other men were wounded in the shooting at about 12:45 a.m. Wednesday at Slick’s Go Go Bar in Irvington, about 15 miles west of New York City.

Prosecutors said the dead men included the club owner’s son, Pierre Clervoyant, 34, of Elizabeth, and a club employee, Woodley Daniel, 32, of Irvington. The other man killed was not immediately identified, but police said he appears to have been an unintended target.

The gunman remained at large.

Girl who got caroling wish has died

WEST READING, Pa. – A terminally ill girl who received support from thousands of Christmas carolers outside her home over the weekend died early on Christmas morning, her family said.

Delaney Brown, 8, of West Reading “passed away quietly with her loving family by her side,” family spokesman Christopher Winters said Wednesday.

She was diagnosed in May with a rare form of leukemia.

On Saturday night, thousands gathered outside her home in eastern Pennsylvania to fulfill her wish for a huge holiday singalong and ended with a chorus of “Happy Birthday” to the girl, who turned 8 on Friday, the Reading Eagle reported.

Shortly after the caroling began, the family’s Facebook page showed a picture of Delaney giving two thumbs up with the text, “I can hear you now!!! Love you!”

Speeding drivers issued lottery tickets

MELBOURNE, Fla. – Police in a central Florida city have been issuing scratch-off lottery tickets instead of speeding fines to Christmas Day travelers.

By early Wednesday afternoon, Melbourne police officers had handed out 30 lottery tickets along with warnings to drivers caught speeding or violating other traffic laws.

Sgt. Jamie Rocque was quoted by Florida Today as saying that officers bought the lottery tickets with their own money to spread a bit of holiday cheer while ensuring public safety.

U.S. Capitol dome renovation begins

WASHINGTON – A world-famous symbol of democracy is going under cover, as workers start a two-year, $60 million renovation of the U.S. Capitol dome.

Curved rows of scaffolds will encircle the dome like Saturn’s rings starting this spring. They will allow contractors to strip paint and repair more than 1,000 cracks and broken cast-iron pieces.

The dome will remain illuminated at night and partly visible through the scaffolding.

Cracks in the 150-year-old dome have allowed water to penetrate for years. The last major renovation was in 1960.