Two senior officials in Vermont's Agency of Natural Resources are being criticized for having state game wardens and a vehicle rescue houseplants belonging to agency Secretary Deb Markowitz during the remnants of Hurricane Irene.
Former employees say workers were dismayed in August 2011 that state resources were being devoted to a personal errand when Vermonters were still stranded, bodies were missing and the agency's Waterbury office complex was flooded.
Markowitz and Fish & Wildlife Commissioner Pat Berry say the secretary didn't ask for the favor. Markowitz acknowledges she told Berry she was sad she might lose her plants.
The former employees tell The Associated Press some staff were bothered that wardens retrieved the secretary's plants and drove them to her Montpelier home when other workers were barred from the complex.
