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CNN Saturday Morning News

Anthrax Traces Found in House Office Building

Aired October 27, 2001 - 10:02   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.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Anthrax traces have been found in a House office building on Capitol Hill and CNN's medical correspondent, Rhonda Rowland is there now.

Hi, Rhonda.

RHONDA ROWLAND, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra and that building is the Longworth Building. It's right behind me. It's just south of the capitol. It's actually one of three office buildings for the House of Representatives. And in the Longworth Building, investigators have found trace amounts of anthrax in three offices. Now, this Longworth Building has been closed ever since the Daschle letter was found.

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LT. DAN NICHOLS, CAPITOL POLICE: These offices are on the sixth and seventh floors of the Longworth House Office Building. It's important to note that these are trace samples, much like the ones we found in the elevator in the Hart Senate Office Building. These are merely trace samples.

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ROWLAND: The U.S. capitol's physician said they'll now begin the process of identifying those individuals who were in or near these offices so they can begin appropriate treatment with antibiotics.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. JOHN EISOLD, CAPITOL PHYSICIAN: We are not concerned about a significant health risk. We are confident that by identification and treatment of a population who is yet not exhibited any symptoms that would be worrisome, that we can maintain their good health.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROWLAND: The CDC's director, Dr. Jeffrey Koplan, says he now believes that more than one letter tainted with anthrax has gone through the government's mail system. And this is different from what officials have said all along. They pointed to just one letter, the Daschle letter. But now that the anthrax contamination has spread to about a dozen buildings, that is office buildings, mail facilities in the Washington area, he's pointing to the fact that he believes that more than one letter was involved. They have not found another letter, but the fact that it spread; they cannot believe that it's actually one letter that is bringing the contamination to all these areas -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Well, let's talk about other ways that it -- the contamination could travel, Rhonda. I mean somebody could have -- we were talking about this earlier, actually -- Martin and I were -- that it can travel by clothes or the bottom of your shoe or -- not just the letter, correct?

ROWLAND: Well, I don't think they know the answer to that yet. And that's what they're trying to figure out with this investigation, by taking the environmental samples. And what now? They're still looking at the mail supply, but there are several truckloads of mail from the capitol that's been taken away to be sterilized. And once it's deemed safe, then they'll go through and try to find those letters. But at this point, that would be just speculation -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Rhonda Rowland, thanks so much.

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