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Judge denies mineral shipper's bankruptcy reorganization plan
Associated Press
CLEVELAND - Mineral miner and shipper Oglebay Norton Co.'s bankruptcy reorganization plan was rejected by a judge who said the plan lacked information about how the company would make settlement payments to thousands of people who claim to have been sickened by asbestos.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Joel Rosenthal rejected the proposal Tuesday at a hearing in Worcester, Mass.
The company said in a statement that it would ask the judge for permission to submit more evidence to the court, which scheduled a hearing for Oct. 28 in Delaware.
Oglebay Norton is a co-defendant in lawsuits that claim 72,000 people were sickened by fire-resistant asbestos, which was sometimes used in the construction of ships.
Exposure to asbestos can cause asbestosis, in which the fibers get into the lungs and scar them, making it difficult to breathe. There is no effective treatment.
Attorneys representing some of the claimants objected during the bankruptcy hearing to confirm Oglebay's plan, which was already approved by a majority of creditors.
The company says that it would not have to pay any asbestos claims directly because it has insurance and an insurance trust fund.
"We obviously are disappointed with the ruling," said Michael D. Lundin, Oglebay's chief executive office. "But we are gratified that the judge overruled all other objections related to the plan."
Oglebay's reorganization plan would have paid holders of $104 million in debt dollar for dollar. Unsecured creditors who are owed $26.9 million also would have been paid in full.
The Cleveland company, which took over John D. Rockefeller's iron ore properties in Minnesota in 1890, was created as an iron ore agency business in 1854 and entered lake shipping in the 1920s.
When Oglebay purchased mineral properties to reduce reliance on a then-sputtering steel industry in 1998, the debt from the rapid diversification swamped the company after the economy turned sharply worse.
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Health officials say workers at veterans home exposed to asbestos
The Associated Press - Thursday, October 07, 2004
BISMARCK, N.D.
State health officials are considering penalties in a case in which a supervisor at the Veterans Home in Lisbon allegedly exposed workers to asbestos.
Health Department engineer Ken Wangler said the workers were ordered to tear down a ceiling in April without protective gear. He said the workers had little exposure to the asbestos, which is linked to cancer, and residents at the home likely were not exposed at all.
Wangler said Bob Nelson, the supervisor who ordered the work, should have consulted state officials or people licensed to handle asbestos.
Nelson has declined comment.
The state was not notified until July 27, when the North Dakota Public Employees Association wrote to the state Risk Management Agency. The agency asked the Health Department to investigate.
Veterans Home Administrator Neal Asper said the employees' exposure was low and the size of the job was so small most that people would do it themselves.
Wangler said state penalties for improper asbestos handling range from a warning to a fine of $10,000 per violation per day, but he said any action against the Veterans Home would not be severe.
Continue with:
Halliburton's problematic Cheney connection
Hoping to escape the election spotlight, the vice president's old firm may shed its KBR division, the one doing billions of dollars of work in Iraq.
The Law Firm of Baron & Budd, P.C. Announces Class Action Lawsuit Against Zix Corporation
Thursday October 7, 10:30 am ET
DALLAS, Oct. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- The law firm of Baron & Budd, P.C. announces that it has filed a class action lawsuit
Union moves for greater school asbestos awareness
Thursday, 7 October 2004
The Australian Education Union says parents and teachers need to be aware of the extent of asbestos in school buildings.
N.D. looks at asbestos case
By Janell Cole, The Forum
Published Thursday, October 07, 2004
BISMARCK -- Workers at the state Veterans Home in Lisbon were exposed to asbestos when their supervisor directed them to tear out a power house ceiling without protective gear, a state Health Department engineer said Wednesday.
Asbestos judge tosses out 3 lawsuits
By Paul Hampel
Of the Post-Dispatch
Madison County Circuit Judge Daniel J. Stack dismissed on Wednesday three out-of-state asbestos cases in his first rulings as chief asbestos judge, criticizing such lawsuits as a "cash cow" for the county.
Less than month ago small colour bond fences went up at the Tenterfield Childcare Centre to replace an old paling fence that stood between the childcare centre and the soon-to-be demolished council asbestos fence.
Plum School District officials said they have received "a handful" of complaints that youngsters at Pivik Elementary School have had some health problems during the construction of a new roof.
NEW South Wales Attorney-General Bob Debus expects legal advice tomorrow on whether his office can start contempt of court proceedings against James Hardie Industries and their legal advisers.
Fires, smashed glass make Hotel Shediac a 'nightmare'
WebPosted Oct 7 2004 08:59 AM ADT
SHEDIAC — Vandals have taken over the historic Shediac Hotel, setting fires and ransacking the interior, prompting fire officials to demand the 150-year-old building be torn down.
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