MnDOT official fired over improper trips

Minneapolis Star Tribune ^ | November 09, 2007 – 9:54 PM | Tony Kennedy, a nd PAUL M c ENROE

[Kryn-Man]

The Minnesota Department of Transportation emergency response executive who failed to return to the state for 10 days after the Interstate 35W bridge collapsed was fired Friday for taking unauthorized trips, making excessive personal calls on her MnDOT cell phone and bringing embarrassment to the state.

Staying away from crisis

Kevin Hanretta, who was at a conference with Pitt when the bridge collapsed, told MnDOT's investigator that Pitt was torn between staying on the East Coast and returning to Minnesota. Hanretta told the investigator that Pitt decided to stay put because her staff was "doing a great job" and she was comfortable directing them from afar.

[Kryn-Man]

Now Ms Hanretta can permanently "stay from afar"

[martin_fierro]

HAVE YOU SEEN ME?

[Eric in the Ozarks]

A government bow wow bites the dust. this certainly is a rare occurrence in the North Star...

[John W]

Her name is Sonia Pitt.

[Kryn-Man]

You’re right. Thanks for the correction.

[ApplegateRanch]

It would be worth it to pay them to stay on vacations, conferences, or whatever, especially during an emergency.

All they do is get in the way; muck-up the works for the boots actually doing the job, and create chaos with the extra press, etc.

That goes double for gubernatorial & presidential ‘visits’ to a disaster site, where to rest of the problems can be added all the additional security getting under foot.

Let them give their “statements of caring” and “doing all we can” speeches from someplace well removed from where the real workers are doing real work.

[Minn]

Maybe there is an excerpting school somewhere you can enroll yourself in. Nobody reading what you posted would have any idea what the article is about.

[Kryn-Man]

Nobody? Who are you to speak for those that replied?