Richmond Virginia voters are nearly out of time if they plan to send in absentee ballots to vote in next week's Democratic and Republican presidential primaries. According to the State Board of Elections, applications for absentee ballots being mailed or faxed to the general registrar's office must be received by today at 5 p.m. Voters have until Saturday to apply in person. Voters must specify which party's ballot they are requesting and must list a qualifying reason for being unable to go to the polls next Tuesday. To be counted, absentee ballots must be received by the time the polls close on Feb. 12 at 7 p.m. For details, look up: www.sbe.virginia.gov or call (804) 864-8901.

Chesterfield Four people were displaced after a fire in the 9700 block of Kennesaw Road near Reams Road in Chesterfield County yesterday afternoon. When firefighters arrived about 4:30 p.m., heavy fire was coming out of the roof and windows in the back of the home, Battalion Chief Lee Williams said. Two children who were home at the time were evacuated, he said. A third sibling and a parent were not at home. No one was injured. The fire started in the kitchen area, but the cause is under investigation, Williams said.

Petersburg The citywide PTA has scheduled its second annual college fair for high school students in Petersburg and the surrounding area. Representatives from more than 15 colleges will be present, along with Army recruiters. The fair will take place tomorrow at Petersburg High School, 3101 Johnson Road, from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Henrico The Needle's Eye Speaker Series will feature R. Taylor Waller Jr., senior vice president of Wachovia Securities, on Thursday from 11:50 a.m. to 12:50 p.m. at The Westwood Club, 6200 West Club Lane. The cost is $10, and reservations need to be made by noon today. For details, visit www.needleseye.org or call (804) 358-1283.

AROUND THE STATE

Fairfax A man who was shot by police after allegedly firing at officers Saturday has been charged with attempted capital murder of a police officer. Fairfax County police have identified the man as Jeffrey Scott Koger, 38, of Oak Hill. Officer Don Gotthardt said Koger is still in the intensive-care unit, though his wounds are no longer considered life-threatening.

Williamsburg Administrators at the College of William and Mary have frozen hiring at the university in preparation for possible reductions in state funding this fiscal year, officials said. Provost P. Geoffrey Feiss wrote in a letter to senior administrators that no state-funded jobs would be filled through June 30. Those jobs include faculty, staff and administrative positions, but Feiss said formal written offers extended to candidates will be honored. The university was ordered to cut $3 million this fiscal year as part of a statewide effort to close a $641 million revenue shortfall.

Blacksburg A Montgomery County jury has awarded $350,000 to a woman involved in a crash that killed a bicyclist during a triathlon in 2000. Sharon Knight had sued the town and Beverly Biancur, the director of the third annual Greater Blacksburg Triathlon, claiming they were negligent in failing to warn motorists of the race course. Triathlon participant Gary Taylor died midway through the June 18, 2000, competition after his bicycle crashed into Knight's car. Knight has said that she saw Taylor run a stop sign before the collision. In 2002, a jury found that Biancur and the town were negligent in organizing the race and awarded $500,000 in damages to Taylor's family.

Martinsville The Virginia Museum of Natural History's curator of archaeology, Elizabeth Moore, recently was appointed chairwoman of the Virginia State Review Board for the state Department of Historic Resources. The term will continue through 2010.