Roswell Daily Record
Vol. 122, No. 208 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
August 30, 2013
FRIDAY
www.rdrnews.com
Chemical leak at Leprino hospitalizes 17 JILL MCLAUGHLIN RECORD STAFF WRITER
FAST FOOD WORKERS PROTEST WAGES
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
A liquid ammonia leak at Leprino Foods Company Thursday morning sent 17 workers to the hospital and forced an evacuation of the mozzarella cheese plant. The leak occurred on a refrigeration system located on the roof outside the building just after 9 a.m. Maintenance workers preparing to repair a condenser on the north side of the building took the brunt of the injuries when the unit malfunctioned and
they inhaled ammonia vapors, according to Leprino officials. Some liquid ammonia dripped into the building, but the main leak was contained outside and vaporized instantly, said Leprino’s Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs Mike Reidy. Those who were injured, “had a variety of primarily respiratory issues as a result of being exposed to the ammonia vapors,” Reidy said. “It was a liquid release that almost instantly vaporized.”
All 17 were transported to local hospitals. One declined treatment. All were released by Thursday evening. Leprino’s in-house hazardous materials team responded quickly and called the Roswell Fire Department for assistance, said Division Chief Jason Sweatfield. The department dispatched three engines and support vehicles to assist with Leprino’s ef forts, Sweatfield said. See LEPRINO, Page A3
Mark Wilson Photo
An ambulance leaves Leprino Foods following an ammonia leak that forced the evacuation of the plant and sent 17 workers to area hospitals with minor injuries, Thursday morning.
Council approves police contract
- PAGE B4
JILL MCLAUGHLIN RECORD STAFF WRITER
TYLENOL TO GET NEW WARNING LABEL - PAGE A7
INSIDE SPORTS Mark Wilson Photo
Health survey checks Roswell’s pulse
Medical technician Joe Glynn takes measurements of John Hagstrom during a CDC National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey held at ENMU-R, Thursday morning.
AMY VOGELSANG RECORD STAFF WRITER
NFL TO SETTLE CONCUSSION LAWSUITS - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES
• Erica Marie Navarrette • Karen Yvonne Uhrich • Veronica “Betty” Villescas Lucero Chavez • Angela Dawn Christensen • Ruby Whitman Davis
- PAGES A2, A7
HIGH ...96˚ LOW ....66˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........B5 COMICS.................B3 FINANCIAL .............B4 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........A8 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8
INDEX
Four trailers sit parked at Easter n New Mexico University, looking nothing more than just that. But just like Doctor Who’s
TARDIS, these traveling units are bigger on the inside, with a maze of halls and rooms where National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data is being collected. Conducted by the
National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), NHANES is a program that monitors the health and nutrition of the U.S. population based on a 5,000-person sample size.
latory schemes to oversee the medical and recreational marijuana industries burgeoning across the country. The action, welcomed by supporters of legalization, could set the stage for more states to legalize marijuana. Alaska could vote on the question next year, and a few other states plan similar votes in 2016. The policy change embraces what Justice Department officials called a “trust but verify” approach between the federal gover nment and
states that enact recreational drug use. In a memo to all 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices around the country, Deputy Attorney General James Cole said the federal government expects that states and local gover nments authorizing “marijuanarelated conduct” will implement strong and effective regulatory and enforcement systems that address the threat those state laws could pose to public health and safety. “If state enforcement
This data is then used to help develop health policies and programs. Starting today, anonymous individuals selected as the sample size for data See PULSE, Page A3
City Council approved a new, two-year contract for the Roswell Police Officers Association Thursday that included a pay increase and other incentives in a positive step toward encourage retention, councilors said. “When the city can come together with the police department or any collective bargaining unit and address the issues that are important to employees, it’s a step in the right direction,” Mayor Del Jur ney said. Negotiations between the city and the police association went smoothly, said Detective Jeff Prince. “We were happy,” Prince said. “City Council was able to make a nice offer for us. It has stalled out before. This time, it didn’t get to that. We were able to work out a solution. I have to hand it to the City Council. They had some ideas nobody discussed.” See POLICE, Page A3
Feds green light state regulation of marijuana WASHINGTON (AP) — Despite 75 years of federal marijuana prohibition, the Justice Department said Thursday that states can let people use the drug, license people to grow it and even allow adults to stroll into stores and buy it — as long as the weed is kept away from kids, the black market and federal property. In a sweeping new policy statement prompted by pot legalization votes in Washington and Colorado last fall, the department gave the green light to states to adopt tight regu-
See MARIJUANA, Page A3
AP Photo
Rachel Schaefer, of Denver, smokes marijuana Dec. 31, on the official opening night of Club 64, a marijuana-specific social club, in Denver.
RDR news now on KBCQ Radio Gay marriage lawsuit Local radio station KBCQ is now broadcasting headline news from the Roswell Daily Record five times daily. The content of the fastpaced 60-second newscast comes directly from t he n ew sr o o m o f t h e Daily Record, making it the most local and up-tod at e b r o a d ca st n e w s source in Chaves County. “ T h e R o sw e l l D a il y Record is pleased to partner with KBCQ to give a taste of what is in or will b e i n t h e n ew sp a p er, ” s ai d Ch a r le s F i s ch e r,
p ubl is her of th e Da ily Record. Listeners can now get i nfo r m at ion ab ou t t h e latest news and events as they happen, then read t h e f ul l st or ies in t h e Record the following day. “KBCQ is excited and h on o r e d t o have t h is wo rk in g r ela ti on wit h R oswell ’s leg en dar y newspaper,” said John Sebastian, vice president o f o per at ion s f or t h e r a di o st at ion . “T he Roswell Daily Record is really the only true newsgathering source in the
area so this is a real benefit to our listeners.”
Simulcast on 92.5 FM and 1230 AM, KBCQ is billed as a “greatest hits” radio station, playing the best music from the 60s, 70s and 80s. Recent surveys show it to be the fastest-growing radio station in Roswell and tops in workplace listening. KBCQ is owned and operated by Majestic Communications, Roswell’s only locally owned radio company.
targets Los Alamos Co. SANTA FE (AP) — County clerks across New Mexico are joining a lawsuit that allowed same-sex couples to be married and plan an appeal to get a statewide decision by the Supreme Court on whether gay marriage is legal.
The executive director of a group representing county clerks said a district judge in Bernallilo County on Thursday allowed the New Mexico Association of Counties and county clerks
to intervene in the lawsuit. The clerks and the association expect to file an appeal next week with the state Supreme Court. The judge earlier this week ruled that it was unconstitutional to deny gay and lesbian couples a marriage license. The clerks’ move came as a same-sex couple in Los Alamos County brought a lawsuit to require local officials to issue them a marriage license.