OKLAHOMA CITY: AFTER THE BOMB : Small Towns in Spotlight

Profiles of the small towns with links to the Oklahoma City case:

* Kingman, Ariz.--Last known address of Timothy McVeigh. Established in the early 1880s by Lewis Kingman, who located the route of the Santa Fe Railroad. Located in the Hualapai Valley, about 20 miles east of the Colorado River, it is surrounded by vast stretches of desert. Kingman also offers the longest remaining stretch of the old Route 66 left in the country. Gold, zinc and lead mines in region.

* Perry, Okla.--Where McVeigh was arrested on a traffic violation. Located 65 miles north of Oklahoma City, it has a population of about 5,500 people. Snows an average of 10 inches a year. Annual rainfall, 39.3 inches

* Herington, Kan.--Where Terry Nichols lived. Rural farming community of 2,800. Chief crop in the region is wheat. Southern Pacific Railroad building a new yard there costing an estimated $7 million. Oil and gypsum as well.

* Junction City, Kan.--Where the van was rented. Farming and military town. Estimated civilian population of 20,000 and 20,000 more military and their dependents. Farming, including cattle and hogs, in the surrounding area. Stone quarries as well.

* Decker, Mich.--Where James Nichols lives. Decker is located in Evergreen Township, with a population of 907. Crops include corn, navy beans, wheat, sugar beets and soy beans.

Suspect’s Relatives Speak Out

Both the mother and the sister of Oklahoma bombing suspect Timothy McVeigh have expressed sorrow over the deaths of those killed in the blast. And they say it has been years since they have had any contact with him. McVeigh’s mother, Mildred Frazer, issued her statement by handing it to a deputy outside her home in Fort Pierce, Fla. “I have had only brief contact with my son the past 10 years and only know details from what I have been watching on TV the last few days,” she wrote. A flag flew at half staff outside the home. In Broward County, Fla., McVeigh’s sister, Patricia, said she had not been involved in her brother’s life since she and her mother left Buffalo, N.Y. “I, like the American public, pray for the victims and families daily and hope this nation can heal together from this tragedy,” she said.