MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — Firefighters responded twice to a yard fire that South Carolina officials believe rekindled four days later, igniting a massive blaze that had destroyed more than 70 homes and continued to char 31 square miles near Myrtle Beach yesterday.

Officials said homes were still being threatened by the wildfire, but afternoon winds did not cause it to spread much. No injuries have been reported, though damage estimates rose to $16 million for the three-day blaze and were expected to increase.

Marc Torchi, the man being fined for setting the yard fire, said that county firefighters who responded twice last Saturday to his small blaze should take the blame, not him.

OBAMA PUSHES FOR DIRECT STUDENT LOANS

WASHINGTON — President Obama yesterday renewed his call for the government to stop backing private loans to college students and replace them with direct government loans to young people, a challenge to a decades-old program with strong congressional support.

Obama's plan to eliminate the Federal Family Education Loan program could save $48 billion for taxpayers over the next decade, but critics warn it could turn the Education Department into a national bank. Lenders and some college officials oppose the proposal, which Obama backed as a U.S. senator and pushed during the presidential campaign.

Under the current system, students at some colleges borrow directly from the government, while others get loans from banks, nonprofits or state agencies who in turn receive subsidies from Washington.

The president's proposal would switch the federal student loan system entirely to direct lending from the government.

NAPOLITANO APOLOGIZES FOR AGENCY REPORT

WASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano met with the American Legion yesterday to apologize for a right-wing extremism report written by her agency, and the veterans group walked away from the meeting mollified.

Napolitano blamed one of her agency's analysts for prematurely sending out the intelligence assessment to law enforcement, according to Craig Roberts, an American Legion member who attended the meeting. The report says veterans returning from Iraq or Afghanistan could be susceptible to right-wing recruiters or commit lone acts of violence.

Legion National Commander David Rehbein said, "I think the session in Secretary Napolitano's office will go a long way to help our returning veterans in the future."

PLANE STRAYS INTO RESTRICTED D.C. SPACE

WASHINGTON — A small, single-engine plane strayed into restricted air space near the U.S. Capitol yesterday, forcing anxious officials to place the White House in temporary lockdown and take steps to evacuate the U.S. Capitol.

The episode was over within minutes as two F-16 fighter jets and two Coast Guard helicopters were dispatched to intercept the plane and escort it to an airport in Maryland, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

Owner Gil Bauserman said a technology problem on the Cessna 180, rather than anything nefarious, forced the plane to enter restricted air space, prompting the swift military response.

ANC SHORT OF GOAL; ZUMA LIKELY PRESIDENT

PRETORIA, South Africa — South African elections results released today show the African National Congress was falling short of winning its cherished two-thirds parliamentary majority. But the tally affirmed the ruling party's overall victory and set the stage for the controversial Jacob Zuma rise to the presidency.

The near-complete results also showed that the ANC lost power in the country's second richest province because of hostility from mixed-race voters and conservative whites.

The ANC views Zuma as the first leader who can energize voters since the legendary Nelson Mandela. But others say Zuma is too beholden to unions and leftists.

CRAIGSLIST SUSPECT LINKED TO NEW ASSAULT

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Rhode Island authorities have found evidence linking a medical student accused of killing a masseuse in Boston to a hotel near Providence where a third crime occurred, an official said yesterday.

The law enforcement official said that fingerprints belonging to Philip Markoff were found on a wall of the Holiday Inn Express in Warwick, where a stripper has said she was assaulted by a man she met through Craigslist. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the case.