Anthrax scares close US Congress, disrupt NZ mail delivery

11.00 am - By ANDREW BUNCOMBE

WASHINGTON - Thirty-one employees of the United States Senate have tested positive for anthrax, leading lawmakers to order an unprecedented shutdown of part of the Capitol.

Congressional leaders decided to close the House of Representatives and sent home House members and staff until Tuesday.

Even though the anthrax powder to which the 31 people were positively exposed was mailed to the Senate area of the Capitol, senators chose to carry on working.

In New York, state Governor George Pataki revealed that traces of anthrax had been found in his offices and that his staff were being treated with antibiotics.

Officials say there is little risk that those who tested positive will actually become infected.

The anthrax at the centre of the Washington scare was posted to Senate Majority leader Tom Daschle, who revealed on Monday that the letter had been opened and a powdery substance fell out.

The letter – opened at his private offices in the Hart building - carried a Trenton, New Jersey, postmark as had the infected letter sent to television anchor Tom Brokaw, in New York. Both letters bore similar handwriting. The letter to Mr Daschle would first have been sent to the main Senate post room. Traces of anthrax have also been found there.

Despite this, Mr Daschle decided the Senate should continue to work. "We will not let this stop the work of the Senate," he said. "There is absolutely no evidence of infection at this point. All of those who had had this positive nasal swab have been on antibiotics for some time and the good news is that everyone is OK."

What is clear is that whatever group or individual may be behind the anthrax scares, if their intention was to create panic they have certainly been successful. After an anthrax fatality in Florida as well as confirmed incidents in Nevada and New York, the US is in a state of unease not seen for a generation.

A Florida student faces the prospect of jail after pouring a white powder onto his teacher's desk to try and avoid a lesson.

"I think this is the first time anyone has really used anthrax as a weapon in this way," said Michael O'Hanlon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. "It is certainly causing anxiety."

Much of the anxiety in Washington centres on doubts as to how best to respond to the anthrax scares. "It has been a pretty crazy morning," said one Capitol Hill employee. "I think they feel that if they don't close the place they may be exposing people but if they do close it and then screen it, it could reappear next week."

In New Zealand, mail delivery is being disrupted as six mail centres remain closed following anthrax scares in the last two days.

The Manukau mail centre in Wiri, south Auckland, re-opened this morning, after being evacuated yesterday following the discovery of an unknown white powder.

Mail handling centres in Nelson, the Waikato, Wellington, Rotorua, Eltham in Taranaki, and Linton in Manawatu remain closed, however, after workers at those centres also found powders.

NZ Post anthrax project co-ordinator Dale Stevens said there were contingency plans to transport and process mail in unaffected mail centres.

"Our staff are well drilled in contingency planning but the central role of the Wellington and Waikato mail centres in our network means that delays are likely."

He said the risk of anthrax being sent through the mail in New Zealand was extremely low.

Police today announced that the powder found in Eltham was not anthrax, but MAF is still conducting tests to find out what it is.

Results of tests to identify the other mystery powders would not be available until this evening at the earliest.

- INDEPENDENT, HERALD STAFF

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