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From: TSS (216-119-133-30.ipset13.wt.net)
In Reply to: Lax Security at USDA Labs Putting Farms at Risk posted by TSS on December 21, 2002 at 11:40 am:
After Power Problem, Clinton Urges Plum Island's Shutdown Photos Should Plum Island be shut down? More Coverage December 20, 2002, 3:04 PM EST Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton has demanded that the U.S. Department of Agriculture cease operations at its Plum Island Animal Disease Center until it can correct problems with the electrical system that led to a blackout on Sunday. But the agency says the problems that shut down some air filtration systems have already been fixed so there’s no reason to close the lab. The New York Democrat also said in a two-page letter to Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman Thursday that the blackout constituted grounds to terminate its contract with LB&B Associates of Columbia, Maryland, which handles maintenance on the island and is embroiled in four-month strike with support employees. Clinton said that Sunday’s blackout “compromised biocontainment” and demanded USDA “cease operations at PIADC until normal and safe functioning of the facility can be fully restored.” “At this point we don’t feel it’s necessary to shut down the island,” USDA spokeswoman Alisa Harrison said. “We are very confident that we are able to maintain the biocontainment and have taken the appropriate precautions. There were some mechanical difficulties that have been fixed and have been improved. We feel that Plum Island continues to operate in a safe manner.” USDA had two new backup generators installed and other equipment replaced Thursday after electrical problems shut down safety systems at the lab for several hours Sunday and three emergency generators could not be started. LB&B’s contract shows it is responsible for the lab’s electrical and power generating systems, Clinton said, including operating the diesel-powered emergency generators. The contract states that “the contractor shall ensure that power is supplied to PIADC 24 hours a day.” “This loss of power clearly constitutes a breach of the service contract, which should therefore result in LB&B losing their contract, effective immediately,” Clinton wrote. The letter points out that the power failure resulted in a loss of air pressure that allowed some rubber gaskets that seal the doors of the containment facility to deflate. Since the strike of 76 maintenance workers, LB&B has been handling the work on the island with replacements, who currently total 45. There have been several accidents on island ferries and other systems problems during the strike, raising questions about the safety of operations. USDA said the systems lost power because of a problem with the electrical feed from the Long Island Power Authority that was compounded by the failure of the lab's three emergency generators to operate. USDA spokeswoman Sandy Hays said there was no breach in the biocontainment systems and no health hazard to employees or the public. She said only three of more than 40 air filtration systems were affected during the three-hour outage and as a precaution, workers used duct tape to seal the doors to rooms where animals were being held for testing. Striking members of International Union of Operating Engineers Local 30 blamed the problems on replacement workers' unfamiliarity with the generators. They and one of the replacement workers, who declined to be identified, contended that all of the air filtration system fans were affected and that the power failure lasted five hours, not three. LIPA workers solved the blackout when they found and repaired a circuit problem at a substation on Orient Point, spokesman Bert Cunningham said. Copyright © 2002, Newsday, Inc. http://www.newsday.com/news/printedition/ny-liplum203054394dec20,0,3230884.story?coll=ny%2Dnews%2Dprint TSS
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