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ARTIST SERIES: Wildwood sets season PAGE 11A
Help wanted: School bus drivers BY DEBRA NEUTKENS EDITOR
Looking for job security, paid holidays and summers off? Consider driving a school bus. Drivers are in demand as bus companies and school districts struggle to fill open positions. Transportation managers can’t put a finger on any particular reason. It might be the responsibility of hauling children to and from school that can be overwhelming for some. Or it could be the split shift during the day. For Tom Fraser, a driver and trainer for Minnesota Central, it’s that very combination that drew him to the job. Now 71, the affable school bus driver sold his auto repair business in White Bear Lake, traveled a
bit and decided he needed more to do in retirement. “I didn’t want to stay home and watch Oprah,” he said. “I drove a school bus in college and liked it. I love the kids.” Minnesota Central contracts with the Mahtomedi School District. It might be the only bus company in the metro starting the school year fully staffed. White Bear Lake Schools Transportation Coordinator Mike Turrito is short about five drivers. Rehbein Transit, which serves a small portion of White Bear, is short eight drivers. Fraser is aware of a base right now that is short 25 people. “I know at least three places I could get a job tomorrow,” he said. SEE DRIVER SHORTAGE, PAGE 8A
SHANNON GRANHOLM | PRESS PUBLICATIONS
“Drivers wanted” and “now hiring bus drivers” signs can be spotted around town and on school buses, especially as companies try to fill vacant routes in time for the start of the school year.
Water Gremlin ordered to stop coating operation BY DEBRA NEUTKENS EDITOR
PAUL DOLS | PRESS PUBLICATIONS
Patriotic Zumba session Mary Kline leads an American Zumba session at Railroad Park — complete with small United States flags — during the “America is Beautiful” event Saturday, Aug. 24 in White Bear Lake. Find more photos on page 1B.
WHITE BEAR TOWNSHIP — Two days after personal injury attorneys filed a civil lawsuit in district court against the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) for refusing to hand over records regarding Water Gremlin (see separate story), its commissioner ordered the company to immediately cease all solvent-based coating operations. In a press release issued Friday morning, Aug. 23, the agency said it learned that Water Gremlin knew June 20, 2019 that it was releasing dichloroethylene, or DCE, the primary ingredient in the solvent FluoSolv, into soil vapor beneath its plant and possibly into adjacent areas, rather than through its control stack as required. DCE is a solvent Water Gremlin uses for coating battery terminals to prevent batteries from leaking. MPCA learned in January that Water Gremlin failed to report accurate emissions data for more than 15 years
and said it has sought greater accountability from the company for its current and past behavior. The company failed to immediately report the DCE release or take corrective actions, and finally reported the information to MPCA 40 days later on July 30, 2019. On Aug. 14, Water Gremlin was asked to voluntarily halt its coating operations until corrective actions could be taken to prevent further release of the chemical. The company offered to pause its operations from Aug. 23 to Aug. 28 while it mitigated the current contamination; however, Water Gremlin does not have a plan to stop future contamination, wrote MPCA. As a result of its inaction, Water Gremlin was issued an administrative order Aug. 22 by Commissioner Laura Bishop that requires the company to shut down its coating operations. The operation may not restart until corrective action is taken to address the release SEE MPCA ORDER, PAGE 9A
August 29 – September 4, 2019
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