Days Gone By In Staunton

Thursday, Sept. 13, 1990-- SEWER PROJECT COULD BE COMPLETED IN NOVEMBER -- If all goes as planned the new sewer line and sewer lagoons under construction in Staunton could be completed by mid-November. City Engineer Deborah Ramsey said, "They should have most of the work done and the sewer should be in operation at that time." She said Bartellbort Company, which is building the new lagoon northwest of the school, expects to be done October 28. The new lagoon is "pretty well complete," with the contractor filling in the rock filter to above the (expected) water level. Bartellbort has to clean sludge from the west lagoon, install some restrictive fencing, install an aerator, and do some seeding and cleanup.

Ramsey said she expects Rust Company, which was contracted to install the new relief sewer line throughout the city, to file for an extension to complete their work.

Originally Rust was to be finished by November 3; however, a construction strike has affected that date. Ramsey said she thought an extension would allow them to finish in mid-November.

Last week Rust Company crews were working on West Henry and West Sixth Streets, boring under Route 4, Hackman Street. The digging on Henry Street will go to Quarry Street west of Route 4 and one block east of Route 4. On Sixth Street the digging west of Route 4 will go to Klondike Street, and east of Route 4 it will go to Best Street. Ramsey said Rust Company also had concrete and electrical work to do at the lift station before they could get the pumps running there. She said, "Of course, they have a lot of clean-up to do."

Fire guts office Of Suhre Gas -- Fire gutted the office of Suhre's Gas and Appliance store in Hamel Monday morning. The Hamel volunteer fire department responded to a 5:10 a.m. call after a newspaper deliveryman spotted smoke coming from the building.

Hamel Fire Chief reported the front portion of the one-story brick building was completely destroyed while damage to the workshop in back was less extensive. The Madison County fire investigators were checking for a cause of the fire but did not suspect arson.

By 8 a.m., the company had set up shop in a van so there was no interruption in service to customers.

Area Paratrooper writes Of life in the desert -- Barb and Terry Pomatto of rural Worden have shared a letter from their son PFC James Pomatto of the 101st Airborne Division deployed in Operation Desert Shield. Pomatto graphically described harsh life on the front lines in the Arabian desert from his arrival in mid-August. High points for the troops occurred when incoming pilots and visiting chaplains brought blocks of ice and cans of soda and paperback books. At the time the letter was written, in early September, it was taking about 11 days for him to get mail. There was no phone service available, and the Iraqis were jamming radio broadcasts.

Upon their arrival Pomatto's unit travelled through the desert to an abandoned junk yard surrounded by a 10-foot concrete wall. "We turned that place into a fortress," he said, naming missiles and rockets that were put into place. Soon after he was in the first group chosen to move into the most forward position, 31 miles from the border of Iraq. "We jumped in... I am in the open desert now," he said. Conditions are extreme, with a daytime temperature of 147 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. The hardship includes spider, scorpion and snake bites. Pomatto slept on a truck to avoid injury and learned how to cope with drinking 5 to 6 gallons of warm water a day and riding out sandstorms.

With few opportunities for entertainment except playing a variety of cards and reading, the troops became familiar with the locals and their lifestyle. Pomatto said the native camel herders live very primitive lives but are friendly. The troops befriend the children with candy Lifesavers brought in by the pilots, and the camels, who wander wild, occasionally chewing the troops uniforms which must resemble some desert vegetation.

Despite the hardships Pomatto's spirit seemed high. He was simply eagerly waiting to go to the rear for a few days and said he thought of home all the time. He said he would never take air conditioning or water for granted again. He had heard some news: the crash of a C-5 in Ramstein, Germany, where he had stopped enroute, and the death of Stevie Ray Vaughn, American rock guitarist.

In a seemingly good mood he closed with a "P.S." of cartoon drawings of his "desert neighbors" a tiny desert sand flea with a big stinger, a friendly camel, a curly-tailed scorpion, a cobra and a waving Abdul the camel herder.

Humane Society clarifies Views on dog ordinance -- Representatives of the Macoupin County Humane Society clarified their views on the recent proposed "vicious dog" ordinance in Staunton.

Society member Gail Nicolussi, of Staunton, said she had received many calls and letters regarding the ordinance. Several aldermen had also received a large volume of communications on the ordinance. Nicolussi explained that an ordinance, such as the one that had been proposed at a previous Staunton City Council meeting, had been judged to be unconstitutional in a number of cases. She suggested that the City could avoid such a judgment by carefully writing the resolution.

She said a good generic "violent or vicious" dog act would be sufficient to allow the ordinance to stand. Nicolussi said the strong reaction to the ordinance and the dogs which it would control, "stems from hysteria fanned by the press." She said before attention and opposition was leveled at pit bulls, other breeds had come under attack such as German Shepherds and Doberman Pinchers.

Nicolussi also suggested a good ordinance could include spaying and neutering requirements. The ordinance could also include euthanization requirements in the case of "violent and vicious" animals, she said.