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Page 4 THE BATTALION
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 4, 1978
More than 260 horneless
Landslide cause unknown
United Press International
LAGUNA BEACH, Calif. — A
pretty hillside full of expensive
homes is self destructing, doing $3 to
$4 million in damage and leaving
hundreds homeless. So far, nobody
can say why.
More than 260 people spent the
night out of their ruined or
threatened homes while police,
firemen and others kept watch on the
five-acre tract that began coming
apart Monday morning.
At least 24 homes — valued from
$100,000 to $200,000 — were top
pled and engulfed by the mysterious
landslides. Some 14 others were
damaged, at least six beyond repair
because of foundations splitting.
“The ground is still moving and
settling,” said Police Chief Jon
Sparks. “The next 24 hours will be
critical in terms of more slippage. ”
Engineers and geologists were try
ing to determine what happened,
but City manager Fred Soloman said
the cause was a mystery. The Cal
tech seismological laboratory in
Pasadena, 60 miles to the north, said
there had been no earthquakes in the
area for at least 10 days. There has
been no rain for weeks and no heavy
rain since last Spring.
One women reportedly injured
her shoulder when she fell fleeing
the landslide in exclusive Bluebird
Canyon in the hills half a mile inland
from the Pacific.
Most residents were asleep just
before dawn when they were
awakened by the popping and crack
ing of timbers and foundations in
their homes. Windows suddenly
shattered. Streets bulged. Yards
dropped out of sight.
Houses swayed and sank down
hillsides that had not been there
minutes before.
Electric lines snapped apart with
reports like rifle fire. Gas hissed from
broken mains. Police said it was very
lucky there was no fire.
“I stopped my car on a small hump
and all of a sudden the front end
dropped four feet,” said Police Offi
cer Greg Bartz, one of the first to
reach the scene.
“It was really eerie. You could
hear houses crashing, water run
ning, gas hissing and my heart beat
ing very fast.”
Police and residents ran through
the area shouting^ for people still
able to get up and run.
“I heard this voice calling ‘Mrs.
Pitts, Mrs. Pitts, come out as you
are, your house is leaving,” said
Adell Pitts.
“I walked out and didn’t look
back,” she said. Seconds later, half
the home she had lived in for 11
years plunged into a yawning abyss.
Bartz said one resident “wanted to
stay — I guess he wanted to ride his
house down the hill, but he finally
saw the light.”
Bartz’s patrol car was left stranded
when the street collapsed around it.
Hearing gas hissing from a broken
pipeline beneath him, he said “I
turned off the engine, turned off the
lights and bailed Out.”
Laguna Beach, famous for its
summer Arts Festival, is one of the
most beautiful spots on the southern
California coast - its hills rising from
the sea often compared to the
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The earth shifted as much as 40
feet vertically and 30 to 40 feet lat
erally. One fissure was 50 feet long
and another crack was 30 feet long
and 30 feet deep.
“The earth gave way and then
started piling up on them. We saw
four homes that were completely
covered with dirt.”
“We woke up to a loud thud,” said
Anne Stewart. “There was crackling
on the roof like it was raining. We
went over to our window and we
could see our trash cans rattling to
gether.
“About that time a police
loudspeaker told us to walk in their
direction. My son and I walked to
ward the police car but the lights
were blinding and we fell into this
big crack. The road had just opened
Some people fled with only their
night clothes.
Others joked. “Real estate has
dropped in our neighborhood,”
cracked Jane Golden, refering to the
skyrocketing price of houses in
Southern California. “Prices seem to
be sliding.”
“We’ve got to laugh,” said her
neighbor, Raffaela Yates, “because
there’s not a damn thing we can do.
Rhodes Scholar applications
must be returned by Oct. 17
* ' i;r r. t
By LIZ BAILEY
Battalion Reporter
Rhodes scholars applications from Texas A&M University students
who will graduate before October 1979 have until Oct. 17 to apply for
Rhodes scholarships from Oxford University in England.
“They are probably the most competitive scholarships in the world,
says Dr. Paul Van Riper, chairman of the committee which selects
Rhodes scholars from Texas A&M and also a professor of political
science at Texas A&M.
Students as well as those who have been residents of Texas for the
past two years may apply to the committee for the scholarships, he
said.
The Texas A&M committee also includes Dr. R.. Ballinger (profes
sor emeritus of English) and Dr. John F. Reading, associate professor
of physics.
Both men have traveled and lectured in England. Reading was
chosen because he was formerly a student at Oxford, Van Riper said.
The Rhodes Scholarships were begun in the early 1900s as directed
,jn the will of Cedil Rhodes, a British colonial pioneer, statesman and
Oxford graduate.
Rhodes’s will specified that selection of recipients should be based
on quality of intellect, character and accomplishments. Applicants
must be single, male, and at least 18 years old, but not yet 23.
|UC has
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Magazine suggests ways the government
helps consumer our of car repair ‘jungle’
In 1976, legal changes in the United Kingdom opened the compet»rimary
tion to women. Since then, approximately half of those selected ha fljnergy
been women, said Van Riper.
