Lamar Odom

Lamar Odom regains consciousnessLAS VEGAS — A family representative said Lamar Odom has regained consciousness, was speaking and even offered a thumbs-up from his hospital bed just days after being found in extremely critical condition at a Nevada brothel.Alvina Alston, publicist for JaNean Mercer, Odom’s maternal aunt and godmother, said Odom spoke a greeting and gave a thumbs-up Friday morning, his first communication since being hospitalized in Las Vegas Tuesday.A person who is close to estranged wife Khloe Kardashian, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, also said he was able to say hi to Kardashian.It serves as the first significant update on Odom’s health since he was found unconscious and facedown at the Love Ranch in Crystal, Nev., Tuesday afternoon.Authorities are still retracing Odom’s $75,000, three-day visit to the brothel that started late afternoon Saturday, with blood test results to determine what caused his medical episode still pending.

Mudslides create chaos in CaliforniaLOS ANGELES — A section of Southern California found itself waist-deep in mud as the weekend arrived, and a highway overtaken by flowing debris looked like a buried junkyard of hundreds of cars that would likely take days to dig up.The worst of the thunderstorms had passed, but the continued chance of rain could dampen cleanup and relief efforts in northern Los Angeles County’s Antelope Valley, where the most serious slides occurred.On Friday, rescuers and those stranded in the highway debris flow described a chaotic scene that somehow left no reported injuries or deaths.“It was terrifying,” 51-year-old Rhonda Flores of Bakersfield told The Associated Press. “It was a raging river of mud. I’ve never experienced anything like it, ever.”Rescuers threw ladders and tarps across mud up to 6 feet deep to help the hundreds of trapped people from cars that got caught in the roiling river of mud along State Route 58 about 30 miles east of Bakersfield, a major trucking route, California Highway Patrol officials said.They were rescued in darkness about 10 hours after the storm hit and taken to three shelters.“I’ve never seen anything like this before,” said Sgt. Mario Lopez, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol, was at the scene as people were being rescued.“The whole side of the hill just came down onto State Route 58 ... There’s no highway.”

Hawaii Gov. declares state of emergencyHONOLULU — Hawaii Gov. David Ige has declared a state of emergency to deal with the state’s homelessness crisis just days after city and state officials cleared one of the nation’s largest homeless encampments.The move will help the state speed up the process of building a homeless shelter for families, and the state is considering four possible sites, Ige said at a news conference Friday.“We are making sure that we have options for those who are homeless to move into an emergency shelter, and the biggest deficit in the system is shelter space for families,” Ige said. “So the emergency proclamation would allow us to stand up shelters for families in an expeditious manner.”Hawaii saw a 23 percent increase in its unsheltered homeless population between 2014 and 2015, and a 46 percent increase in the number of unsheltered families, said Scott Morishige, state homelessness coordinator.There were 7,260 homeless people in Hawaii at the latest count, meaning Hawaii has the highest rate of homelessness per-capita of any state in the nation.

FAA warns travelers of lithium batteriesWASHINGTON — The government is strongly urging airlines to tell passengers not to pack spare lithium batteries in checked luggage because they can ignite and fuel fires in baggage compartments.The safety alert issued Tuesday by the Federal Aviation Administration recommends that airlines tell passengers when they are being ticketed and checked in not to put lithium rechargeable and non-rechargeable batteries in their bags, including those checked at gates.The agency is also urging airlines to make sure flight crews and ground personnel report all fires, explosions and incidents of packages charring or melting caused by batteries or battery-powered devices.Passengers can still carry small numbers of spare batteries in luggage they carry on the plane.Lithium batteries are used to power consumer electronics, including cell phones, laptops, power tools and toothbrushes.