Postal Service expands role
| • | Advertiser special: Anthrax: Fighting the Fear |
By Curtis Lum
Advertiser Staff Writer
The Postal Service has expanded its role in investigating complaints about suspicious mail and is fielding all calls before they are passed on to the Fire Department or police.
Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser
Since anthrax-contaminated mail was discovered in Washington and Florida last month, local authorities have received hundreds of calls from residents worried about unsolicited and suspicious mail. The calls — 368 on O'ahu since Oct. 12 — have taxed Fire Department hazmat crews, the police force and Health Department laboratory workers.
Kathryn Derwey, U.S. postal inspector in Hawai'i, said the post office will assist in helping people identify suspicious mail.
None of the complaints has resulted in a positive reading in an anthrax test.
"That was not only taking away from time they could be spending on other things, but should we have an event, they would then not be fresh and prepared to respond to it," said Health Department Director Bruce Anderson.
To alleviate the problem — and to calm the public — state, county and federal officials implemented new bioterrorism response procedures last week. Under the new system, all 911 callers reporting suspicious mail will be switched to a U.S. postal inspector instead of directly to police and the Fire Department. The number of calls has declined dramatically during the past few days
Postal Inspector Kathryn Derwey said residents are urged to verify the contents of a letter or package with the sender, but if that isn't possible, to call 911. If there is no evidence of powder or leakage, a postal inspector will ask the caller to look for signs, such as a permit imprint or postage meter stamp, to show that the parcel came from a legitimate sender.
"Most of these suspect articles that we researched in the past two months have been from known mailers, and typically terrorists like anonymity so they won't be from a known mailer," Derwey said. "Most of the suspect articles, if they're going to be a credible threat, are going to be a first-class piece of mail. It's going to have a first-class postage stamp."
Callers also may be instructed to hold a letter up to light to look for powder. If it cannot be determined over the phone that a letter is safe, the Postal Service will notify police and the Fire Department.
If an item tests positive, those exposed will be notified immediately and appropriate treatment will begin, Anderson said. The public is reminded that items turned over for testing will not be returned.
The new system already has reduced the number of responses by teams dealing with hazardous materials, said Honolulu Fire Department Capt. Richard Soo. So far this week, hazmat crews have been sent to six complaints and most did not involve mail, he said.
The incidents have declined so dramatically that the department has disbanded two assessment teams that were created to help deal with the flood of calls, Soo said.
Anderson said the state lab has tested 377 samples for anthrax and all have been negative. He added that a test of the Honolulu mail processing center also was negative for anthrax.
"All the evidence suggests that Hawai'i is free of anthrax," Anderson said. "We haven't had any findings of anthrax and there's good reason to think that we are not going to be the target of a terrorist attack."
The anthrax scare and fight against dengue fever have taken their toll on the Health Department's finances. Anderson said the state spent $1.6 million in unbudgeted money on both fronts and expects to need an additional $1.5 million in the coming months.
Anderson has asked U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye to support legislation calling for $2 billion in emergency response financing to states and public health agencies.
Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8025.
