EL PASO, TX — The new station in Northeast El Paso is the first U.S. Border Patrol station to be Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified, according to the El Paso Times.
About 80 percent of all construction materials are certified recyclable and the station will be 50 percent more energy efficient than a building using standard construction methods, the story stated.
Assistant Patrol Agent in Charge Salvador Zamora said: "This is not only a building, this is a second home for many of us; we are happy that we're getting a new home in a beautiful location."
Additional energy saving elements to the building are: Skylights in certain station areas and sensor lights in every room, solar panels to generate roughly 12 percent of yearly energy usage and materials purchased no farther than 300 miles from the construction site, the story noted.
The land was provided free of charge to the agency by the U.S. Department of Defense, and the $15.6 million construction contract for the 54,000 square-foot building was awarded to Banes General Contractors, the story added.
According to the story, the building, which will house 350 agents on 45 acres, is about two to three months away from completion.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Contagious skin infections scare district
ROCHESTER HILLS, MI — Rochester Community Schools Officials are on the defensive after three high school students and one kindergartener were diagnosed last week with contagious skin infections, according to C & G News.
One student from Hamlin Elementary was diagnosed with a staph infection, while three wrestlers from Rochester High School were found to have impetigo, a contagious skin infection with blisters and oozing sores, the story stated.
Rochester High Principal Wendy Zdeb said: "Like most bacterial skin infections, impetigo can be spread through contact. The best precaution is to take measures that reduce the spread of bacteria, including good hand washing, not sharing personal items and keeping wounds covered."
Extensive cleaning was conducted throughout the school, including classrooms, the office clinic and other high-touch areas, as a precautionary measure, the story noted.
The wrestlers might have contracted the infection during a meet in Lake Orion. A meet scheduled for February 11 at Rochester High was canceled while equipment, wrestling mats and the locker room were thoroughly cleaned, the story added.
One student from Hamlin Elementary was diagnosed with a staph infection, while three wrestlers from Rochester High School were found to have impetigo, a contagious skin infection with blisters and oozing sores, the story stated.
Rochester High Principal Wendy Zdeb said: "Like most bacterial skin infections, impetigo can be spread through contact. The best precaution is to take measures that reduce the spread of bacteria, including good hand washing, not sharing personal items and keeping wounds covered."
Extensive cleaning was conducted throughout the school, including classrooms, the office clinic and other high-touch areas, as a precautionary measure, the story noted.
The wrestlers might have contracted the infection during a meet in Lake Orion. A meet scheduled for February 11 at Rochester High was canceled while equipment, wrestling mats and the locker room were thoroughly cleaned, the story added.
Manufacturers sued for ingredient disclosure
NEW YORK — Environmental and health activists announced plans for a lawsuit to make four major firms reveal the chemical ingredients of their cleaning products and their research on the products' effects, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The suit, to be filed today in New York by six state and national environmental and health groups, including the Sierra Club and American Lung Association, seeks to use a little-known 1976 New York law passed to combat phosphates in detergent, the story stated.
The Soap and Detergent Association (SDA) said the following about the suit: "Activist groups are using an arcane New York state regulation as a way to disparage cleaning product formulators whose products are used safely and effectively by millions of people every day."
Cincinnati-based Procter & Gamble; New York-based Colgate-Palmolive; Princeton, N.J.-based Church & Dwight Co.; and Britain-based Reckitt Benckiser Group are all mentioned in the lawsuit, the story noted.
In California, two laws were approved in 2008 that require the state to identify "chemicals of concern," to evaluate safer alternatives and to create a scientific clearinghouse for information on chemicals' effects, the story added.
According to the story, The Consumer Product Safety Commission is the federal agency charged with overseeing home cleaning products, but it doesn't require cleaning product manufacturers to provide comprehensive ingredient lists, so few companies do.
The suit, to be filed today in New York by six state and national environmental and health groups, including the Sierra Club and American Lung Association, seeks to use a little-known 1976 New York law passed to combat phosphates in detergent, the story stated.
The Soap and Detergent Association (SDA) said the following about the suit: "Activist groups are using an arcane New York state regulation as a way to disparage cleaning product formulators whose products are used safely and effectively by millions of people every day."
Cincinnati-based Procter & Gamble; New York-based Colgate-Palmolive; Princeton, N.J.-based Church & Dwight Co.; and Britain-based Reckitt Benckiser Group are all mentioned in the lawsuit, the story noted.
In California, two laws were approved in 2008 that require the state to identify "chemicals of concern," to evaluate safer alternatives and to create a scientific clearinghouse for information on chemicals' effects, the story added.
According to the story, The Consumer Product Safety Commission is the federal agency charged with overseeing home cleaning products, but it doesn't require cleaning product manufacturers to provide comprehensive ingredient lists, so few companies do.
Overnight fire at Cintas facility
INDIANAPOLIS — Nobody was injured in a fire that started inside a Cintas facility around 3 o'clock this morning, according to WISH-TV.
The fire at the JanSan uniform and mat rental company is being blamed on faulty electrical equipment, the story stated.
No employees were in the building at the time of the blaze; no estimations of the extent of the damage have been made as of yet, the story noted.
