The opening of the West Virginia Veterans Nursing Home has again been delayed, this time for an undetermined period. Officials expected the long-awaited home to open in August, but a new problem was found with the facility's air-handling system.

The state Division of Veterans Affairs has directed the contractor to bring in an independent engineering expert to review the system and recommend solutions.

V.A. Director Larry Linch will not speculate on a new opening date, saying he's not sure how long the review will take.

Linch says he wants the problem fixed before patients are moved in. He says he'd rather delay the opening than have to evacuate the home later because of continued problems.

The air system predicament is the latest in a string of problems that have delayed the opening of the 22 million dollar Clarksburg facility, which was dedicated last November.

There have been other glitches with the air system and with the communications system.