Anthrax Found In Connecticut
The postal service says a postal sorting center in Wallingford, Connecticut, will stay open even though anthrax spores have been found there for a second time.
Officials say the Southern Connecticut Processing & Distribution Center serves a large portion of Connecticut, including the town where a 94-year-old woman died of inhalation anthrax in November.
There were 103 samples taken at 71 locations inside the center, and of those, three tested positive for anthrax.
"What we feel is that these probably represent residual spores from contamination occurring last October," says William Gerrish, a spokesman for the Connecticut Department of Health. "These largely undisturbed spores don't pose an immediate threat to the health and safety of the employees or the public."
Gerrish adds that he views the positive results as "not totally surprising," because the testing methods are extremely sensitive.
Chris Cooper, a spokesman for Connecticut Governor John Rowland, says it doesn't appear to be a new case and the spores that turned up in this test are probably left over from last fall.
Since then, the state has been monitoring the population for signs of anthrax-related illnesses, and to date, none have been found.
The postal service says health officials are not recommending antibiotics for postal employees.
The parts of the postal facility where the spores were found have been closed off for decontamination. Work will be transferred to other locations in Connecticut and the Northeast during decontamination.
The 350,000-square-foot complex was tested six times in November and December following the Nov. 21 death of Ottilie Lundgren. The Wallingford center is the largest postal facility in the state and handles nearly all of the state's incoming mail.
About 3 million spores were found late last year during an investigation into Lundgren's death.
The facility was tested again on Sunday and the positive samples were found in the ceiling above three of the four sorting machines that were contaminated last fall.
The Postal Service said in a news release that the samples were taken prior to a routine cleaning of the ceiling. Postal union members and federal safety regulators monitored the testing; union officials had criticized the decision not to close the center during the testing, which the union said could stir up spores.
Investigators were never able to pinpoint the way that Lundgren became exposed to anthrax, but authorities believe cross-contamination of her mail is the most likely explanation.
Nationwide, more than 20 people became ill and five died following the mailing of anthrax-tainted letters from New Jersey. No arrests have been made despite a $2.5 million reward offered by the Postal Service and FBI.