The Times from Shreveport, Louisiana • Page 3

1 j7j (Hie 2imts VfetroNews v'MtrlllnNMir 10-A Tuesday, Jan. 13, 1981 emphis firm offers to lease hospital Metro $115,000 a year to the police jury for retirement of current bonds on the facility. Asked if United would maintain the Jackson Parish Ambulance Service, Henson said other arrangements would probably have to be made for that hospital operation. "We are not in the ambulance he said. In a related action, the jurors approved the appointment of Purvis Hunt to the hospital board on a split vote.

Hunt received five votes to two for Travis Hall, two for Eugene Norrid and one for John Paul Johns. A resolution offered by Juror J. A. Watson prior to the voting eliminated Ceola Quails from consideration from the post. Quails was the candidate backed by the hospital employees.

Following the meeting, Quails accused the jury of "playing politics" with the appointment. He said the Police Jury had asked the employees to select the candidate for the board and then refused to appoint their selection. Watson said he could not go along with Quails appointment because it would give one district three members on the board. He offered a resolution financial records and survey the operation of the facility before presenting a proposal. The hospital has been the focal point for a recent conflict between employees and hospital officials.

Employees asked for pay increases and better working conditions at a meeting last Thursday. The hospital board refused to consider any general wage increase. Henson told jurors his firm presently manages, leases or owns 13 hospitals in Texas, Louisiana and Tennessee. He said United Hospital Corp. could run the Jackson Parish hospital and return prohibiting more than one member being appointed to the board from the same district.

That effectively eliminated Quails from consideration. In other action, Jackson Parish Recreation Director Denise Barlow requested a tax election be called for April 4. The recreation department is requesting a 5-mill tax on the ballot. The present tax is two mills. The jurors took the request under advisement until their next meeting.

The jurors approved the transfer of $5,000 to the town of Joncsboro for parish fire protection for a six-month period. By TOM AYRES Times Correspondent JOESBORO A Memphis-based hospital corporation has offered to manage or lease embattled Jackson Parish Hospital. James C. Henson, president of the United Hospital told the Jackson Parish Police Jury Monday night that his firm has the ability to straighten out employee dissatisfaction and other problems that have plagued the hospital in recent months. On a unanimous vote the jurors authorized Henson to check hospital Gas well kills 1 in LAKE CHARLES (AP) A natural gas blowout aboard an offshore drilling rig Monday killed one worker and sent 30 others scrambling overboard to safety-Most plunged into the freezing waters of the Gulf of Mexico, and two were reported in stable condition Monday night from staying too long in the icy water.

They were hospitalized in Memorial Hospital here. Hospital authorities were withholding the identity of the dead man, who was described as near 50, until his family could be reached. He was in the water nearly a half hour and was nearly blue when he was wheeled into the hospital. "The guy was really in bad shape. I don't know what his temperature was, but it was in the 80s," said hospital spokesman Stephen Folkson.

"We did our best, but I guess we just couldn't get his temperature up fast enough." Emergency room machinery kept the man's heart and lungs working from 11:30 a.m., when he was brought in, until about 7 p.m., Folkson said. In all, four helicopter loads of survivors were brought to the hospital. Twenty-eight of the injured, most of them cold and wet, were given dry towels and checked by doctors but were not seriously hurt. Doctors said they suffered various degrees of hypothermia. There was no fire, but the dry gas continued to blow wild.

A spokesman for Placid Oil Co. of Houma, which owned the well, said there was no pollution. "I was in bed when it happened," said In the driver's seat Sidney is not giving another driver a piece of unwanted advice, but he might be wondering what's a big dog like me doing in such a tiny car as this. The dog was spotted by Times Photographer Mike Silva in downtown Shreveport waiting for his master, Lou Allen, to come back from a shopping trip. Scott becomes hate mail target blowout Gulf Kenneth McCauley, a derrick hand from Abbeville who was the last one off the rig.

"They came and got us all out of bed. The alarm system may have gone off, I don't know. With all the shouting, I couldn't hear. "I grabbed my clothes and took off, following everyone else. We thought about using the cranes but were afraid they would blow up.

