Nation, world briefs 7-5-2015

Tunisia declares state of emergency

TUNIS, Tunisia -- Tunisia's president declared a state of emergency Saturday in response to a second deadly attack on foreigners in three months, saying the country is "not safe" and risks collapse from further extremist attacks. With a nationwide televised address, President Beji Caid Essebsi officially reintroduced urgent security measures for Tunisia that had been lifted in March 2014. Essebsi said an "exceptional situation required exceptional measures" but pledged to respect freedom of expression. The decision came about a week after a gunman at the popular beach resort of Sousse attacked foreign tourists, killing 38 people. Essebsi said the state of emergency would last 30 days.

Solar plane lands in Hawaii

KAPOLEI, Hawaii -- A plane powered by the sun's rays landed in Hawaii on Friday after a record-breaking five-day journey across the Pacific Ocean from Japan. Pilot Andre Borschberg and his single-seat aircraft landed at Kalaeloa, a small airport outside Honolulu. His nearly 118-hour voyage from Nagoya broke the record for the world's longest nonstop solo flight, his team said. The late U.S. adventurer Steve Fossett set the previous record of 76 hours when he flew a specially-designed jet around the globe in 2006. But Borschberg flew the Solar Impulse 2 without fuel. Instead, its wings were equipped with 17,000 solar cells that powered propellers and charged batteries. The plane ran on stored energy at night. The trans-Pacific leg was the riskiest of the plane's global travels as there was nowhere for it to land in an emergency.

66 riders rescued from Ferris wheel

ORLANDO, Fla. -- A technical crew with The Orlando Eye safely evacuated all 66 stranded riders from the largest Ferris wheel on the East Coast, an incident that shut down the attraction that towers 400 feet over central Florida, authorities said. Orange County Fire Rescue spokeswoman Kathleen Kennedy said no one was hurt, and all were taken off in an operation lasting about three hours with help from several firefighters. She said the attraction had initially stopped for more than 45 minutes. Power was restored with a backup generator and a technical team at the attraction, backed by the firefighters, carried out the task of removing riders from the enclosed capsules after each was brought down to the platform, officials said.

Texas wants gold back in its borders

AUSTIN, Texas -- Forget Fort Knox or the Federal Reserve. Texas has decided to keep its gold holdings within its own borders. But what makes sense politically in such a sovereignty-loving place is creating a logistical conundrum. Texas is the only state that owns an actual stockpile of gold. That's not just gold futures, but about 5,600 gold bars worth about $650 million. It's currently stored at a New York bank. The Legislature's decision to bring its gold cache home was hailed by many conservatives who are suspicious of national government. But the Texas comptroller's office is trying to figure out how to create a depository, for which no funding was appropriated.

-- From wire reports