550 Valero refinery workers are losing their jobs -- the refinery in Delaware City is shutting down permanently.
WDEL's Mellany Armstrong reports.Video Here
Company spokesman Bill Day says there are many reasons for the closure, including
severe financial losses because of the economy, significant capital spending
requirements, and high operating costs. He says the plant has lost a million dollars a
day through the first three months of 2009.
The shutdown will start immediately, but it takes several days. Workers will be
compensated for the next 60 days, and any severance will come on top of that. Day says
Valero gas stations will continue to be supplied by other refineries.
State Representative John Kowalko has a unique perspective on the Valero announcement. He worked at the refinery for 25 years.
Kowalko says he's not entirely surprised by the closure. Demand is down, prices at the
pump are down, and that means less profit for Valero.Audio Here
Kowalko says he also wouldn't be surprised if the refinery closure means higher gas
prices in the area. He says a number of local gas stations were serviced by the Valero
refinery.
Governor Markell says the state will do all it can for the Valero workers who are losing their jobs.
Audio Here
Markell says he knew the company was having difficulty and was looking for a buyer,
but he was surprised by the news of the closing. He says he's still optimistic about the
future of Delaware -- the state just has to work harder to improve the economy and find
jobs for those workers.
The Catholic Diocese of Wilmington is asking a bankruptcy judge to allow it to continue paying retiree benefits to priests who committed sexual abuse.
After filing for Chapter 11 protection last month, the diocese told the judge it would
not make any payments to priests accused of sexual abuse, even if the abuse had not been
substantiated, without a court order.
But in a filing late Thursday, the diocese said it has an obligation to care for
retired clergy, including priests dismissed
from public ministry but not yet defrocked.
The motion asks for permission to continue paying benefits to six confirmed
pedophiles, including 80-year-old former priest
Francis DeLuca, who was defrocked after serving a jail term in New York for repeatedly
abusing his grandnephew.
The state Division of Public Health's school vaccination program against H1N1 flu is, for the most part, right on schedule.
DPH director Doctor Karyl Rattay says some clinics have had to be rescheduled for
reasons including last week's storm in Sussex County, but the majority of next week's
vaccine allotment from the CDC is going to vaccinate students.Audio Here
Delaware's getting more than 18 thousand doses of the injectable vaccine and nearly 6
thousand of the nasal spray version.
Rattay says there were 36 confirmed cases of H1N1 flu in Delaware last week, bringing
the state's total since October 4th to 17 hundred 91.
A 38-year-old man could face the death penalty after a jury convicted him of murdering his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend in a jealous rage.
Clifford Wright was found guilty Thursday of murdering 40-year-old Tamela Gardner and
41-year-old Gabriel Gabrielli. The
jury was ordered to return Nov. 30 for the penalty phase.
Prosecutors said Wright beat Gardner and Gabrielli to death as they slept together in
Gardner's Pike Creek home in July 2006.
The bodies were found four days later in Gardner's minivan, which had been abandoned
in a park in Hockessin and set on fire.
The defense acknowledged Wright had a stormy relationship with Gardner, but said
there were others who had equal motive and opportunity to kill the couple.
Copyright 2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not
be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
An Episcopal priest who was relieved of his duties because of alleged misconduct with a female parishioner
has been offered a state government job.
The Rev. Robert Broesler, pastor of St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Wilmington, is
scheduled to start working Monday for the Department of Health and Social Services.
Meanwhile, a hearing is scheduled Wednesday in a lawsuit in which Broesler, who
denies any misconduct, claims church officials have wrongfully denied him pay and
benefits and have tried to dissolve his pastoral relationship without following the
required process.
Broesler is seeking a restraining order to prevent church officials from taking
further steps to jeopardize his position as a
tenured pastor pending the outcome of church proceedings, or using his acceptance of the
state job against him.
Copyright 2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may
not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Crossing guards in the city finally have a contract approved.
Wilmington City Council retroactively passed for Local 1102B, the crossing guards, for
the years 2008, 2009, and 2010.
The Local will receive a retroactive pay raise of 2% for 2008 and 1.75% for 2009,
there will be no raise in 2010.
Councilman Kevin Kelley had nothing but praise for the city Crossing Guards.
Kelley hopes the city will be able to work more proactively with union contracts so
there will be less retroactivity involved with future contracts.
Wilmington City Council passes a Business license ordinance in hopes it will aid contractors bidding for city jobs.
The new rules make it hold General Contractors responsible for a roster card listing
all subcontractors they use on city jobs.
This will help make sure city wage tax is being paid and valid business licenses are
obtained.
Councilman Bud Freel says its all about fairness.
Freel added it can help prevent contract lowballing from companies knowing their
subcontractors were not licensed or paying wage tax.
Are video games on your kid's Christmas wish list? Some state lawmakers want you to know not all the games are appropriate for youngsters.
WDEL's Frank Gerace reports.Video Here
State Representative Helene Keeley, a Wilmington Democrat, says the Entertainment
Software Rating Board, or ESRB, has come up with a rating system parents can use to
determine if a video game is suitable for their kids, and retailers have a way to check
up when buyers check out--when a game rated "M" for "Mature" is scanned, an electronic
prompt tells the checker to ask for ID.
Governor Markell and several General Assembly members joined Keeley at the Best Buy
on Churchmans Road Thursday to kick off a campaign to raise public awareness of the
rating system.
If you'd like to learn more about it, you can visit esrb.org.
Christiana Mall has kicked off the holiday shopping season with a slew of new stores.
WDEL's Mellany Armstrong reports.Video Here
Santa Claus crashed the mall's big party announcing new retailers and restaurants.
The renovation added 200,000 square feet, and shoppers are excited.
New retailers still to come include Forever 21, Barnes & Noble, Anthropologie and
Urban Outfillers. New restaurants opening soon include the Cheesecake Factory and J.B.
Dawson's.
Video Here
Audio Here
