Cabell Huntington Hospital to cut 40 jobs
HUNTINGTON - Cabell Huntington Hospital in West Virginia's second-largest city is reducing its work force by 40.
The hospital blamed the job cuts, announced Tuesday, on the economic downturn.
Most of the affected employees are management personnel from a range of departments. None are involved in direct patient care.
Hospital CEO Brent A. Marsteller said the hospital has lost investment income while providing more than $45 million worth of charity care. It also is paying more for medical supplies, pharmaceuticals and employee benefits. Employees who lose their jobs will receive severance packages and job placement assistance.
The 313-bed hospital employs more than 2,000 and serves patients in West Virginia, eastern Kentucky and southern Ohio.
MTR Gaming fires executive vice president
MORGANTOWN - MTR Gaming Group Inc. has fired an executive vice president who once tried to buy the company.
Robert Blatt was let go Dec. 31, according to a filing Tuesday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
He had been an at-will employee since his contract expired in October 2006, earning more than $315,000 in 2007. Blatt will continue to serve as vice chairman of the board of directors.
In 2005, Blatt and former CEO Ted Arneault tried to buy the company for $258 million. A committee reviewing the offer rejected it as one that did not sufficiently enhance stockholder value.
MTR owns Mountaineer Casino, Racetrack & Resort in Chester and Presque Isle Downs & Casino in Erie, Pa. It also owns or has interests in tracks in Ohio and Minnesota.
Manchin to meet with Ravenswood execs
Gov. Joe Manchin will meet face-to-face with executives who are deciding the fate of an aluminum plant that employs nearly 700 people.
Manchin spokesman Matt Turner says the governor has arranged for a Saturday meeting in Ravenswood with executives from Century Aluminum.
Century says it needs to cut costs at the Ravenswood plant by 20 percent or risk shutting down in February.
Century chief Logan Kruger, along with the company's chief operating officer and other officials are scheduled to be on hand.
State and federal politicians have vowed to assist the plant, which employs 685 workers, in staying open.
Last month, Manchin floated the possibility of tax breaks, although a definite aid plan has not yet been developed.
Judge rules in favor of WVU in FOIA lawsuit
MORGANTOWN - A judge says West Virginia University gave the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette all the information that was required last year as the school's administration unraveled over a degree scandal.
The newspaper sued under the Freedom of Information Act in Monongalia Circuit Court. It claimed WVU failed to fully answer three FOIA requests, refusing to produce documents that included then-President Mike Garrison's phone records.
But Judge Robert Stone granted WVU's motion for summary judgment on Dec. 29.
Stone says an index provided under court order shows 43 documents were legitimately withheld for privacy reasons. But he awarded attorneys' fees because the newspaper had to sue for that list.
A lawyer said Tuesday the newspaper hasn't decided whether to appeal.
Putnam commissioners review water projects
WINFIELD - In anticipation of funds for public works projects as proposed by President-elect Barack Obama, Putnam County commissioners reviewed five water extension projects that may be eligible for federal loans or grants.
Commissioners plan to further discuss the projects with an engineering firm next week.
Last year, the commission submitted an application for a $5.2 million no-interest loan for water projects, but did not receive any funds.
Also Tuesday, the commissioners announced plans to meet with representatives from coal company Amherst Industry Inc. about flooding in Hometown.
Heavy rains have damaged several houses in the community and flooded the school's playground.
The flooding also is a driving and health hazard, Commissioner Gary Tillis said.
In other business, Putnam County Sheriff Mark Smith said eight members of his staff have completed training for Project Lifesaver, an electronic tracking program for individuals with cognitive disabilities like autism and Alzheimer's disease.
The sheriff's department has received about 20 applications from county residents interested in the program, and will start the selection process once a review committee is put together, Smith said.
Hurricane mother faces neglect charge
HURRICANE - Hurricane police arrested a Hurricane woman after her child was found walking alone along a busy roadway with only a pair of underwear on.
Police arrested April Lyn Dowdy, 30, on Friday on felony child neglect charges.
On Dec. 26, Dowdy's 3-year-old daughter was found along W.Va. 34, according to a criminal complaint filed in Putnam County Magistrate Court.
The child had on only a pair of underwear and was covered in dirt and make-up, the complaint states. The temperature was in the low 40s and it had been raining, according to the complaint.
A motorist saw the child in the road and stopped his vehicle, which caused the car behind him to stop as well, according to the complaint. The driver behind the first car was the girl's aunt, the complaint sates.
When contacted about her daughter, Dowdy told police she had left her daughter in the care of "a house full of guests," according to the complaint. Dowdy told police her daughter had also wandered off the previous day, the complaint states.
