WHEELING, W.Va., Dec. 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Wheeling-Pittsburgh
Steel Corporation (Nasdaq: WPSC) announced that an incident occurred late
Thursday, in which ductwork and equipment that are part of the environmental
controls for its basic oxygen furnace (BOF) collapsed. The collapse damaged
electrical lines and other utility infrastructure, affecting the Company's
steelmaking facilities. Other Company production facilities were not directly
affected.
The incident occurred just before 11 p.m. Thursday and appears to have
been caused by a structural failure of undetermined origin. The Company has
begun an investigation to determine the exact cause of the incident. The
ductwork was located on the roof of the BOF building. Two workers were treated
for minor injuries and released.
The Company has partially restored electricity to the facilities affected
by the incident. Production at the caster and EAF is expected to resume
limited operation within several days. Initial expectations are that the BOF
will resume operations next week. Work to fully restore utilities has already
begun.
Wheeling-Pittsburgh Corporation (Nasdaq: WPSC), together with its primary
subsidiary, Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corporation, is a metal products company
with 3,100 employees. Its facilities are in Steubenville, Mingo Junction,
Yorkville, and Martins Ferry, OH; Beech Bottom and Follansbee, WV; and
Allenport, PA.
Statements in this release that express a belief, expectation or
intention, as well as those which are not historical fact, are forward
looking. They involve a number of risks and uncertainties, which may cause
actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements. For
more information about these risks and uncertainties, please refer to
Wheeling-Pittsburgh Corporation's annual report on Form 10-K for the period
ending December 31, 2003, and other filings, with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
SOURCE Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corporation
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Related links:
http://www.wpsc.com
Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/967451.html
CONTACT:
Jim Kosowski of Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel
Corporation, +1-304-234-2440
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