So I went down the rope ladder and there were already 15 to 20 people in the water. "By the time I reached the water, they had pulled a boat-up and we picked the people up out of the water." Another worker, a roustabout who asked that his name not be used, said, "We could not feel the blowout, but we heard the shouting. It would have been like a bomb if there had been a spark. We're lucky to be here." The rig was owned by Penrod Drilling Co. of Lafayette.

It was located about 15 miles off Cameron in the High Island area, block 38, in the vicinty of Sabine Pass. At the time of the blowout, the temperature was in the low 30s, with winds 18 to 20 miles an hour and the seas rolling at four to five feet. Officials said the temperature of the water was about 20 to 24 degrees. One worker said he noticed a clock as he ran for safety; it was 9:05 a.m. Penrod officials were not available for comment.

Van Coges, a spokesman for Placid, said cause of the blowout was not immediately determined. Jones and Marshall Lyles. With the addition state police here began last week to experiment with 12-hour "seven to seven" shifts, allowing at least one trooper on duty 24 hours a day. Troopers alternate between 24- and 60-hour weeks instead of the previous eight-hour, five-day a week shifts. Patrick said special task forces to watch for drunken drivers will also be assigned to Lincoln to compile the trend report.

Six of the eight fatal accidents in Lincoln in 1980 were alcohol related. According to rough summary reports, Patrick said among the eight, most involved one car and occurred during early morning hours. Wreck fatality Times Ruston Bureau ARCADIA A 23-year-old Arcadia man died in Schumpert Medical Center Sunday of injuries sustained when his van left Highway 80 and struck a tree around 4:30 a.m. that morning. Arcadia police said the accident occurred just inside the city limits when Phillip A.

Hawthorne apparently was distracted or fell asleep at the wheel. According to reports, Hawthorne was pinned in the van, which traveled 135 feet before striking the tree. There were no other passengers. State police compiling reports on 80 accidents highlights Texas Change ordered TYLER, Texas (UPI) A federal judge Monday soundly criticized bilingual education programs in Texas public schools and ordered the programs expanded to help overcome the special problems of Spanish-speaking students. The ruling by U.S.

District Judge William Wayne Justice will affect more than 200,000 Mexican-American students in Texas public schools who are either being taught basic skills in Spanish or are enrolled in classes that teach English as a second language. Justice's 67-page ruling declared the three years of basic courses Texas public schools currently offer in Spanish are inadequate for many youngsters. He said the state has a duty to take necessary steps to overcome the special problems of Spanish-speaking students. I Delay granted AUSTIN, Texas (UPI) A state districj. judge Monday granted the a temporary injunction preventing the Texas Railroad Commission from shutting down the East Texas town's beleaguered gas system.

It is the second injunction sought in 10 days by the city, which since Oct. 1 has been fighting the TRC's order to turn off the gas in the city. Commission staff members say the 30-year-old gas system is a hazard and a potential threat to human life because it leaks. City officials say they have repaired most of the leaks and returned gas pressure to normal. But the city is waiting for a federal grant of $489,000 to cover the costs of replacing the entire system, which has been under city control since October.

City Attorney Zeke Zbranek said Monday he was in contact with representives of Sen. John Tower, R-Texas, concerning the federal loan and was optimistic the money will will be approved soon. Shreveport Candidate Former Bossier City Mayor James Cathey will announce his candidacy for mayor at 10 a.m. Wednesday at the Holiday Inn in Bossier City. Cathey served as mayor of Bossier City from 1973 to 1977, when he decided against running for re-election.

His term was the last in the city under the commission form of government. In 1977 the city switched to a strong mayor-council form of government. Cathey's announcement will round out a list of three contenders mentioned as candidates for the mayor's post in recent months. Incumbent Mayor Marvin And- ing officially announced for reelection last Friday. Police Juror Freddy Shewmake announced his candidacy Monday.

Before being elected mayor in 1973, Cathey had served as the city's police chief for 15 years. He is a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel and World War II pilot. Plea issued Saving that his predecessors had let the department down, Shreveport Police Chief Cliff Heap issued a doomsday plea Monday for the city's voters to approve the half-cent sales tax increase this Saturday or suf fer the consequences of even higher crime rates. At a Dress conference replete with charts and an eight-page statement, Heap painted a grim picture for the citizens oi Shreveport if more funding is not made available to improve the department. "We at the very least need passage of this tax," said Heap.

