In the World

LAC-MEGANTIC, Quebec - Authorities said Tuesday they have opened a criminal investigation into the fiery wreck of a runaway oil train as the death toll climbed to 15, with dozens more bodies feared buried in the blackened, burned-out ruins of this small town.

Quebec Police Inspector Michel Forget said that investigators have "discovered elements" that have led to a criminal probe. He gave no details but ruled out terrorism.

Tangled debris and gas leaks hampered rescue workers' search for bodies three days after the crash early Saturday that incinerated much of Lac-Megantic's downtown and raised questions about the safety of transporting oil by rail instead of pipeline.

Investigators zeroed in on whether a blaze on the train a few hours before the disaster set off the deadly chain of events. The death toll rose with the discovery of two more bodies Tuesday. About three dozen more people were missing.

- AP

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Tropical Storm Chantal threatened to turn into a hurricane while it churned toward the Dominican Republic and Haiti as authorities there and in Puerto Rico warned of possible landslides and heavy flooding.

The storm was located about 270 miles southeast of Puerto Rico around 5 p.m. EDT Tuesday, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 65 m.p.h., and was moving west-northwest at 26 m.p.h.

The center issued a hurricane watch for the Dominican Republic's southern coast, with the storm expected to be near or over the country by Wednesday afternoon. Chantal is then expected to be over the southeastern and central Bahamas on Thursday.

- AP

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras - There is "strong evidence" a charred and mutilated body found Tuesday in the northern city of San Pedro Sula is that of a Honduran journalist missing since last month, police said.

National Police Chief Juan Carlos Bonilla said investigators found a bank book and a credit card with Anibal Barrow's name and clothing and a belt that resemble what he was wearing on June 24, when armed men kidnapped him while he was driving in his truck. The items were buried on the riverbank of the Siboney lagoon, near where the body was found, about 12 miles south of San Pedro Sula.

Bonilla said DNA tests are being done to identify the body and that four people have been detained in the case. The 62-year-old journalist had a popular daily morning news show called Anibal and Nothing More on Globo television in San Pedro Sula.

- AP