Red Lobsters to go green

ORLANDO, FL — Darden Restaurants Inc. — parent company of Red Lobster, Olive Garden, Longhorn Steakhouse and other restaurant chains — announced that it will incorporate Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards in the building and remodeling of its locations, according to GlobeSt.com.

According to the story, eight locations have already begun the process of obtaining LEED certification from the U. S. Green Building Council (USGBC) over the next two years.

Darden Senior Vice President of Development Suk Singh said: "While we may not seek LEED certification for every restaurant we build or remodel, we can make a positive impact by learning from the eight restaurants where we are seeking LEED certification and applying best practices across our entire portfolio."

One of the restaurants seeking LEED certification is an Olive Garden location in Jonesboro, Arkansas, the story noted.

According to the story, the company plans to include LEED points-earning measures like recycled building materials, more windows to allow for natural lighting, energy-efficient fixtures and reclaimed heat from air-conditioning and freezer-system condensers.

Darden Restaurants is currently awaiting LEED Gold certification on its newly-built headquarters in Orlando, Florida, the story added.

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Student dies in third meningitis case on campus this school year

COLUMBUS, OH — Andrea Robinson, an 18-year-old freshman at Ohio University, died after being hospitalized with bacterial meningitis, the third case for the school this academic year, according to the Columbus Dispatch.

According to the study, custodians have been busy cleaning and sanitizing Robinson's dorm room and common areas at the on-campus house where she lived in an attempt to ward of any additional cases of the deadly disease that infects the linings of the brain and spinal cord and attacks quickly.

Earlier this month, a student living in a different residence hall contracted the disease but recovered and returned to campus, and officials say there doesn't seem to be any connection between the two students, the story stated.

A third student who contracted the disease in October of 2009 also recovered, the story noted.

The university, although not legally required to do so, has elected to make the information regarding the illnesses public, the story stated.

Dean of Students Ryan Lombardi said: "Our philosophical approach has been that any time there is a reason for a public-health concern, we do our best to share the information that we can with our population so they can take steps to protect themselves."

Lombardi was told by a parent that it seemed the university had more cases of meningitis than other schools, but he said that may be due to other schools electing not to report instances to the public, the story added.

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OSHA check scammer swindles thousands

ST. PAUL, MN — Minnesota authorities are notifying businesses that paid Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) fines in 2009 that they may have been victims of a check-fraud scam by a state employee, according to SafetyNewsAlert.

According to the story, Terri Lynn Brennan was arrested for allegedly gathering account information from OSHA fine payment checks and using it to create counterfeit checks and cash them.

Authorities say that while 759 businesses paid OSHA fines in 2009, so far only a handful of companies have been found victims of the scam, with a total loss of a few thousand dollars, the story stated.

Because of the scam, officials have since changed the rules on the handling and storing of OSHA fine checks, and authorities believe Brennan acted alone in the scam, the story added.

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Police station evacuated due to mold

BUFFALO, NY — Police and employees were ordered to evacuate the D-District precinct station after tests showed mold and poor air quality in the building, according to WGRZ-TV.

According to the story, Buffalo Common Council Member Joe Golombek says there are complaints about the station from as early as 1997 and at least 10 officers have been diagnosed with various illnesses — including cancer and chest infections — over the past decade.

The department hired a professional cleaning company to remove more than three feet of standing water in the basement, clean air ducts and assess for any additional damage, the story stated.

Dr. Stanley Schwartz pointed out that it was too early to tell if the illnesses were linked to the presence of mold, saying "When one sees a variety of different cancers showing up at a particular site it makes you question is that mold related or is it just a blip that occurs. There are these statistical blips that occur, you have these outbreaks of cancer or infections in a particular area and it's a statistical fluke."

The police have moved temporarily to a closed school while remediation takes place at the 14-year-old building, the story added.

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University pays $1.2 million in Legionnaires' lawsuit settlement

COLUMBUS, OH — Ohio State University has agreed to a $1.2 million settlement in a lawsuit filed by a woman whose husband contracted and died from Legionnaires' disease after drinking from a water faucet, according to the Dayton Daily News.

According to the story, Sharron Morris filed the lawsuit in April of 2007 after her husband, David Morris, contracted the disease from drinking tap water at the Ohio State Medical Center.

The hospital staff was aware the water was contaminated with bacteria causing the disease, but did not warn patients, the story stated.

Morris family attorney David Shroyer said: "Instead, they just handed out bottled water, but didn't specifically instruct patients not to drink the water nor did they have any signs saying not to drink the water."

David Morris was in the hospital receiving treatment for leukemia and died five months after contracting Legionnaires' disease at the facility, the story added.

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First LEED Platinum-certified building in Tennessee

CHATTANOOGA, TN — The offices of a nonprofit initiative that helps increase green building awareness have been awarded the first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification in Tennessee, according to the Chattanoogan.

According to the story, the offices of the greenspaces initiative were completely renovated to include sustainable features like repurposed demolition materials, geothermal heating and a focus on daylighting.

Co-director Anj McClain said: "greenspaces was formed to address the lack of green building awareness in Chattanooga and the surrounding region. In the past year and a half, we have helped five Chattanooga buildings achieve LEED certification, with 22 more currently in the process. So, we wanted our own offices to be a model of what it is truly possible to achieve."

The storefront of the 100-year-old building was designed to include a light shelf to bounce light deep into the building, resulting in very little — if any — electric light needed during daylight hours, the story stated.

Captured rainwater and low-flow and optical sensors are part of a water-saving effort that uses 81.4 percent less water than a traditional building, the story added.

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Ohio State Univ. Janitor kills supervisor, self after poor evaluation

COLUMBUS, OH — A janitor at Ohio State University shot two supervisors, killing one and then himself in the campus maintenance building after receiving a poor job performance evaluation, according to the Associated Press.

According to the story, Nathaniel Brown opened fire at 3:30 a.m. Tuesday in a maintenance office using two handguns, killing building services manager Larry Wallington and injuring operations shift leader Henry Butler.

Police did not confirm whether the poor evaluation was a motive for the shooting and a campus official declined to comment on reports that Brown was in the process of being fired, citing the ongoing investigation, the story stated.

Vernon Baisden, assistant vice president for public safety, said: "This is a tragic event, and our hearts go out to all of the families."

About six other employees were in the building at the time of the shooting, and no students were involved and classes continued as scheduled, the story noted.

Brown previously served five years in prison on a receiving stolen property, and while Baisden said Ohio State does conduct background checks depending on the type of position, it was not clear if a background check had been conducted before Brown was hired, the story added.

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