Van Riper said the committee will send one or two of the outstani
applications to a state selective committee. That group reviews
applications and interviews some of the applicants.
It then sends some of its names to the regional committee, where
elimination process is repeated. Eventually, all but four of the
dates from each region are eliminated.
At Oxford, the 32 American scholars study with Rhodes schotuBanhandl
from 16 other countries. ■hlly.
Most years, there are about 180 Rhodes Scholars at Oxford. Applied
Van Riper said that Texas A&M has averaged about one Rb
Scholar every 25 years.
James W. Thomas, class of 1922, was the first Rhodes Scholar
Texas A&M.
Paul T. Hasse, class of 1976, was the most recent recipient. Masse
scholarship was recently extended for a third year. Van Riper siadtkB u n j t(
is rarely done and it indicative of Hasse s excellent work. BWASHl
Although there have only been three Rhodes Scholars from Te\ ]j )()nWe ]]
A&M, Van Riper said this is more than most universities have, ftwittingiy
The University of Texas has had more Rhodes Scholars than ^ an LSDi
other Texas university, Van Riper said. pwthefoi
Rhodes scholars chosen this year will enter Oxford in October 19T!>|j $ gover
I Thornwi
claiming tl
Ithout his
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pterrogati
United Press International
WASHINGTON — Should the
government pay for surveys of au-
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tomobile repair shops to let consum
ers know which ones do a good job?
That suggestion for helping con
sumers out of the the car repair
jungle was offered to Congress re
cently by Robert Krughoff, who pub
lishes a consumer advice magazine
called “Checkbook.”
He said Congress should give fed
eral grant money to organizations in
communities throughout the coun
try to set up teams that would
evaluate local car repair shops and
publish the results.
KrughofFs magazine does that al
ready for his circulation area, Wash
ington, D.C. He estimates the cost
of establishing a similar system in
every major area of the country at
about $5 million a year.
He said the price tag would be less
if the organization doing the ratings
charged a nominal fee for the survey
results.
In his Washington ratings,
Krughoff said, he has found no corre
lation between how much a shop
charges and how good the work is.
Shops listed by the National Insti
tute of Automotive Service Excel
lence as having tested, competent
mechanics did not have more satis
fied customers than shops without
the rating and dealerships are about
twice as likely to be rated as inferior
by customers as independent shops.
The same congressional hearing
was also told of a new government
survey that indicates consumers are
far more likely to have a problem
with a car than almost any other
product they buy under warranty,
and to have a harder time getting it
fixed.
The Federal Trade Commission
survey indicated about 25 percent of
car buyers who suffered problems
were dissatisfied with the outcome,
compared with about 8 percent for
all other products.
In addition, nearly 30 percent of
motor vehicles are delivered with a
problem covered by a warranty,
compared with 7 percent for other
under-warranty products; and 30
percent of car problems took more
than one month to resolve, com
pared with about 14 percent for
other consumer products.
FTC officials have told Congress
the federal warranty law needs to be
toughened to address the situation.
They suggested consumers be
guaranteed the right to collect
lawyers fees when they sue an au
tomobile dealer or company; have a
better chance to file class action
suits, and be allowed to collect the
price of taxis or rental cars during the
time their cars n shops.
&
TEMPI
|&M Un
me her
A report on two usefi.il pul
tions:
—The Food Co-op Directa
lists about 3,000 U.S. and Can:
food co-ops. The nonprofit Ji
that publishes the annual direi
estimates that consumers can
up to 30 percent on their graining |
bills each month in exchange^
few hours of work every month ^ uuii
co-op. The directory is availali l i n j strat; j
$3 ($6 for businesses, institul Jve un( j (
and govenment agencies) by "Imping
to the Food Co-op D' rect0I 7,!ampus o
Girard SE, Albuquerque, Np[M e( lj c j
i Texas i
—The Consumer I r d° rI1 ' 1 medical
Center’s latest catalog of g 0 'Lars of <
ment publications. The Scott
which mails out a vast va ^ et ljimilara;
pamphlets on request, says r future
popular free offering is called fV/aco an(
ing Household Records — Wb
Discard. ’’ The booklet tells you*
you really need to hang onto I®
and other purposes. The fall I
Consumer Information Catalo
free from the Consumer Infornu
Center, Pueblo, Colo., 81009 m
Write to Buyer’s Billboard' an hou;
315 National Press Bldg., Was jo m pl e t (
ton, D.C., 20045 with your' [—
sumer inquiries. We cannotpr®
personal replies hut attempts'"
made to answer letters where p
hie.
Renov:
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&M Cc
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FOOTBALL MUMS
Five styles to choose from
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Saturday morning.
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MSC, dorms, Commons & Sbisa.
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TRAVEL SERVICE
AIRLINE SCHEDULE INFORMATION
FARES AND TICKETS
DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL
A CALL 822-3737
1016 Texas Avenue — Bryan
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The band gets Its news from the Bat<