ST. MARYS - A study says the shutdown of Durango-Georgia Paper Company at St. Marys could affect nearly 3,000 people in the region -- including the more than 900 workers at the paper mill who will lose their jobs. <br>
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The Georgia Department of Industry, Trade and Tourism conducted the study. <br>
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The agency's commissioner -- R.K. Sehgal -- discussed the numbers as part of the preliminary results of a $100,000 study. <br>
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Sehgal told the Florida Times-Union that the state will do its part to keep the mill afloat if Durango's board of directors agrees to keep the plant open. <br>
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The St. Marys mill -- purchased from the estate of Howard Gilman in 1999 -- has been one of Camden County's largest employers since 1941. <br>
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The company stopped producing paper less than a week after shutting down following a federal safety inspection. Company officials said keeping the mill open until mid-November would cost them as much as eight million dollars.
