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American Morning

Anthrax Investigation: Six Washington Postal Workers in Hospital; Trace of Anthrax Found at Mail Center That Services White House

Aired October 24, 2001 - 11:01   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: We want to start again this hour, though, with the anthrax attacks and the growing number of cases. What we know in this case is this: There have been 12 confirmed infections this month. Three cases all were the inhaled form. All three there resulting in death, three in Washington, one in Florida. Now three people are currently fighting anthrax lung infections, including one in Florida who was well enough to go home from the hospital last night. Six others have the skin form of the disease, which is considered much less serious. Thirty-two people tested positive for exposure to the germ, and most of those people work on Capitol Hill. That, again is exposure.

That said, six more Washington postal workers in the hospital today and may, repeating may, have anthrax infection or exposure.

Our homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve at the Brentwood mail facility.

And, Jeanne, I have said it throughout the morning, it was tough going yesterday with so many different developments. Bring us up to speed on what we know now on this Wednesday.

JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Bill, federal officials now acknowledge that they underestimated the risk to workers here, and the number show by how much. Here is the latest tally. Two workers at this Brentwood facility are now dead. The cause of death: inhalation anthrax. Two other workers are hospitalized in Virginia. They are confirmed cases of inhalation anthrax. In addition, six are now hospitalized in Maryland with suspected cases of anthrax. This is where we have seen the change in the numbers. Yesterday, there were two receiving treatment at Holy Cross Hospital in suburban Maryland. Three more checked in overnight. There are five people there. Their condition described as stable, their vital signs described as strong.

In addition, one individual checked in yesterday to Greater Baltimore Medical Center. All of these individuals describing flu- like symptoms and having respiratory problems. All of them now being treated with antibiotics. The postmaster general says he cannot guarantee that the mail is safe, but he is taking steps.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JOHN POTTER, POSTMASTER GENERAL: We are out on the market buying electrobeam -- electron equipment that can penetrate the mail and kill any bacteria in the mail. We are going to begin receiving that equipment in early November. Our long-term plan to make sure all mail that comes in has either been treated or is from a known source of manufacturer of mail, like a periodical -- a magazine -- or advertising mail. So we will make sure that we have a system that -- where we radiate mail and eliminate -- sanitize the mail, so to speak, and eliminate any anthrax in the mail.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MESERVE: In addition, Bill Potter says that masks being distributed to postal workers starting today on the East Coast.

Bill, back to you.

HEMMER: All right, Jeanne Meserve, in Washington. Jeanne, thanks.

Let's go down the street now to the White House. We heard yesterday that there was a trace, and we repeat a trace, found at a mail distribution center miles from the White House that services the executive mansion. Our senior White House correspondent John King with more information on the situation now.

John, good morning.

JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Bill.

And good news, if you will, from the White House. That remote mail facility is at a military installation several miles away from the White House. A very small trace amount of anthrax detected on a piece of machinery, because of that, about 200 people are being tested. Most of them work at that site. Some are Secret Service employees, some general service administration employees. Some White House administrative workers, 200 people roughly being tested. Preliminary results already back from 120 of those people. None have tested positive.

Officials saying they believe the amount of anthrax was so small, such a small trace amount, that nobody will get sick, that it is not enough, but the testing of course continues. But again, 120 of the 200 test back preliminarily, all people so far testing negative, if you will. The White House prefers to use the term "no positive results."

Also we are told by a senior administration official that advisories have gone out to other federal agencies, urging them to let the employees know if they worked in the mailroom, or if they went to the Capitol, especially the Hart Senate office building, where Senate majority leader Tom Daschle has his office, that perhaps they should get tested. We know for example a load of employees went to D.C. General Hospital. Earlier today, I spoke a short time a senior department official, who said this is being done just as a precaution to calm some of the jitters within the department, but no suspicious incidents at the Energy Department as well. But a reflection of the precautions and the jitters, the nerves, if you will, across the government as more and more of the cases are discovered.

HEMMER: John, we've been over this question before. I think it's worth both repeating, though. The president did not say yesterday and the White House has not said either whether or not President Bush has been tested for anthrax. What's the thinking behind that?

KING: Ari Fleischer, the White House press secretary, said this morning, the president can not answer that question because of security concerns. He said there are people -- quote -- who want to do harm to the president, and if they knew his medical routines, what medication he might or might not be on, what other security precautions or protocols under way here at the White House, they could -- quote -- "change their tactics."

So the White House saying the president simply cannot answer that question. The president did, though, three times yesterday say, I don't have anthrax, or I don't have it. One presumed from that he has been tested. In conversations with senior administration officials, they say, we can draw that assumption. They just will not say so publicly. A number of precautions taken here. Whether it is some staff of the vice president being given the drug Cipro on the night of September 11th when they were rushed to the president's security environment at the White House, the White House officials will not discuss any of those steps publicly. because they say it might help the people who might want to target the president or other senior administration officials.

HEMMER: Absolutely extraordinary we are even talking about it.

KING: It is.

HEMMER: John King at the White House. John, thanks.

A New Jersey postal worker is sick today with what may turn out to be inhaled anthrax. That case not confirmed, though.

CNN's Michael Okwu joins us from Trenton, New Jersey, the location where several of those letters containing anthrax were postmarked back in September.

Michael, good morning.

MICHAEL OKWU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Bill, good morning to you.

And again, about this woman, she is a mail sorter here. We understand she's in serious, but stable condition, and she is taking a battery of antibiotics. And the words from health officials, she is feeling fine.

Now, health officials here and the New Jersey postal authorities here are urging people who dropped off business bulk mail to get tested immediately, to start taking a 10-day course of antibiotics. They make it very clear that they're not talking about public areas where people walked in and can buy stamps and that sort of thing, but specifically areas that are essentially cordoned off for workers, but where some people who don't work for postal service might have had some business. You can see over my shoulder that there is a flag here outside the building that is at half-staff. That we are told is to honor the workers of -- postal worker who died in our nation's capitol.

In the meantime, work at this particular facility in Hamilton Township continues to go on in big white tents that have been erected outside of the building. We are told that there may be hundreds of thousands of letters that might have been contaminated as a result of coming into contact with some of the sorting machines that they believe the anthrax spores were present on.

I'm joined by the Glen Steel, who is an executive who owns a smaller or middle-sized insurance company here in New Jersey.

Glen, I want to find out how you have personally been affected by this.

GLEN STEEL, SMALL INSURANCE OWNER: I really don't know actually, because there's about 1150 pieces of mail still inside the building in my post office box. But it's difficult to say.

OKWU: And what very you told about when you would be able to retrieve this mail?

STEEL: I haven't been told.

OKWU: Haven't been told at all.

STEEL: No.

OKWU: Tried to make contact at all with the postal authorities here?

STEEL: I'm getting the mail that's been sent in the past couple of days, not any mail that's been in there before that.

OKWU: Is it slowing down your business in any way? Is it affecting your business?

STEEL: It could be. There's people with checks that -- making payments with their auto policy or business policy that might be in there. There's policies that might be there. There's endorsement that might be in there.

OKWU: OK. Thank you, sir. Glen Steel, a small insurance company executive.

Bill, back to you.

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