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where thousands of people were still recovering from flooding spawned last week by Hurricane Ernesto.
• The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Helene sprang up Friday then weakened to barely tropical storm strength by nighttime, but its forecast said the storm could strengthen again before making an expected landfall Saturday.
• Helene had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (64.37 kph) and was moving northwest at 7 mph (11 kph) late Friday. It was centered about 65 miles (105 kilometers) east of Tuxpan.
• Landfall was predicted for the northern part of Veracruz, a lush coastal state with hundreds of towns and villages sitting along streams and rivers that can swell dangerously in heavy rain. Many were evacuated as Ernesto approached last week, and flood damage made some 10,000 people homeless.
• Mexico's government declared a state of emergency in more than 100 population centers in Veracruz and was providing them with emergency aid. The country's national weather service warned of intense rains and winds along the Veracruz and Tamaulipas coasts, with heavy rain, hail and lightning possible.
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Today in History
The Associated Press
• Today is Saturday, Aug. 18, the 231st day of 2012. There are 135 days left in the year.
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• Today's Highlight in History:
• On Aug. 18, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, which guaranteed the right of all American women to vote, was ratified as Tennessee became the 36th state to approve it.
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• On this date:
• In 1587, Virginia Dare became the first child of English parents to be born on American soil, on what is now Roanoke Island in North Carolina. (However, the Roanoke colony ended up mysteriously disappearing.)
• In 1838, the first marine expedition sponsored by the U.S. government set sail from Hampton Roads, Va.; the crews traveled the southern Pacific Ocean, gathering scientific information.
• In 1846, U.S. forces led by General Stephen W. Kearny captured Santa Fe, N.M.
• In 1862, Dakota Indians began an uprising in Minnesota (the revolt was crushed (Continued on page 43)
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