Broward County, South Florida was the scene of a white powder scare which caused panic in several local government offices. White powder was found
in several envelopes sent to various city halls and one country club throughout Broward County. The discovery caused city employees to be quarantined
and some buildings evacuated. Officials insist business was not disrupted. Initial tests results are negative for anthrax but tests are still being
done of some of the envelopes. The envelopes all had postmarks from Memphis, Tennessee.
www.miami.com
''When you see white powder in South Florida, a lot of alarms go off,'' Broward County Sheriff Ken Jenne said in a press conference Thursday,
referring to the anthrax attack that killed photo editor Bob Stevens at the American Media building in Boca Raton in 2001.
After the first few incidents, police were able to notify towns and most of the envelopes were not opened.
At Davie's town hall, 18 people who were in the building were quarantined, with no one allowed in or out.
''I think every haz-mat team in Broward was activated,'' Davie police Lt. Bill Bamford said.
Postal inspector Del Alvarez said the U.S. Postal Inspection Service along with the FBI had collected the mail, and 12 envelopes were taken to the
state lab in Miami-Dade County and were being analyzed Thursday night.
Authorities ruled out the presence of anthrax or smallpox in five of the envelopes after initial tests for protein came back negative, but they still
awaited results from the others.
Haz-mat teams decontaminated city employees who had come into contact with the envelopes and advised others to thoroughly wash their hands, bodies and
clothes with soap and water.
''We want the public to know these envelopes are contained in specific locations,'' Jenne said.
Please visit the link provided for the complete story.
It is interesting to note that this incident occurred on the same day as the presidential debates were happening in nearby Dade county. It could be a
possibility of an attempt being made to disrupt the debates. It could also be something less conspiratoral as a disgruntled former city employee
seeking some sort of payback. The cities affected were Weston, Davie, Oakland Park, Tamarac, Wilton Manors, Sea Ranch Lakes, Fort Lauderdale,
Lauderdale Lakes, Lauderdale By The Sea and Sunrise.
Related News Links
Letters Containing White Powder Found In 10 Broward Cities
[edit on 9-30-2004 by worldwatcher]
Just look at GW BLush, his mind has turned on him so bad, it has totally left his body.