"Shreveport is now at the cross road of retaining its atmosphere of being a law and order city or becoming one in which crime is an accepted way of life I re fuse to accept the latter for Shreveport." Heap used charts to show that the department has 13 fewer police officers than it did in 1976, yet crime has risen 63 percent since that year and otticers nave 15 percent more area to patrol. II the tax is approved, the department will receive funding to hire an additional 50 officers. A check of police records verified that the number of re ported crimes in all categories, from rape to robbery, has increased each year since 1976. ALEXANDRIA (UPI) Federal Judge Nauman Scott has become the target of hate mail and nasty telephone calls from around the country for his stand in a school busing and desegregation controversy. "How can one as stupid as you become a federal judge?" asked one letter from Chicago.

"I'm glad you lost At least in Central Louisiana if not around the nation Scott has been on the unpopular side of his fight with state Judge Richard Lee about whether three white girls should be allowed to attend all-white Buckeye High School. Scott and Lee have been conducting a legal battle over the issue since September. The federal judge has threatened the state judge with fines of up to $1,000 a day for violating his desegregation order. One letter sent to Scott implied he is a tool of communism. Another urged him to repent.

Game shortens City Council session tionwide publicity, the criticism grew. "I think I get more phone calls than I do letters," Scott said. "I don't get so many local calls any more." He declined comment when asked if the calls or letters threatened violence. But he said that if he were afraid of getting irate or threatening phone calls he would get an unlisted phone number. His number is still listed in the Alexandria phone book.

"If the reports we read in the newspaper and hear on TV are true, the American people are faced with a serious situation as far as their government is concerned," wrote a resident of Alvin, Texas. A resident of Monroe urged Scott to "call off your dogs" in the Buckeye case and "be big enough to admit" he is wrong. One favorable letter came from a Shreveport resident who wrote, "It's about time something was done about the Deville and Buckeye schools." Ark-La-Tex news briefs three days after sheriff's deputies found the body of the man's roommate in a shallow grave in a chicken yard behind the trailer home the two shared. The victim, identified as John Thomas Wilson, 23, a Baton Rouge convenience store manager, had been shot in the head with a 20-gauge shotgun, investigators said. A short time after discovering Wilson's body, detectives charged Fred Gary Heath with second-degree murder.

Authorities said the two men lived together in a trailer in Prairieville. According to Ascension Parish Detective Alvin Stephens, Thomas A. Wilson of Shreveport contacted the sheriff's office Friday and filed a missing person's report on his son, John. The elder Wilson told deputies his son had not contacted his family for about a week and had failed to report to work. Heath is accused of shooting Wilson at their trailer shortly before midnight Tuesday, apparently after an argument that began when Wilson told Heath he wanted to move out, Stephens said.

School wreck NEW IBERIA (UPI) A car ran through a fence and barreled into an elementary school Monday, injuring eight third-graders, their teacher and the car driver, police reported. None of the injuries were believed, serious. Damage to North Lewis Street Elementary School was estimated at $100,000 by Principal Robert Benoit. The accident occurred shortly before 10 a.m. Police said a car driven by Patty Desormeaux, 45, slammed into the wall of Beverly Freeman's third-grade classroom, injuring Mrs.

Freeman and eight of her students. They were taken next door to Dautrive Hospital, where they were all treated and 'eleased. There is an occasional letter of support, but most criticize Scott or urge him to change his mind about desegregation. Scott shrugs off the criticism. "It's just part of the job," he said.

"I don't think it's right to bad-mouth these letter writers." While he has thrown away most of his mail, Scott posted some of the letters in his office. "Your decision regarding three innocent girls is an evil one," one telegram said. "You are breaking the law of God as well as the original U.S. Constitution. Please repent and help save our nation." The criticism started with Rapides Parish residents angered because of Scott's desegregation plan for the public schools, which included the busing of 3,100 of the district's 27,000 students.

Four schools were closed. As the busing controversy gained na Center construction project. Bids are being sought on two additional cars for the police department. Sampite said two cars already on order will be financed through federal revenue-sharing funds. The cars now on bid will be paid for with state money, he said.

The council's regular meeting time was changed from 7:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. The meetings will continue to be held on the second and fourth Mondays of each month. Sampite read a letter from Robert DeBlieux, a state historic preservation officer, which announced that the City Hall building on Amulet Street has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places. DeBlieux, the former mayor Sampite defeated last spring, said the building was placed on the register in November.