Cabell Huntington Hospital to cut 40 jobs
HUNTINGTON - Cabell Huntington Hospital in West Virginia's second-largest city is reducing its work force by 40.
The hospital blamed the job cuts, announced Tuesday, on the economic downturn.
Most of the affected employees are management personnel from a range of departments. None are involved in direct patient care.
Hospital CEO Brent A. Marsteller said the hospital has lost investment income while providing more than $45 million worth of charity care. It also is paying more for medical supplies, pharmaceuticals and employee benefits. Employees who lose their jobs will receive severance packages and job placement assistance.
The 313-bed hospital employs more than 2,000 and serves patients in West Virginia, eastern Kentucky and southern Ohio.
MTR Gaming fires executive vice president
MORGANTOWN - MTR Gaming Group Inc. has fired an executive vice president who once tried to buy the company.
Robert Blatt was let go Dec. 31, according to a filing Tuesday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
He had been an at-will employee since his contract expired in October 2006, earning more than $315,000 in 2007. Blatt will continue to serve as vice chairman of the board of directors.
In 2005, Blatt and former CEO Ted Arneault tried to buy the company for $258 million. A committee reviewing the offer rejected it as one that did not sufficiently enhance stockholder value.
MTR owns Mountaineer Casino, Racetrack & Resort in Chester and Presque Isle Downs & Casino in Erie, Pa. It also owns or has interests in tracks in Ohio and Minnesota.
Manchin to meet with Ravenswood execs
Gov. Joe Manchin will meet face-to-face with executives who are deciding the fate of an aluminum plant that employs nearly 700 people.
Manchin spokesman Matt Turner says the governor has arranged for a Saturday meeting in Ravenswood with executives from Century Aluminum.
Century says it needs to cut costs at the Ravenswood plant by 20 percent or risk shutting down in February.
Century chief Logan Kruger, along with the company's chief operating officer and other officials are scheduled to be on hand.
State and federal politicians have vowed to assist the plant, which employs 685 workers, in staying open.
Last month, Manchin floated the possibility of tax breaks, although a definite aid plan has not yet been developed.
Judge rules in favor of WVU in FOIA lawsuit
MORGANTOWN - A judge says West Virginia University gave the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette all the information that was required last year as the school's administration unraveled over a degree scandal.
The newspaper sued under the Freedom of Information Act in Monongalia Circuit Court. It claimed WVU failed to fully answer three FOIA requests, refusing to produce documents that included then-President Mike Garrison's phone records.
But Judge Robert Stone granted WVU's motion for summary judgment on Dec. 29.
Stone says an index provided under court order shows 43 documents were legitimately withheld for privacy reasons. But he awarded attorneys' fees because the newspaper had to sue for that list.
A lawyer said Tuesday the newspaper hasn't decided whether to appeal.
Putnam commissioners review water projects
WINFIELD - In anticipation of funds for public works projects as proposed by President-elect Barack Obama, Putnam County commissioners reviewed five water extension projects that may be eligible for federal loans or grants.
Commissioners plan to further discuss the projects with an engineering firm next week.
Last year, the commission submitted an application for a $5.2 million no-interest loan for water projects, but did not receive any funds.
Also Tuesday, the commissioners announced plans to meet with representatives from coal company Amherst Industry Inc. about flooding in Hometown.
Heavy rains have damaged several houses in the community and flooded the school's playground.
The flooding also is a driving and health hazard, Commissioner Gary Tillis said.
In other business, Putnam County Sheriff Mark Smith said eight members of his staff have completed training for Project Lifesaver, an electronic tracking program for individuals with cognitive disabilities like autism and Alzheimer's disease.
The sheriff's department has received about 20 applications from county residents interested in the program, and will start the selection process once a review committee is put together, Smith said.
Hurricane mother faces neglect charge
HURRICANE - Hurricane police arrested a Hurricane woman after her child was found walking alone along a busy roadway with only a pair of underwear on.
Police arrested April Lyn Dowdy, 30, on Friday on felony child neglect charges.
On Dec. 26, Dowdy's 3-year-old daughter was found along W.Va. 34, according to a criminal complaint filed in Putnam County Magistrate Court.
The child had on only a pair of underwear and was covered in dirt and make-up, the complaint states. The temperature was in the low 40s and it had been raining, according to the complaint.
A motorist saw the child in the road and stopped his vehicle, which caused the car behind him to stop as well, according to the complaint. The driver behind the first car was the girl's aunt, the complaint sates.
When contacted about her daughter, Dowdy told police she had left her daughter in the care of "a house full of guests," according to the complaint. Dowdy told police her daughter had also wandered off the previous day, the complaint states.
