The Utah Statesman, October 11, 2010

Page 1

Monday, Oct. 11, 2010

Utah Statesman The

Campus Voice since 1902

Utah State University • Logan, Utah • www.utahstatesman.com

Observatory open house Suit accuses USU in landslide case marks official completion By DAN SMITH staff writer

By ROB JEPSON staff writer

The USU physics department hosted an open house last Friday to commemorate the opening of the recently completed USU Observatory. The observatory houses a 20-inch PlaneWave Instruments telescope in a 16.5-foot diameter dome placed on top of the SER Building near the Merrill-Cazier Library. “It is wonderful for the university to see the dream that we have always thought about happening on campus,” said Provost Ray Coward, who spoke at the open house. “This wonderful telescope and wonderful facility create opportunities for our community partners, as well as our students, as well as our faculty, to do new and exciting things on our campus.” Construction started on the observatory last year and was finished in roughly two months, a “record time,” said Dean of Science

James MacMahon. “The USU Facilities people gave us a bargain construction plan,” MacMahon said. “In fact, it was so good that the money we had was sufficient to pay for the telescope after they did the work. The whole thing was very professional.” Roughly 200 people were in attendance as the open house began and more trickled in throughout the evening. Guests were allowed to go to the top of the SER building to see the observatory look at the sky through the telescope. Despite the heavy rain clouds that obstructed the telescope’s view, many attendees expressed excitement about the device. Kenneth Benyon, a junior in the science education program, said, “Apart from the lower-level astronomy classes and general

- See TELESCOPE, page 4

THE USU OBSERVATORY is home to a 20-inch telescope which Provost Raymond Coward said will welcome more opportunities for the community to become involved on campus. ARMEN HOVSEPYAN photo

Facing a lawsuit alleging university responsibility in last year’s canal landslide that killed three people, USU legal council denied any involvement in an official response submitted Monday Oct. 4. A landslide occurred on July 11, 2009 that was caused when a canal near the Island neighborhood gave way. A large portion of the property where the plaintiff’s family resided, which was located near 915 Canyon Road, was covered in debris. USU General Counsel Attorney Craig Simper said the situation is certainly tragic, but the university had nothing to do with the disaster. He said it is the “opinion of many,” that USU is an easy target because of its close proximity with the Island neighborhood property. According to an official complaint served to USU on Sept. 16, plaintiff Victor Alanis is seeking damages from the university, Logan City, UDOT, Logan Northern Irrigation Company, and the proprieter of the land in question. Alanis is representing the estates of his children Victor Alanis, Jr. and Abbey Alanis, who died as a result of the landslide. Alanis’ common law wife Evelia Jacqueline Leavey, the children’s mother, also died in the landslide. Among the allegations listed, the complaint states the defendants, including USU, have “commissioned and/or participated in various scientific studies performed with regard to the bluff’s stability and its potential for landslides.” “The residence was located on the north side of Canyon Road at the foot of the ... bluff, below the Logan, Hyde Park and Smithfield canal, which runs across the slope,” the complaint states, among the factual allegations. The complaint states the plaintiff “has suffered pain and anguish of mind through the loss of his family and the resulting reduction in the quality of his life.” According to the official response, USU representatives admit that “studies were conducted” but deny any allegations concerning what the studies were in regards to, due to a “lack of sufficient information.” Representatives also deny that USU had any involvement in events leading up to or circumstances causing the landslide. USU Risk Manager Joe Dulin said he was not at liberty to discuss ongoing cases, but he was free to discuss the general process. He said cases like this could take years before going to trial. “You can imagine that we don’t necessarily agree,” Dulin said, regarding the plaintiff’s allegations. Utah Attorney General Mark L. Shurtleff and Assistant Utah Attorney General Sandra L. Steinvoort are representing USU in the case, according to official documents. Neither Alanis nor his attorneys were available for comment. – dan.whiteny.smith@aggiemail.usu.edu

The amazing ruck-race

UTAH STATE ROTC hosts Ranger Challenge at Camp Williams, Utah and 14 college teams including USU participated. Each team had 12 members and tested their endurance, logic and teamwork through 12 challenges. USU was awarded fifth place. The entire six hour event was timed and by scoring well in certain challenges, points were awarded to teams by taking minutes off of their total times. The winning team completes all 12 challnges in the least amount of time. The course covered approximately 7.5 miles of terrain., which the teams rucked, or hiked, to complete their objectives. STERLING BOIN photo

Inside This Issue

10/11/10 Women’s soccer dominates in a pair of weekend games, beating Nevada and Houston Baptist. Page 10

New performing group, Out of the Blue, encourages students to consider art program. Page 7

www.utahstatesman.com Hey, check out the blogs area of our website. You’ll find music reviews that didn’t make it into the paper. Comment at will! Official Student Newspaper of Utah State University • “It’s All The News You Need!”


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