New Jersey based textile polymer products, textile fiber, staple, polyester and resins for packaging maker company Wellman Inc announced its Pearl River facility located in Hancock County, Mississippi suffered no major structural damage from hurricane Katrina.

Wellman emergency personnel were at the facility throughout the hurricane. They and other personnel now at the site are evaluating the plant''s status and planning the repair work. It appears that the storm surge did not exceed 3 feet at the facility. The plant grounds are dry and the roads and infrastructure on the site are not severely damaged. This facility is located approximately 3 miles north of the Gulf of Mexico. The site elevation is approximately 18 feet above sea level and the plant was built to withstand 135 mile per hour winds.

Since all local resources have been appropriately focused on search and rescue, it is difficult to estimate when production at the facility will resume because the facility requires power, utilities, raw materials and transportation, all which have been damaged. The construction project for 300 million pounds of additional PET resin capacity does not appear to be seriously damaged by the hurricane.

As a result of the hurricane, Wellman''s PET resin sales will decrease at least in the third quarter 2005, however, Wellman continues to serve its PET resin customers from its Darlington, South Carolina facility, existing inventory and other sources. Wellman expects its losses from the hurricane to be covered by casualty and business interruption insurance with a $20 million deductible.

Thomas Duff, Wellman''s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "They are very fortunate to have suffered only minor damage at the facility from the hurricane. Prayers and thoughts are with the many others who are more adversely impacted and we have a special concern for employees and their families who live in this area. I want to thank all of employees and others who have made tremendous efforts during these trying times. A team to aid Pearl River employees is expected to be on the site shortly."

Since communications in the area are limited, Wellman asks any of its employees in the area to contact the Company to see what assistance we can provide and coordinate their efforts.

Wellman further announces that due to the closure of its Pearl River Plant along with interruptions in its raw materials, energy and transportation, Wellman is reluctantly giving notice of force majeure on its domestically produced products that excuses Wellman''s non-performance with respect to its current commitments. Effective September 2, 2005, and continuing until these disruptions subside, Wellman will allocate its diminished supply of products and pass on the cost increases it is experiencing.

Wellman is working to respond to the difficulties imposed on it by the hurricane in a fair and reasonable manner with all of our customers and suppliers.

Wellman Inc manufactures and markets high-quality polyester products, including PermaClear brand PET (polyethylene terephthalate) packaging resins and Fortrel brand polyester fibers. They believe they are one of the world''s largest PET plastic recyclers, utilizing a significant amount of recycled raw materials in our manufacturing operations.
 
Wellman Inc