World briefs 2/19/07

8 U.S. troops killed in helicopter crash

SHAHJOI, Afghanistan -- After radioing in an unexplained loss of power and engine failure, a military helicopter crashed early Sunday in southeastern Afghanistan, killing eight U.S. service members. Fourteen survived with injuries. Officials immediately ruled out enemy fire as a cause of the crash, which left charred wreckage of the twin-rotor Chinook scattered on a dusty, open plain in Zabul province, just 50 yards from the main Kabul-Kandahar highway. There were no immediate claims of responsibility for any attack on the chopper, which went down under overcast skies in a region where Taliban militants are active. It was the deadliest single incident this year for the 47,000 U.S.-led coalition and NATO forces in Afghanistan. The helicopter was carrying 22 U.S. service members when it had a "sudden, unexplained loss of power and control and crashed," U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. David Accetta said, adding the cause would be investigated.

4-legged duck puts best foot forward in Britain

This round, the game might sound a little more like: "Du-duck, du-duck, goose." A rare mutation has left Stumpy, an eight-day-old duckling, with two nearly full-sized legs behind the two he runs on. Nicky Janaway, a duck farmer in New Forest, Hampshire, 95 miles southwest of London, showed the duckling to reporters Saturday. Stumpy would probably not survive in the wild, but Janaway, who runs the Warrawee Duck Farm in New Forest, says he is doing well.

-- From wire reports