Traces of Anthrax Found at D.C. Mail Facility, Postal Service Says

WASHINGTON —  Traces of deadly anthrax bacteria have been found at the center that checks mail addressed to the Federal Reserve, U.S. Postal Service officials said Tuesday.

“The Federal Reserve routinely tests mail delivered to its headquarters in Washington in a secure facility,” Thomas Day, vice president of engineering for the Postal Service, told a news conference.

He said the suspect item did not enter the Federal Reserve headquarters.

“We have a single test result from one sample out of many that are done over at the Federal Reserve,” Day said. “This appears to be a very isolated incident, and it is not clear at all specifically what, if any, piece of mail this came from.”

He said the Postal Service is now doing precautionary testing for anthrax at the Washington mail facility that handles mail going to all federal offices in the city.

Day said there was no evidence of broad contamination or risk to employees at the mail facility. “There’s absolutely nothing that indicates we have a contamination problem here,” he said.