School wants to avoid paying for water mishap
MORGANTOWN - Monongalia County shouldn't be on the hook for a $10,000 insurance deductible after an unexplained mishap last month led to major water damage at the brand-new University High School, the county's schools superintendent said.
The school had been open for just one day when temperatures in one classroom got so high overnight they triggered the sprinklers. The sprinklers ran for hours, damaging offices and 29 classrooms. The school was closed for a few days, and some offices have been relocated.
The cause of the heater malfunction hasn't been determined. Schools Superintendent Frank Devono said once it has been, the party responsible should pay the deductible.
There's no cost estimate yet for all the repairs.
Chesapeake sells some gas rights in Ark., Okla.
OKLAHOMA CITY - Chesapeake Energy Inc. has sold rights to some of its natural gas reserves in Oklahoma and Arkansas as part of its strategy to boost cash reserves.
Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake announced Monday that it has sold 98 billion cubic feet equivalent and daily production of 60 million of cubic feet equivalent for $412 million.
The assets are in the Anadarko Basin in west-central Oklahoma and the Arkoma Basin in northwest Arkansas and northeast Oklahoma.
In the agreement, Chesapeake conveyed a royalty interest to investors associated with Argonaut Private Equity. The purchase was financed by GS Loan Partners, an affiliate of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.
Chesapeake has holdings in West Virginia.
Judge reduces man's sentence in cattle scam
BECKLEY - A former bank president who cooperated with federal officials in investigating a cattle and banking scam has gotten two months shaved off his prison term.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Johnston reduced Charles Henthorn's from nine months to seven months.
The 48-year-old former president of the First National Bank of Ronceverte has cooperated with authorities as they investigate the fallout from the scam.
Prosecutors say Greenbrier County resident Kevin O'Brien fraudulently sold the same herd of cattle to different buyers in West Virginia, Virginia, Texas, Illinois and Nebraska.
In October, O'Brien was sentenced to eight years in prison. Henthorn was convicted of taking bribes from O'Brien.
Union members backing wind farm
KEYSER - Union laborers are backing plans for a 23-turbine wind farm on Green Mountain.
They were among some 30 people who attended a meeting on the project Monday, the first in a series of meetings that US WindForce will hold this year.
A worker on wind turbine projects in Tucker County and Mount Storm said he never saw evidence of the bird or bat kills that some opponents fear.
And a real estate salesman said he's been able to sell land in wind farm viewsheds by explaining the environmental benefits of wind power.
WindForce executive David Friend said he's working with avian experts to address concerns about nesting bald eagles near Bloomington Dam. He said the eagles fly higher than the 400-foot turbines and tend to hunt prey elsewhere.
Williamson firm wins Mingo airport contract
WILLIAMSON - A Williamson company has been awarded a $3.6 million contract to construct the first phase of the new Mingo County Air Transportation Park.
Appalachian Paving and Aggregate submitted the winning bid for the project, which includes paving a runway and taxi area, installation of a drainage system and landscaping.
The Mingo County Airport Authority awarded the contract.
The airport will be built on Mystery Mountain in the Varney area, on land donated by Alpha Natural Resources.
Federal judge sets Aracoma plea hearing
A federal judge has scheduled a Jan. 14 hearing for Massey Energy subsidiary Aracoma Coal to plead guilty to charges stemming from a deadly January 2006 fire at a West Virginia mine.
Aracoma agreed in December to pay a $2.5 million penalty to settle 10 criminal charges. Those include failing to provide a primary escapeway at the Alma No. 1 mine, failure to properly evacuate miners, and providing a false record of when drills were conducted.
U.S. District Judge John Copenhaver has yet to approve the plea deal.
In November, Richmond, Va.-based Massey settled a lawsuit with the families of miners Don Bragg and Ellery Elvis Hatfield for undisclosed terms.
Massey is the nation's fourth-largest coal producer by revenue and operates mines in West Virginia, Virginia and Kentucky.
Ex-Parkersburg official pleads in petit larceny
PARKERSBURG - A former Parkersburg city councilman will spend a year on probation after pleading guilty to taking three cans from a local Wal-Mart without paying for the items.
Jim Knapp also must pay a $159.53 fine, after pleading guilty to petit larceny last week. Wood County Magistrate Emily Bradley sentenced Knapp to 10 days in jail but suspended the term.
According to a police warrant, Knapp took three cans of refrigerant worth $83.64, from the Parkersburg Wal-Mart on Sept. 17. He was employed at the store.
Knapp lost his bid for re-election in November.
- FROM STAFF, WIRE REPORTS
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