HARRISBURG, Ill.

Stronger storms predicted for areas still cleaning up

Crews cleared splintered plywood and smashed appliances from small-town neighborhoods Thursday, a day after tornadoes killed 13 people in the Midwest and South. But the forecast held a menacing possibility: More twisters may be coming, and they could be even stronger.

Damaged communities tried to take advantage of the brief break in the weather, mindful of one meteorologist’s warning that by today, both regions would again be “right in the bull’s-eye.”

Skies were sunny in the southern Illinois community of Harrisburg, where Darrell Osman was back in the rubble of his dead mother’s home, trying to salvage whatever he could. When he arrived, a neighbor handed him his mother’s wallet, which the twister had dropped in a truck near her home. He couldn’t help but think of the pain that would be inflicted if another twister hit Harrisburg. “On a personal level, I think I’ve been hit as hard as I can be hit, but it would be disheartening for this community,” Osman said.

National Weather Service meteorologist Beverly Poole said severe storms were expected to roll through the region early today, possibly bringing hail and rain.

CAIRO

U.S. bail posted, seven Americans, others depart

Seven Americans on trial over charges their pro-democracy groups fomented unrest flew out of Egypt Thursday after the U.S. posted nearly $5 million in bail for them and nine others who managed to leave before a travel ban was imposed.

The departure of the seven eased a deep diplomatic crisis between the U.S. and Egypt that had been building for two months, following a crackdown on pro-democracy and human rights groups by the Egyptian government.

Though the Americans were safely on their way home, Washington indicated that its anger over the affair has not abated. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland pointedly noted that no decision has been made about U.S. aid to Egypt.

As the crisis unfolded over the past two months, furious officials, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, warned the $1.3 billion in military aid and $250 million in economic assistance slated for Egypt this year was in jeopardy.

— From news service reports