A tropical rainstorm that has drenched the Caribbean is now disrupting the BP oil spill cleanup in the Gulf of Mexico -- with some work now stopped as a precaution and evacuation discussions raising the possibility of oil once again flowing into the water.

In the oil spill battle of man vs. nature, nature is pulling off a valiant feat. The powerful Gulf of Mexico loop current, which seemed primed three months ago to thrust oil to the Florida Keys and beyond, suddenly changed course and helped protect much of Florida's cherished shorelines.

After Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast in August 2005, Alabama stood out among the hardest- hit states for having a sound disaster response plan.

The leader of the office that helps Alabama legislators write bills told legislators today that he turned over all his records about recent gambling legislation to a federal grand jury

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Jefferson County Republicans are hoping to raise money to help GOP candidates when they throw an event next month with Alabama Gov. Bob Riley and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour.

Alabama is just one of 12 states given top honors in a report about keeping children safe during disasters.

A 15-year-old Alabama law that says judges should not hear cases in which one of the parties donated at least $2,000 to their campaigns has never been enforced, locked in a stalemate over whether it first needs to be reviewed by the U.S. Department of Justice for evidence that it would not disenfranchise minorities.

Though oil has stopped flowing into Gulf waters, the containment cap BP is using to plug its deep-water well still isn't registering the pressure readings scientists had hoped for -- prompting the federal government to emphasize Tuesday the importance of finishing a relief well in order to achieve a reliable, permanent closure.

Two years before the Deepwater Horizon explosion, scientists from SRI International took readings on the levels of methane in the Gulf of Mexico less than 10 miles from the rig. Last year, they went back and did it again. Now, after the rig blew up and gushed oil for more than 80 days, SRI's scientists from St. Petersburg have returned to the same area just northwest of the disaster and taken fresh readings.

With pressure inside the Macondo well continuing a slow climb Tuesday, the federal government authorized another 24-hour monitoring period of the capped well to search for signs of well damage beneath the sea floor.