THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
“Little good is accomplished without controversy, and no civic evil is ever defeated without publicity.”
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Tuesday February 17, 2015
Volume 127, Issue 96
www.THEDAONLINE.com
Paraguay ambassador visits WVU by lauren caccamo staff writer @dailyathenaeum
Ambassador Igor Pangrazio of Paraguay visited the West Virginia University campus yesterday evening to speak with students about an exchange program with the National University of Asunción, a college located in the country’s capital. Pangrazio, who arrived in Washington to serve as ambassador only last September, said he has learned firsthand the true value in travel and engaging in cul-
tures across the globe. “Two things in life I can share with you: You have to travel and educate yourself. It’s the key to success,” Pangrazio said. “The more you get to know people, the more you understand people.” Pangrazio said he has been to almost 100 countries and more than 30 states and still plans to visit more. A graduate of the University of Kansas, Pangrazio also took part in a student exchange program that allowed him to attend a high school in California for a
year, showing he has not only visited many places in the U.S., but has also experienced American culture at an intimate level. Pangrazio’s international experiences have compelled him to try to encourage American students to come to his home country, listing many compelling reasons for doing so. In a 2014 Gallup poll, for instance, Paraguay was rated the happiest country in the world. Paraguay also has an abundance of wildlife with regions rated second best-preserved, just
beneath the Amazon, housing native groups that have had little-to-no contact with modern civilization. Meanwhile, Paraguay’s economy has had a growth streak, growing 14 percent in 2013. Still, Pangrazio recognizes that Paraguay is not perfect. “It is an amazing experience and the wildlife is unbelievable. But we have our problems. We are trying to reach an equilibrium between development and sustaining our environment, which is very important to us,” Pangrazio said. “It’s an
experience I think we can share.” In 2011, President Barack Obama launched the “100,000 Strong in the Americas” initiative to promote international study in Latin American countries and foster region-wide prosperity through student exchange programs. The initiative offers fellowships to U.S. senior graduating college students, graduate students, young professionals and artists to study or conduct research abroad. WVU provost Joyce McConnell, who was also pres-
ent at the event, said she believes this is a “truly wonderful opportunity” for WVU students to take advantage of. Pangrazio said he agrees. “The sky is the limit in this potential partnership and we want students to be the product of that partnership,” Pangrazio said. “When we learn together, we progress together.” McConnell presented West Virginian-made candles to the ambassador as a gift on behalf of the University. danewsroom@mail.wvu.edu
MICHAEL GARCIA F. BRIAN FERGUSON/The Charleston vGazette
A man watches across the Kanawha River as train cars burn after a derailment in Fayette County on Monday afternoon. The train, which was carrying rail cars with crude oil from North Dakota to Virginia, derailed near Mount Carbon and Deepwater around 1:30 p.m.
West Virginia train derailment sends oil tanker into river MOUNT CARBON, W.Va. (AP) — A train carrying more than 100 tankers of crude oil derailed in southern West Virginia on Monday, sending at least one into the Kanawha River, igniting at least 14 tankers and sparking a house fire, officials said. One person was being treated for potential inhalation issues, but no other injuries were reported, according to a news release from CSX, the train company. Nearby residents were told to evacuate as state emergency response and environmental officials headed to the scene about 30 miles southeast of Charleston. The state was under a winter storm warning and getting heavy snowfall at times, with as much as 5 inches in some places. It’s not clear if the weather had anything to do with the derailment, which occurred about 1:20 EST along a flat stretch of rail. As federal railway and hazardous materials officials were heading to the scene, the company said it’s still investigating what caused the train to come off the tracks. Public Safety spokesman Lawrence Messina said responders at the scene reported one tanker and possibly another went into the river. Messina said local emergency responders were having trouble getting to the house that caught fire. Kanawha County Manager Jennifer Sayre said a reported 14 to 17 tankers caught fire or exploded. James Bennett, 911 coordinator for Fayette County, said a couple hundred families were evacuated as a precaution.