The council also voted to accept bids on a utility-meter-reading service. Employee illnesses and turnovers in personnel were listed as reasons for the action. Bids on the temporary service will be opened Jan. 26. Hurt in crash Times Ruston Bureau RUSTON A 25-year-old Dubach man received a fractured neck and back injuries Monday morning in a one-car accident about a mile south of here.

State troopers said Edward E. Shaw, 25, was thrown through the rearview window of a car driven by 44-year-old Lawrence B. Colvin of Ruston when the vehicle left U.S. Highway 167 and overturned several times. Colvin was treated for minor injuries and released from Lincoln General Hospital.

Shaw remained in "stable" condition at Glenwood Hospital in Monroe Monday afternoon. The accident occurred around 9 a.m. No charges were filed. SlainS GONZALES (AP) A 23-year-old Prairieville man remained in the Ascension Parish jail here Monday, Times Ruston Bureau RUSTON Troop state police are compiling two extensive reports of 1980 accident fatalities in its 12-parish area one aimed at establishing a trend to promote stricter enforcement along problem roads and highways. "We had a decline in all categories of accidents in Troop except for Lincoln Parish," Troop Commander Capt.

Richard E. Patrick said Monday. "This is a specific problem we must concern ourselves with." Overall, Troop experienced 26 percent fewer accidents and 13 percent less fatalities over 1979, But reports indicate fatalities in Lincoln Parish rose 300 percent. State Trooper Greg Gossler said eight accidents claimed nine lives in Lincoln Parish during 1980, up from three fatalities in 1979. Troop also includes the parishes of East Carroll, West Carroll, Morehouse, Union, Jackson, Caldwell, Franklin, Tensas, Madison, Richland and Ouachita.

Troop headquartered in Monroe, constitutes the largest land area in Louisiana. "Everything looks good until you look at Lincoln and we don't really know why," Patrick said. He said one report will offer routine statistical comparisons of accidents and should be issued in press-release form within a few days. The trend study will "take a while," Patrick said. "If we could pinpoint the time and location of these accidents, we could put troopers out on secondary roads.

The data would be invaluable." Patrick said the problem in Lincoln could be attributed in part to parish growth. "You have major north-south arteries and Interstate 20 with continuous traffic 24 hours a day." A fourth state trooper, 36-year-old Malcolm G. Ward, has already been assigned to Lincoln Parish. He will assist troopers first-class Gossler, John Deputies probe beating death Times Ruston Bureau DOWNSVILLE Union Parish deputies said Monday an investigation is continuing into the apparent beating death of a 90-year-old man found in his backyard by a neighbor Sunday morning. Deputy Ralph Reppond said foul play was suspected.

He said Roberts apparently died after sustaining a fractured skull and head lacerations. Reppond declined to release details of an autopsy completed Monday at Bossier Medical Center until it is reviewed by Union Parish Coroner J.G. Norris. Times Natchitoches Bureau NATCHITOCHES A short agenda and a basketball game at Northwestern State University resulted in an unusually brief Natchitoches City Council meeting Monday night. In a lighthearted manner, Mayor Joe Sampite said he and several councilmen were anxious to arrive at NSU's Prather Coliseum where the Demons were facing Grambling State University- The council ratified a bid on the construction of a community center, voted to advertise for bids on two new police cars and changed the time of its regular meetings.

The council accepted a low bid of $46,350 on the Bredatown Community by Price last year, the plantation had been been the site of several bluegrass music Lii fei rd tC ST Pi if --it Historic plantation house burns A fire Monday morning destroyed Prothro Mansion at historic St. Maurice Plantation. Dan Fletcher, assistant chief of the Montgomery Volunteer Fire Department, said the fire, reported at 2:10 was out of control when firefighters arrived. The house was owned by John Price, director of Northwestern State University's archives division. Price and his family escaped without injury.

Fletcher said damage to the structure totaled about $250,000. Damage to the contents, which included Price's antique and rare book collection, will exceed unnnnn Fiptrhpr aiH Thp hnnsp hnilt in 1 826. was the main attraction at St. Maurice Plantation. Until purchased under lease.

In recent years, it had festivals..