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Bridgewater, SD - Shutterd Kosher Meat Plant Stinks up Town |
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Bridgewater, SD - Forty-four tons of rotting meat have been removed from a defunct packing plant in Bridgewater, where officials and volunteers who were left to clean up the mess and stifle the stench are now trying to figure out how to pay for it.
Power to the Bridgewater Quality Meats plant was shut off in December and the plant was closed. As springtime temperatures rose, so did the smell.
City officials say they already have spent tens of thousands of dollars cleaning up meat that was left to rot in uncooled refrigerators. The maggot-infested meat, which may have been rotting for six months, was buried at the Sioux Falls landfill.
"It was absolute disbelief that somebody would let that much meat go bad," McCook County Emergency Manager Brad Stiefvater said. "That's high dollars. There's a lot of value there. I don't understand it."
Stiefvater said he doesn't know how much the cleanup will cost, only that it has involved "quite a few community resources."
"No doubt we will try to recoup that from the owner," Stiefvater said.
City officials say the meat apparently was left behind by owner Ilan Parente after he moved his business to Minnesota. Bob Anderson, a Bridgewater city council member, said initial attempts to contact Parente failed until the city's attorney got involved.
Parente then sent two employees to clean up the mess, but after it became clear progress wasn't being made, the city stepped in and assembled volunteers.
"I couldn't believe anybody would deliberately leave a mess like that," said Ed Meyer, a volunteer on the cleanup crew. "So here I am, just as a city volunteer, no pay, and the owner is sitting where, in his air-conditioned office?"
Parente has had several run-ins with authorities. The Daily Republic newspaper reported that in 2004, his company was sued by the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources for environmental violations.
Mayor Marty Barattini said he didn't know if the building would be usable after the cleanup because of the contamination
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Read Comments (8) — Post Yours »
1
Jun 26, 2009 at 12:53 PM angry yid Says:
And the chilul hashem just keep on coming-we keep giving anti-semites more ammunition
2
Jun 26, 2009 at 01:59 PM for your information Says:
as #1 said. to quote that great philosopher, Pogo (those old enough should remember) " We have met the enemy and he is us"!!!!
3
Jun 26, 2009 at 01:57 PM Owner Says:
You should really get the full story before you judge. Has v'halila chilul hashem.
shabbat shalom yid
4
Jun 26, 2009 at 01:54 PM AuthenticSatmar Says:
This was Noah's Ark meat.
5
Jun 26, 2009 at 01:34 PM Anonymous Says:
Thank you Ilan Parente for making a HUGE DISGRACE OF YOURSELF in front of the American public and especially for not caring for your fellow man, according to this quote: “The thing I think about the most is with the amount of meat that was left in that building, why that meat was left to rot as opposed to taken to the Banquet or one of the missions to feed the poor,” (Bridgewater Mayor) Barattini said. “I believe there was enough meat in that building to feed the homeless of Sioux Falls for a year.”
6
Jun 26, 2009 at 04:59 PM Says:
Ilan Parente had the meat in a freezer. The utility bills were paid and there was nothing wrong in storing the meat there.
There was a power surge and the breakers tripped on the freezer. He did not have an automatic warning sstem, and did not know about the freezer until a month later. Then, it was too late. Just another yungerman who had too many events happening in too little time.
He does not own a majority share of Solomon's like he used to.
Those are the facts. Anyone can verify them so tha we all know the emes.
7
Jun 26, 2009 at 03:42 PM Seekerof Truth Says:
Authentic Yid is wrong. The meat belonged to Bridgewater Quality Meats, and it was discarded as a result spoilage after an equipment failure. It is really sad that no-one bothered to get the real facts before engaging in motzei shem rah. This is worse than lashon hara, because it is simply not true.
8
Jun 27, 2009 at 09:19 AM Anonymous Says:
What a wonderful man. The highest of ethics, midos that cannot be questioned. What a MITZVAH this man has done. Now I don't want to hear any complaints about him. He is doing nothing less than what he is being taught in todays society, and following in the footsteps of the Baal Tzdaka, like the Rubashkins. Maybe everyone can line up to praise this gentle man, and use his midos to raise your own children! How wonderful to use, and play our Jewish community to the fullest. Remember OUR COMMINITY, AND RABBINIC LEADERSHIP teaches us that this is an act of kindness, and the highest of all ethical behavior.