The rail company said it’s still sorting out many specifics in its response. “CSX teams also are working with first responders to address the fire, to determine how many rail cars derailed, and to deploy environmental protective and monitoring measures on land, air and in the nearby Kanawha River,” CSX spokesman Gary Sease said in a news release. The fire continued burning along a hillside Monday evening, and small fires could be seen on the river. David McClung said he felt the heat from one of the explosions at his home about a half mile up the hill. His brother in law was outside at the time of the derailment and heard a loud crack below along the riverfront, then went inside to summon McClung, his wife and their son. One of the explosions that followed sent a fireball at least 300 feet into the air, McClung said. “We felt the heat, I can tell you that,” McClung said. “It was a little scary. It was like an atomic bomb went off.” Becky Nuckols heard the train hit the house directly across the river from her house in the community of Boomer. “I thought it was a snow plow,” she said. That’s what made me look out. All you heard was a big boom.” After calling 911 Nuckols said she ran outside and saw a man leave the house and take off running. The office of Gov. Earl
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21° / 9°
COMEDY CARAVAN
INSIDE
Underground Comedy College makes stop in Morgantown. A&E PAGE 5
SNOWY
News: 1, 2 Opinion: 4 A&E: 3, 5 Sports: 7, 8, 10 Campus Connection: 6 Puzzles: 6 Classifieds: 8, 9
Doyle Maurer/THE DAILY ATHENAEUM
Garcia hopes for a second year as Mountaineer Editor’s Note: Each day this week, we’ll feature one of the four competitors vying to be the next Mountaineer Mascot. Today, we’re featuring Michael Garcia, the current Mountaineer. by lauren caccamo staff writer @dailyathenaeum
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ven without the buckskin hat and rifle, Michael Garcia’s full beard and tall stature make it easy to recognize him as the Mountaineer. But appearances have little to do with the responsibility attached to the role as West Virginia University’s mascot, and Garcia said he understands that even more as he approaches the end of his term as the Mountaineer Mascot. “I’ve done a lot this past year, and from the experiences that have come with being the Mountaineer, the drive I have to represent the University is there now more than ever,” Garcia said.
Garcia was recently chosen as one of four finalists to represent WVU as the Mountaineer for the 2015-2016 school year. Since being awarded the mascot position last April, Garcia has traveled to 36 of the 55 counties in West Virginia and attended a majority of the University’s sporting and alumni events. Meeting people from all over the state leaves little time to relax with family and friends. “You have to make the sacrifices, but they are sacrifices worth making,” Garcia said. A Fairmont native, Garcia said he practically grew up a Mountaineer when both of his older siblings attended WVU. Between football games and the proximity of Fairmont to
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Saira Blair reflects on time in office so far by jennifer skinner staff writer @dailyathenaeum
As her first session hits the halfway point, West Virginia Delegate Saira Blair (R) reflects on a positive experience so far in the West Virginia Capitol. A native of Martinsburg, W.Va., Blair serves the state’s 59th district in the West Virginia House of Delegates and was elected during her first semester as a freshman economics student at West Virginia University. “I love it. I’ve learned a lot,” Blair said. “(Thursday) was the halfway mark,
and we’ve already accomplished so many things.” On that list of accomplishments is sponsoring a bill that requires photo identification in order to vote and reforming the judicial system by electing nonpartisan judges, Blair said. “The number one thing I ran on was bringing jobs to West Virginia so my friends wouldn’t have to go to college here at WVU and then leave the state to find a job,” she said. “We’ve got more court reform coming. We have some major issues related to jobs, prevailing wage and right to work. There are big issues
SAIRA BLAIR we’ll be tackling in the next few weeks. I’m looking forward to it.” Although it is a different lifestyle from being a student, Blair said she enjoys the fast pace of work-
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WHERE WERE GREY’S PARTS? Commentary: One columnist tackles ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ and its lack of equal genital representation OPINION PAGE 4
ing in the state capitol and experiencing the diversity of other delegates. “It’s non-stop. I wake up really early in the morning
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A WHOLE NEW LOOK New pitching staff for West Virginia off to good start. SPORTS PAGE 8
Freggies First Track fruits and vegetables here: tweatwell.com
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