Haiti

Nineteen University of California students who were studying abroad in Egypt have been evacuated and transported to Barcelona, university officials said. As of right now, UC Irvine believes no UCI students were in the country. Although it's easier to see how many students are traveling abroad, it's hard to find out if students have traveled independently to the region, a school spokesperson said. The U.S. State Department issued a travel advisory for Americans, and school officials decided to temporarily stop the study abroad program in Egypt this week.

Sherilyn F. Schneekluth In his work as a genocide investigator for the United Nations, Gary Haugen has seen some of the greatest atrocities against the people of India, Rwanda and other places where human rights are violated on a daily basis. But, Haugen says, a strong faith in God can provide hope and courage and help find a peaceful solution to these and other cruel acts against humanity. Haugen also directed the U.N. genocide investigation in Rwanda and worked in the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Justice Department.

The devastating floods in Pakistan, which have killed more than 1,600 people, have been compared to this decade's Asian tsunami and the earthquakes that struck China and Haiti. Although the death toll is lower, the widespread destruction of the region is far worse than the results of other natural disasters, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon recently told the Los Angeles Times. While U.N. officials have said 2 million to 5 million people are wandering homeless, Prime Minister Yusaf Raza Gilani offers a different and much more staggering figure: 20 million.

with Day Barry Faulkner COSTA MESA - Eugene Day, who coached the Costa Mesa High boys frosh-soph soccer team the last five seasons, will replace departed varsity coach Mike Dunn, Mesa Boys Athletic Director Kirk Bauermeister has announced. Day, 44, is a walk-on with years of soccer coaching experience, though this will be his first varsity job. "I guess Mike decided he'd done as much with the program as he could," said Day, whose son Louis will be a senior on next year's squad and whose daughter, Sharon, was a freshman standout on the Mesa girls team last season.

A Southern California improv comedy troupe, Cherry Spitz, plans to perform for free at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the Atlantis Lounge in the Campus Village Housing Community Center at UC Irvine, 1061 W. Peltason Drive. “We are hungry,” said member Eric Wargo, “hungry to perform and hungry for food. They will be feeding us.” Wargo is unemployed, but he and the other troupe members usually have regular jobs. The group usually charges $5 at the door, and most of the earnings go toward furthering the troupe and supporting the theater, said Tim Gale, one of the group’s founders.

Ally Simpson and Chelsea Davis have a ways to go before they learn the names of every country in the world. Actually, they have about 23 bars left. Last week, Girls Inc. of Orange County launched a geography unit to acquaint students with the far reaches of the globe. As a learning device, teacher Angela Hartwig provided the girls with the lyrics to a song from the "Animaniacs" cartoon series that lists every country in the world — or most of them, anyway — with occasional compromises made for rhyme and meter.

Navy Airman Brandon G. Roldan, a 2001 graduate of Costa Mesa High School, recently participated in New Horizons, a humanitarian assistance exercise in Haiti, while assigned to the amphibious assault ship Saipan, based in Norfolk, Va. Roldan and his shipmates offloaded 1,200 tons of construction equipment and supplies for U.S. Navy Seabees and U.S. Army Reserve Military Police, in support of the 90-day exercise. New Horizons will support the rebuilding of schools and wells and will also provide medical support to the victims of Hurricane Jeanne.

NEWPORT BEACH — In practice Wednesday, Corona del Mar High senior Weston Nielsen said his team only really practiced its team cheers. Before the match Friday at Newport Harbor High, Nielsen made sure the mood stayed light when he came into the room with a black Sharpie. "You could tell our group was a little more wild," said Nielsen, who is headed to UC Santa Barbara. "We had some characters. I think we had more fun with it ... [Laguna Beach's] Scottie Chapel has been growing the most glorious mustache for his brother's wedding.

As Sandy Ryan lay on the table Wednesday morning, with her arm being prepared for its first blood donation, she remembered a young donor she worried would die. With that fear still lurking in her mind, the Costa Mesa resident looked out the window from the Newport Beach Police Department. “At least I have a view,” she said. As she may have envisioned her last moments, Ryan made a donation that will likely keep up to three other people from experiencing theirs.

This corrects an earlier version. I met with Costa Mesa Mayor Allan Mansoor this week over a cup of coffee, and we talked a lot about issues affecting the city and his primary race for the 68th Assembly District to replace termed out Assemblyman Van Tran. Full disclosure: I consider Allan a friend, and I would support him in anything he does. With that out of the way, let me give you a little background about the 68th Assembly District. It encompasses all of Costa Mesa and Fountain Valley, 83% of Stanton, 70% of Westminster, 65% of Garden Grove and 10% of Anaheim and Newport Beach.