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NewsSeptember 22, 2004

Notre Dame freshman named Discovery finalist Notre Dame Regional High School freshman David Westrich has been chosen as a finalist in the Discovery Channel Young Scientist Challenge. Westrich was among 400 semifinalists chosen from nearly 1,800 entries by fifth- through eighth-graders from around the country. ...

Notre Dame freshman named Discovery finalist

Notre Dame Regional High School freshman David Westrich has been chosen as a finalist in the Discovery Channel Young Scientist Challenge. Westrich was among 400 semifinalists chosen from nearly 1,800 entries by fifth- through eighth-graders from around the country. On Monday, the pool of semifinalists was narrowed to 40 students, Westrich included. He will travel to Washington, D.C., in October for a final competition of physics challenges. Westrich completed a project titled "Lead Levels in Invertebrates Near Herculaneum, Missouri" as an eighth-grader last year at St. Vincent de Paul Parish School. The project tested Westrich's hypothesis that lead levels in earthworms and wood increased as they were collected closer to a lead smelter. Winners in the final competition receive college scholarships.

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Boat on Mississippi catches fire; no injuries

Two Cape Girardeau men escaped injury Tuesday when the boat they were operating in the Mississippi River caught fire. The two were in an 18-foot ski boat about three miles north of the boat landing at Red Star, said Capt. Ed Serandos of the Cape Girardeau Fire Department. The department sent a rescue boat about 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, but some men in a boat nearby rescued the occupants. The owner of the boat is Dwight Gates of Cape Girardeau. Gates' son, Ben, was operating the boat. His companion was not identified. Serandos said that Gates told him he was switching gas tanks on the vessel when the electrical connection between the two tanks shorted and blew up. The two dived off the boat, which was destroyed. Serandos said that the boat was not insured. Neither Ben Gates nor his friend would comment about the incident. They left immediately after being brought back to Red Star.

-- From staff reports

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