FAA Bars Small Planes Near Nukes; Airport Security Hit

— -- The Sept. 11 terror attacks had a profound impact on the United States, and the effects are still rippling across American society in large and small ways. Here is a periodic wrap-up of some of them.

FAA Bars Small Planes Near Nuclear Facilities

W A S H I N G T O N, Oct. 30 — The Federal Aviation Administration today barred charter, business and private planes from flying within a 10-mile radius of all nuclear power plants for the next seven days in response to the nation's latest terror alert.

The first-ever prohibition of general aviation flights, which covers altitudes below 18,000 feet, protects the airspace of 86 nuclear sites including power plants and facilities such as the Lawrence Livermore Lab, Sandia, and Los Alamos, officials said.

The FAA said the list was developed in conjunction with the Department of Energy and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

The agency issued another temporary flight restriction banning general aviation flights over downtown Chicago for "national security reasons," but officials said the restriction was unrelated to the terror alert — Chicago officials requested it more than a week ago.

Similar general aviation restrictions remain in effect over Washington, D.C., New York City, and Boston. —— ABCNEWS' Lisa Stark

Federal Transportation Boss Slams Airport Security

W A S H I N G T O N, Oct. 30 — Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta warned today that there are unacceptable lapses in aviation security, even after stepped-up precautions ordered since the Sept. 11 hijacking attacks on America.

Mineta, speaking to state and local transportation officials, said he is determined to correct the problem, and was asking federal agents to crack down on lax airports and airlines.

He warned that airline passengers may have to be screened twice at airports if problems are discovered, and said operations could be closed down where problems persist.

"If secure areas in airports have been compromised, then we will take corrective actions to recheck passengers, including re-screening passengers," Mineta said. "If a secure area is breached, [Federal Aviation Administration] agents will empty the concourse, re-screen passengers, and if necessary hold flights. If improper screening of carry-on luggage is occurring, we will hold flights and re-screen passengers or luggage. And if we see untrained screeners, FAA agents will stop the operation."

Mineta cited a person who slipped a gun past screeners in New Orleans as evidence of the problem.

His remarks came as Congress was preparing to take up debate of President Bush's contentious airline security bill. The president backs federal oversight of airport screening personnel, while moderate Republicans and many Democrats favor putting some 28,000 screeners directly on the federal payroll. The measure also would fund sky marshals.

—ABCNEWS.com

Feds: Man Tried to Steal the ID of a Sept. 11 Victim

W A S H I N G T O N, Oct. 30 — A North Carolina man has been charged with trying to steal the identity of a victim from the World Trade Center attacks, federal prosecutors said today.

Jermaine Lamar McCall, 20, of Laurel Hill, N.C., has been charged with stealing the name, Social Security number and birth date of an unidentified trade center victim in order to obtain a new Citibank credit card, prosecutors said.

A Justice Department official said that Citibank had earlier flagged the names of the World Trade Center deceased, and Secret Service agents arrested McCall last Friday outside the post office, where they had waited for him to go and pick up the card.

A Greensboro, N.C., grand jury indicted him on two counts of making false statements to a bank and identity theft.

McCall faces up to 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine if convicted of making false statements, and up to three years on the identity theft charge.

—ABCNEWS' Beverley Lumpkin

100 Tons of Dog Food Sent to Search-and-Rescuers

N E W Y O R K, Oct. 30 — The donations sent from across America to this stricken city after Sept. 11 weren't just for the people in need: there were dog booties by the thousands, dog food by the ton.

Most of the boots weren't needed by search-and-rescue dogs at the World Trade Center site. And at least 100 tons of surplus dog food remain in storage, ready for giveaway to hard-up pet owners.

But the donated supplies, plus hundreds of thousands of dollars earmarked for pets affected by the terror attacks, demonstrated the powerful affinity many Americans have for animals, even amid a tragedy with a staggering human death toll.

While the dog teams have now dispersed and the relatively few orphaned pets have found homes, the concern for animals persists.

The American Kennel Club's Canine Health Foundation and the Ralston Purina Co. are funding a $100,000, three-year study to assess the physical and psychological problems suffered by search dogs at the attack site.

University of Pennsylvania veterinarian Cynthia Otto, who will lead the study, said the dogs may have been affected by smoke and dust inhalation because they worked without the surgical masks worn by human search crews. She also said some dogs were demoralized by the grim magnitude of the search.

"Normally, these dogs work a little, then rest a little," she said. "Here they were working 12-hour shifts — their training is not geared to this kind of duration and intensity."

Many of the dogs had been trained to find survivors, rather than cadavers, and are accustomed to a playful reward when they succeed.

"There wasn't a lot of playing at the scene," Otto said. "That was hard on them."

When it became clear there would be no more survivors, some handlers tried to cheer up their dogs by staging "rescues" so the animals would get the satisfaction of finding a live person.

Animal lovers across the country — including Scout troops, schoolchildren and purebred clubs — sent money and supplies to support the dogs.

By early October, relief coordinators sent out word that no more dog supplies were needed, and asked that money be sent instead. The ASPCA alone received more than $1 million, and will use much of that money to develop programs for future disasters.

— The Associated Press

Some Concerned Over Red Cross Spending

N E W Y O R K, Oct. 30 — Some people are expressing concern over the American Red Cross' intention to use some donations for victims of the terrorist attacks for other needs.

The latest available figures show that the organization has so far collected $356 million dollars for its Liberty Fund. It spent $121.3 million.

The Red Cross acknowledges that some of the donations since Sept. 11 will be used for other broad-based needs.

A portion of that money will go to activities such as a blood reserve program, a national outreach effort and a telecommunications upgrade.

Red Cross spokesman Mitch Hibbs says they are helping the families, but there also helping everyone else.

Donations to the Red Cross typically go into its Disaster Relief Fund, a general account designed to meet emergencies of all types. But soon after the Sept. 11 attacks, Red Cross President Bernadine Healy created the Liberty Fund as a special account for victims of the attacks.

Disputes between Healy and members of the Red Cross board of directors over creation of the account and the uses of the money were among the issues that led to her resignation on Friday.

—The Associated Press