The building's sprinkler system did its job in helping control the blaze until firefighters arrived and subdued the flames, the story added.
The fire at the JanSan uniform and mat rental company is being blamed on faulty electrical equipment, the story stated.
No employees were in the building at the time of the blaze; no estimations of the extent of the damage have been made as of yet, the story noted.
The building's sprinkler system did its job in helping control the blaze until firefighters arrived and subdued the flames, the story added.
Apartment manager embezzles $500,000
WEST WHITELAND, PA — The former property manager of Hollow Run Apartments has been charged with stealing nearly $500,000 in more than 700 thefts she committed between 2001 and 2008, according to WFMZ-TV.
Tracey Totten-Davis is accused of manipulating the accounts of more than 700 tenants who lived in the complex and funneling $412,000 in rent and security deposits into her personal bank account, the story stated.
According to police, "The investigation was an arduous process of putting together the paper trail needed for prosecution."
Totten-Davis was fired for paying an excessive amount of money to Choice Cleaning L.L.C., a company she hired for cleaning services, the story noted.
Investigations uncovered the fact that Totten-Davis actually owned the cleaning company, and the $78,000 she billed for services over a two-year period was three times the amount paid to the previous cleaning company, the story added.
According to the story, Totten-Davis also charged home improvements worth $7,000 to the owner of the apartment complex, Fitzpatrick Fanning Corporation, making the total loss to Fitzpatrick Fanning more than $497,000.
Tracey Totten-Davis is accused of manipulating the accounts of more than 700 tenants who lived in the complex and funneling $412,000 in rent and security deposits into her personal bank account, the story stated.
According to police, "The investigation was an arduous process of putting together the paper trail needed for prosecution."
Totten-Davis was fired for paying an excessive amount of money to Choice Cleaning L.L.C., a company she hired for cleaning services, the story noted.
Investigations uncovered the fact that Totten-Davis actually owned the cleaning company, and the $78,000 she billed for services over a two-year period was three times the amount paid to the previous cleaning company, the story added.
According to the story, Totten-Davis also charged home improvements worth $7,000 to the owner of the apartment complex, Fitzpatrick Fanning Corporation, making the total loss to Fitzpatrick Fanning more than $497,000.
Custodians with invalid Social Security numbers fired
MANSFIELD, TX — Forty of the 269 custodians in the Mansfield School District have been fired after an internal audit that began in August found that the Social Security numbers they gave the district were incorrect or invalid, according to the Star-Telegram.
One hundred twenty employees' numbers have been checked and verified so far; employees with invalid numbers were given 90 days to resolve the issue and many worked until the last day possible, the story stated.
Jeff Brogden, director of facilities and operations for the district, said: "The situation is heartbreaking. They’re like family."
According to the story, some of the employees involved had been with the district as long as 10 years.
The district is not required by law to verify Social Security numbers that it submits to the Internal Revenue Service, and has yet to contact law enforcement about the invalid numbers and presumed illegal status of the custodians, the story noted.
Each of the custodians had undergone criminal background checks based on fingerprints, but the checks did not reveal the invalid Social Security numbers, the story added.
According to the Pew Hispanic Center, at least 17 percent of all JanSan employees (an estimated 680,000 plus workers) are illegal immigrants.
One hundred twenty employees' numbers have been checked and verified so far; employees with invalid numbers were given 90 days to resolve the issue and many worked until the last day possible, the story stated.
Jeff Brogden, director of facilities and operations for the district, said: "The situation is heartbreaking. They’re like family."
According to the story, some of the employees involved had been with the district as long as 10 years.
The district is not required by law to verify Social Security numbers that it submits to the Internal Revenue Service, and has yet to contact law enforcement about the invalid numbers and presumed illegal status of the custodians, the story noted.
Each of the custodians had undergone criminal background checks based on fingerprints, but the checks did not reveal the invalid Social Security numbers, the story added.
According to the Pew Hispanic Center, at least 17 percent of all JanSan employees (an estimated 680,000 plus workers) are illegal immigrants.
Bacterial meningitis closes several rooms at UNCC
CHARLOTTE, NC — The University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNCC) has closed several rooms and facilities for cleaning after a student from the soccer team was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis, according to the Charlotte Observer.
The Athletic Academic Center, the weight room and men's soccer locker room and shower area have all been temporarily closed so custodians can extensively clean and disinfect the areas, the story stated.
Officials claim there is no need to perform widespread testing of students as only those who had close contact with the student need to be tested and possibly treated, the story noted.
Bacterial meningitis is spread through exchange of respiratory and throat secretions, such as from coughing or kissing, and symptoms may include fever, headache, stiff neck, rash, nausea and sleepiness, the story added.
The Athletic Academic Center, the weight room and men's soccer locker room and shower area have all been temporarily closed so custodians can extensively clean and disinfect the areas, the story stated.
Officials claim there is no need to perform widespread testing of students as only those who had close contact with the student need to be tested and possibly treated, the story noted.
Bacterial meningitis is spread through exchange of respiratory and throat secretions, such as from coughing or kissing, and symptoms may include fever, headache, stiff neck, rash, nausea and sleepiness, the story added.
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