NPR 2010-07-26

BP's chief executive may be out of a job soon. Several reports today say Tony Hayward will be replaced this week because of his handling of the BP oil spill in the Gulf 1 of Mexico. An official announcement is possible as soon as tomorrow. This comes as operations to permanently 2 plug the well start up again in the Gulf now that a tropical storm system is no longer a threat. Retired 3 Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen wouldn't confirm talk about Hayward replacement 4, but did say such a move would not change his priorities.

"My job as a National Incident Commander is to focus on unity 5 of effort and making sure that BP, as the responsible party, uses the guidance it's been provided. And I'll continue to do that regardless of who is in charge and who I work with."

Allen says an effort to permanently plug the leak could start within the next several days.

The Taliban is reportedly offering to exchange the body of a US Navy sailor for insurgent 6 prisoners. Two American Navy personnel went missing Friday in the eastern Afghanistan province of Logar. A Taliban spokesman says the other man is being held. Chairman of the US Joint 7 Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen says a massive search is under way for the men.

"This is an unusual circumstance, and we will do all we can, everything we can. We've got a large number of forces focused on the return of these two individuals."

The BBC's Jon Leyne in Kabul has more on the ongoing 8 search effort.

Two operations are now going on to try to recover the missing men. The first operation is to script negotiating process through tribal 9 elders who say they know where they are. But at the same time, there's a massive sweep off the area by US forces and Afghan police calling people out from house to house with a loudhailer to try to find any information.

The BBC's Jon Leyne reporting from Kabul.

Heavy rains collecting into eastern Iowa's Maquoketa River yesterday broke through an earthen dam, sending a wall of water, sweeping 10 downstream. Iowa Public Radio's Dean Borg says floodwater is eating away and approaches to the dam gave several hours' warning.

It was a spectacular site, more than 100 people watching swelling 11 waters, cascading 12 through a dam road way approach, sweeping utility pools, boats and docks from Lake Delhi, and even igniting a bobbing propane tank, sending flames into the sky. But Delaware County emergency official Jack 13 Klaus says the floodwater spreading over downstream farm fields is generally sparing populated areas from feared flooding.

"Lake Delhi has between 1,100 and 1,200 residential 14 properties. The estimates are at least 50% of them have water in the first floor."

The 81-year-old dam, first built to generate electricity, is owned by Lake Delhi recreation cabin owners. They say it'll be rebuilt. For NPR News, I'm Dean Borg in Iowa City, Iowa.

Residents in Illinois are also surveying damage from weekend storms.

This is NPR News.

Venezuela's president is threatening to cut oil supplies to the US. Hugo Chavez says that'll happen if there's a military attack from Colombia as tensions rise over charges that Venezuela's harboring Colombian rebels. Chavez broke off diplomatic relations with Colombia last week over the claims of the outgoing president there, a close ally of the US.

The death toll 15 from a stampede at an outdoor music festival in the western German city of Duisburg rose to 19 today, with several hundred others injured. As NPR's Eric Westervelt reports, one of the organizers of the festival known as the Love Parade says the event will never be held again.

The stampede at the music festival has angered and shocked many Germans. Some are asking why hundreds of thousands of partygoers were funneled 16 through one tunnel underpass to the festival grounds. Overcrowding there sparked the stampede that killed 19 people. The head of one of Germany's main police unions told the newspaper Bild that the union warned more than a year ago that the city of Duisburg was an unacceptable site for the Love Parade, which attracts enormous crowds. For a long time, it was held in Berlin. But in recent years, it's moved to various cities in the western region of Germany. Today, Rainer Schaller, a main organizer of the festival, told a news conference it's over for the Love Parade. The festival was always happy and peaceful, he said, but would now forever be overshadowed by this year's deadly stampede. Eric Westervelt, NPR News, Berlin.

Alberto Contador is cycling's new superstar. The 27-year-old Spaniard won his third Tour de France today in four years. He was able to hold off his challenger, Andy Schleck. He was 39 seconds behind