North Carolina News at a Glance

MORRISVILLE | American Eagle Airlines has been fined $6,300 for safety violations following an accident that killed a baggage handler at Raleigh-Durham International Airport.

Fleet Service Clerk Lufuluabo Kalonji died in July while working on a ramp. Airline officials say the accident involved a plane and a baggage tug, but they didn’t provide details. Clerks work on the ramp, load bags and perform other similar tasks.

The state Department of Labor fined the Texas-based airline on Tuesday. The citation accuses the company of failing to make sure employees underwent proper training to operate industrial trucks. It also says an industrial truck didn’t have a shift indicator.

Kalonji is survived by his wife and a young daughter.

Roanoke Rapids

new management hired for theater

The Roanoke Rapids City Council is hoping that new management can help fill seats at the Randy Parton Theatre.

Parton had managed the 1,500-seat complex, but the city manager says the theater has had trouble generating revenue. Parton spent most of a $3 million reserve fund set up to support the project.

The City Council voted Tuesday to hire Boston-based UNICCO to book acts and manage operations. Parton will continue to perform 36 engagements a year, but his annual salary was cut to $250,000 from about $1.5 million.

Roanoke Rapids borrowed $21.5 million to build the theater, hoping it would become a centerpiece in a planned entertainment district that should eventually include hotels, retail stores and a nearby aquatic center.

Parton is the brother of country music star Dolly Parton.

Charlotte

Duke energy gets Ok to build plant in ind.

Indiana regulators have given Duke Energy permission to build a $2 billion coal gasification plant in southern Indiana.

The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission unanimously approved the plan for the 630-megawatt plant at Edwardsport, which would replace an aging traditional coal-fired plant that generates about 130 megawatts.

Duke Energy is based in Charlotte, North Carolina.

The company’s plans drew opposition from several environmental and consumer groups, who argue it would worsen air pollution and saddle Duke customers with a big rate increase.

IURC spokeswoman Mary Beth Fisher said the project’s opponents have 20 days to ask the commission to reconsider.

– From wire reports

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