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American Morning

Anthrax Fear

Aired September 30, 2003 - 07:19   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: It is now two years to the day since the attacks of anthrax first appeared in this country. Nine states had those confirmed anthrax cases. Five were killed, 22 more became ill. Authorities are still trying to determine who did it and why.
Journalist Richard Preston specializes in reporting on viruses and emerging infectious diseases. He's the best-selling author of "The Hot Zone" and "The Demon in the Freezer." He's with us now live in New York City.

Nice see you. Good morning.

Two years later, what did we learn from the attacks of anthrax?

RICHARD PRESTON, AUTHOR, "THE DEMON IN THE FREEZER": Well, I think one of the big lessons is that these cases look very difficult to solve. There's no perpetrator that's been arrested here. And my gut feeling is that it may have been done by more than one person. We just don't know. But the lesson certainly for a wannabe terrorist is you can get away with it.

HEMMER: Wow! Look at a statement that Tom Ridge did -- actually an editorial back on 9/11. I'll read it to our audience quickly. "Our national stockpile of medications to protect Americans against a bioterrorist attack was drastically undersupplied. In a little over a year following the 9/11 attacks and the anthrax attacks, we stocked piled a billion doses of antibiotics and vaccines, including enough smallpox vaccine for every man, woman and child in America."

Do you believe those numbers?

PRESTON: Well, I think we're partway there. I think that's a little optimistic, but I think we're far better off than we were. We have probably about half of the amount of the smallpox vaccine that we can really use in an emergency.

One of the big questions that I have is: If we have an outbreak of smallpox in this country, which is a bad one -- it could travel fast -- would we be able to get the vaccine into people fast enough to make a difference?

HEMMER: As you canvas the field of this issue, is smallpox your biggest concern because you mention it here, or are there others?

PRESTON: Smallpox is certainly a big concern, because it's airborne and it's highly contagious and it's one of the most lethal diseases of humans that's known. But anthrax, of course, is a big deal, and we've seen now that it can be done. We've had a lesson now that it works.

HEMMER: Specifically, on the case involving Stephen Hatfill, there are some reports coming out this past week that said perhaps they overdid it, the government, in naming him as a person of interest. Do you believe he acted alone?

PRESTON: Well, you know, I think there are many big questions, and one of them is that Stephen Hatfill has never been labeled as a suspect. The FBI has said he's -- quote -- "A person of interest." And I keep wondering and thinking, you know, it's possible that Hatfill had nothing to do with it. He may be the perpetrator, but nobody knows. And the FBI hasn't made an arrest.

HEMMER: Why do you think, then, this case is so hard to crack?

PRESTON: That's a fascinating question. The FBI originally believed that they could use science, forensic science, to solve this crime. There's very little evidence. There's the handwriting on the envelopes. There's a very small amount of this anthrax powder and that's about it.

And the FBI to date has not, as I know, even been able to duplicate the exact powder. They have spent something like $12 million trying to make a powder just like the stuff that was found in the letters, and they can't do it. If they can't make the stuff, then they can't forensically identify a perpetrator who did it. They can't say so and so did it such and such a way.

HEMMER: And that leaves us in a position where the mystery continues, and you wait possibly for someone to come forward and make a positive I.D., and that hasn't happened.

PRESTON: I keep thinking that it could easily be good, old gumshoe detective work, where a witness comes forward, somebody gets drunk and talks, somebody boasts. Who knows?

HEMMER: Thank you, Richard. Good to see you. Richard Preston, the author of "The Hot Zone," thanks.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.







Aired September 30, 2003 - 07:19   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: It is now two years to the day since the attacks of anthrax first appeared in this country. Nine states had those confirmed anthrax cases. Five were killed, 22 more became ill. Authorities are still trying to determine who did it and why.
Journalist Richard Preston specializes in reporting on viruses and emerging infectious diseases. He's the best-selling author of "The Hot Zone" and "The Demon in the Freezer." He's with us now live in New York City.

Nice see you. Good morning.

Two years later, what did we learn from the attacks of anthrax?

RICHARD PRESTON, AUTHOR, "THE DEMON IN THE FREEZER": Well, I think one of the big lessons is that these cases look very difficult to solve. There's no perpetrator that's been arrested here. And my gut feeling is that it may have been done by more than one person. We just don't know. But the lesson certainly for a wannabe terrorist is you can get away with it.

HEMMER: Wow! Look at a statement that Tom Ridge did -- actually an editorial back on 9/11. I'll read it to our audience quickly. "Our national stockpile of medications to protect Americans against a bioterrorist attack was drastically undersupplied. In a little over a year following the 9/11 attacks and the anthrax attacks, we stocked piled a billion doses of antibiotics and vaccines, including enough smallpox vaccine for every man, woman and child in America."

Do you believe those numbers?

PRESTON: Well, I think we're partway there. I think that's a little optimistic, but I think we're far better off than we were. We have probably about half of the amount of the smallpox vaccine that we can really use in an emergency.

One of the big questions that I have is: If we have an outbreak of smallpox in this country, which is a bad one -- it could travel fast -- would we be able to get the vaccine into people fast enough to make a difference?

HEMMER: As you canvas the field of this issue, is smallpox your biggest concern because you mention it here, or are there others?

PRESTON: Smallpox is certainly a big concern, because it's airborne and it's highly contagious and it's one of the most lethal diseases of humans that's known. But anthrax, of course, is a big deal, and we've seen now that it can be done. We've had a lesson now that it works.

HEMMER: Specifically, on the case involving Stephen Hatfill, there are some reports coming out this past week that said perhaps they overdid it, the government, in naming him as a person of interest. Do you believe he acted alone?

PRESTON: Well, you know, I think there are many big questions, and one of them is that Stephen Hatfill has never been labeled as a suspect. The FBI has said he's -- quote -- "A person of interest." And I keep wondering and thinking, you know, it's possible that Hatfill had nothing to do with it. He may be the perpetrator, but nobody knows. And the FBI hasn't made an arrest.

HEMMER: Why do you think, then, this case is so hard to crack?

PRESTON: That's a fascinating question. The FBI originally believed that they could use science, forensic science, to solve this crime. There's very little evidence. There's the handwriting on the envelopes. There's a very small amount of this anthrax powder and that's about it.

And the FBI to date has not, as I know, even been able to duplicate the exact powder. They have spent something like $12 million trying to make a powder just like the stuff that was found in the letters, and they can't do it. If they can't make the stuff, then they can't forensically identify a perpetrator who did it. They can't say so and so did it such and such a way.

HEMMER: And that leaves us in a position where the mystery continues, and you wait possibly for someone to come forward and make a positive I.D., and that hasn't happened.

PRESTON: I keep thinking that it could easily be good, old gumshoe detective work, where a witness comes forward, somebody gets drunk and talks, somebody boasts. Who knows?

HEMMER: Thank you, Richard. Good to see you. Richard Preston, the author of "The Hot Zone," thanks.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.