NCJ Number
215022
Journal
Homeland Defense Journal Volume: 4 Issue: 6 Dated: June 2006 Pages: 10-12,14
Date Published
June 2006
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the importance of screening mail for biological and chemical agents and explosives.
Abstract
Organizations are offered advice for mitigating the threat posed by mail: (1) the mailroom facility should be secured to reduce risk and control contaminates; (2) a threat assessment plan as well as security and testing protocols should be developed; (3) a separate ventilation system for the mailroom to reduce the spread of contaminates should be constructed; (4) invisible toxins should be screened for; (5) protocols for everyone and everything entering the facility should be developed ; and (6) professional expertise should be contracted out. The author discusses the importance of screening mail for biological and chemical toxins and explosive devices and offers examples of the havoc these contaminates can cause, such as the 1987 terrorist attacks in Tokyo that involved the use of a deadly toxin called sarin. The author also recalls the deaths and injuries caused by the release of anthrax in the United States Postal Service and the Hart Office Building in Washington, DC, which cost $14 million to decontaminate. The Pentagon’s mail screening facility and process are offered as an example of an efficient mail screening operation. The Pentagon uses a state-of-the-art laboratory to screen every piece of mail for chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive (CBRNE) contamination. The use of cutting-edge technology, such as Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) and Miniature Chemical Agent Monitor (MINI-CAM), assures that the overall mail distribution system suffers virtually no delay in service. A textbox within the article describes the types of anthrax infections.