11.   At Methodist Hospital, a few employees have complained about latex allergies, said spokeswoman Blythe Palamara.

12.   At Van Nuys Airport, a Lear jet slid off the end of the runway while landing, said airport spokeswoman Stacy Geere.

13.   Boeing was recruited by the other four firms because of its expertise at large-scale systems integration, said Boeing spokeswoman Susan Bradley.

14.   Bosnia and Croatia currently are small markets for Iams pet foods, says spokeswoman Kelly Vanasse.

15.   A combination of factors, especially a tempest of investor anger, swamped ICG, said spokeswoman Susan Koehler.

16.   A halt to further development of casinos would hit the Indian gambling industry hardest, said a spokeswoman for the National Indian Gaming Association.

17.   A. An increase in the earnings threshold is being considered by Congress but has not been approved, said Social Security spokeswoman Patti Patterson.

18.   A special investigation of the incident is under way, said a spokeswoman for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

19.   A team of investigators from the state Ecology Department were dispatched to the scene to review what happened and to clean up the spill, said spokeswoman Sandy Howard.

20.   A. You have missed the boat, says a spokeswoman for British Information Services.