HEBRON — Federal aviation security officials Wednesday said the first day of work for federal passenger screeners went smoothly at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport.

        Terry Burgess, the Transportation Security Administration's federal security director for the airport, said that the facility's four checkpoints opened on time and that there were no problems or delays.

        The longest wait time was about 20 minutes about 8 a.m., Mr. Burgess said, adding that screeners discovered a butter knife and various nail files, but no other weapons or threats were discovered.

        Of the 175 local screeners to go through classroom training, 134 worked Wednesday. Another 128 screeners hired locally have begun classroom training and will be put on duty Monday.

        The airport was among 23 airports to be converted Wednesday, as the TSA works to replace privately employed workers with federal employees by the congressionally mandated Nov. 19 deadline.

        So far, the TSA has installed federal screeners at 82 of the nation's 429 airports.

Program may lower cardiac admissions

        A disease management program for members of some Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield health plans appears to be helping patients with congestive heart failure stay out of the hospital.

        About 15,000 people with heart failure — out of more than 1 million Anthem managed care health plan members in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana — participate. The program includes counseling and home nurse visits for “high risk” members; a 24-hour nurse telephone line; and regular mailings about healthy behaviors, medication compliance and other issues.

        From 1999 through 2001, Anthem reports a 28 percent decrease in hospital admissions, 41 percent improvement in weight monitoring and 15 percent more people following low-salt diets.

        Congestive heart failure afflicts nearly 4.8 million Americans, according to the American Heart Association.

Fire lawsuits can go forward, court says

        COLUMBUS - The state can be held liable for the deaths of nine people killed in a 1996 fire at a southern Ohio fireworks store, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled Wednesday.

        The court ruled 4-3 that the state fire marshal is not protected as a government entity from being sued for negligence when carrying out a public duty.

        The decision does not mean the state is immediately liable for the deaths at Ohio River Fireworks in Scottown in July 1996. But it means the state can no longer use Ohio's public duty doctrine as a defense.

Children treated for mercury exposure

        DAYTON, Ohio - About a dozen children may have been exposed to mercury after they got into a garage in which chemicals were stored, authorities said Wednesday.

        Two of the children, all about 10 years old, were treated at Miami Valley Hospital and released, hospital spokeswoman Nancy Thickel said.

        Bill Wharton, spokesman for the Montgomery County Combined Health District, said he did not know the status of the other children.

        Mercury is a silvery substance found in thermometers, electrical switches, fillings for teeth and mercury-vapor lamps. The effects of exposure can range from dizziness and memory loss to kidney and brain damage, depending on the amount of mercury and duration of exposure.

        The one-car garage in suburban Miami Township was attached to a brick, ranch-style house that was under renovation and not occupied.

        Miami Township Fire Chief David Fulmer said the homeowner told authorities that the previous owner, an NCR Corp. researcher who died recently, had kept a chemical lab in the garage.

Judge tosses suit against Columbus

        COLUMBUS - A federal judge threw out a 3-year-old civil rights lawsuit against the city Wednesday, based on changes Columbus has made to police policies on use of force and handling complaints against officers.

        The Department of Justice agreed that the city has made significant improvements that addressed its concerns but reserved the right to refile the lawsuit if police practices don't change.

        The city was the first in the nation to challenge - and get dismissed - a Justice Department lawsuit that alleged a pattern of violations by a police department.

        Federal authorities had accused officers of routinely violating people's rights through illegal searches, false arrests and excessive force. The lawsuit said the abuses were condoned because police supervisors didn't adequately discipline the officers who committed them.

        The city and police union denied the allegations.

        The Justice Department has initiated at least eight cases against police departments since the 1994 crime law gave it the power to investigate allegations of misconduct and file civil lawsuits.

Compiled from staff and wire reports

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