Norfolk ship to help U.S. flee Lebanon

A Hampton Roads warship has been ordered to assist in the evacuation of Americans from Lebanon, the Navy said Monday.

The USS Gonzalez, a Norfolk-based destroyer with a crew of about 300, will provide protection for a Lebanese-flagged cruise ship that could ferry hundreds of U.S. evacuees to the island of Cyprus. The cruise ship Orient Queen is expected to arrive near the Lebanese coast sometime today, according to a Pentagon report.