National Digest for Nov. 16, 2014: Airplanes warned off flying near Alaska volcano November 15 at 7:44 PM Airplanes warned off flying near volcano The National Weather Service warned airplanes Saturday to avoid airspace near an erupting Alaska volcano as it spewed ash 30,000 feet above sea level. Winds blew ash from the Pavlof volcano to the west and southwest. Pavlof began erupting and pushing lava out from a vent near its summit Wednesday. Pavlof also lies along popular international air routes connecting Europe, North America and Asia. The eruption has had little effect on people on the ground. On Friday, the ash cloud reached 16,000 feet. The eruption intensified at 6 a.m. Saturday, sending the ash cloud higher, said Dave Schneider, a geophysicist at Alaska Volcano Observatory. It's not clear how long this eruption will last, Schneider said. Pavlof's eruptions could last for weeks or months with varying levels of intensity, he said. Pavlof is Alaska's most active volcano and is on the Alaska Peninsula about 600 miles southwest of Anchorage. It has more than 40 recorded eruptions. McDonald's is not lovin" GMO potato The U.S. Agriculture Department has approved Idaho-based J.R. Simplot's new genetically modified potato. But one of the company's oldest business partners - McDonald's - has not. The fast-food giant says it does not use genetically modified potatoes, the Idaho Statesman reported. "McDonald's USA does not source GMO potatoes, nor do we have current plans to change our sourcing practices," the company said in a statement. The USDA gave Boise-based Simplot permission this month to begin commercial planting of its new spud, called the "Innate" potato. The company altered the potato's DNA so that it produces less acrylamide, which is suspected to be a carcinogen. Potatoes naturally produce the chemical when they are cooked at high temperatures. Simplot is a major supplier of french fries, hash browns and other potato products for restaurant chains, including McDonald's. Simplot spokesman Doug Cole did not address the company's plans to sell to the fast-food industry or the dehydrated- potato industry, which both have urged growers against planting GMO potatoes. But Cole said the fresh-potato market would embrace Innate. Texas woman sues neighbors whose dog was killed by her dogs: A Texas woman whose four pit bulls entered her neighbors" yard through a hole in the fence and killed their 10-year-old beagle is suing them for $1 million. Emerald White says in her lawsuit filed last week in Galveston County District Court that she was "seriously injured" Oct. 27 trying to stop the attack and retrieve her dogs. She accuses her neighbors of failing to securely confine and restrict their dog, Bailey. Bailey's owner, Steve Baker, told the Galveston County Daily News that people were telling him to sue White. He told the paper that he did not sue her because it wouldn't bring Bailey back and because the police declared her dogs dangerous.