Return to Full Coverage of the Bioterrorism Threat

Connecticut Officials Find Anthrax Traces on Letter
Nov. 30, 2001 -- Update: Anthrax has been found on a letter sent to a home in Seymour, Connecticut. The home is a mile away from the former residence of Ottilie Lundgren, the 94-year-old woman who died of inhalation anthrax on November 21.

Nov. 30, 2001 -- RealAudio: Connecticut Gov. John Rowland.

Preventing a Smallpox Outbreak: The Stockpile and the 'Ring'
Nov. 29, 2001 -- Susan Dentzer reports on the administration's plans to prevent a smallpox outbreak should it be used as a form of bioterrorism.

Nov. 28, 2001 -- Update: By ordering 155 million doses of the smallpox vaccine, the administration has increased the nation's stockpile to cover the entire population by the end of next year. Officials say, however, that the vaccine will not be administered on a preventative basis because it is known to be effective up to four days after exposure and because in rare cases it can be deadly.

Test of Connecticut Woman's Home, Mail Negative For Anthrax
Nov. 23, 2001 -- Update: Preliminary tests on the mail, mailbox and home of a Connecticut woman who died Wednesday of inhaled anthrax have yielded no further signs of the bacteria, Gov. John Rowland told reporters.

Rowland said tests on two postal facilities and 400 postal employees have also come back negative. But he said the findings don't help explain how Ottilie Lundgren, a mostly-homebound 94-year-old Oxford, Conn. resident, came in contact with the deadly bacteria.

Nov. 23, 2001 -- RealAudio: Connecticut Gov. John Rowland on investigators' findings.

Connecticut Woman Dies From Inhaled Anthrax
Nov. 21, 2001 -- Update: A 94-year-old Connecticut woman died from inhaled anthrax, doctors at the Griffin Hospital in Derby, Conn. said. Investigators are looking into how the woman could have contracted the bacteria, since she no longer drives and usually sticks close to home.
Nov. 21, 2001 -- CDC Director Dr. Jeffrey Koplan discusses this latest anthrax case and what we have learned over the past two months.
Nov. 21, 2001 -- RealAudio: Doctors at Griffin Hospital announce the woman's death from inhaled anthrax.

Battling Bioterrorism
Nov. 20, 2001 -- An interview with Dr. D.A. Henderson, the director of the new Office of Public Health Preparedness. His work was instrumental in the eradication of the smallpox two decades ago.
Extended Excerpts of the interview.

Another Anthrax-Tainted Letter Found in Congressional Mail
Nov. 16, 2001 -- Preliminary tests show that a letter addressed to Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy may contain anthrax. The letter was postmarked from Trenton, NJ on Oct. 9 and was "almost-identical" to a letter addressed to Sen. Tom Daschle that tested positive for anthrax in October.

More Anthrax Found at State Department, Howard University
Nov. 13, 2001 -- Update: Eight of 55 tests from an off-site State Department mail facility tested positive for anthrax, officials reported today. Experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention believe the contamination is further evidence of another anthrax-tainted envelope moving through the system.

Traces of anthrax were also discovered in the central mailroom of Howard University in Washington, DC. College officials shut down 8 mail-sorting facilities on the campus yesterday as a consequence. It is the first non-government facility in the capital to test positive for spores.

FBI: Anthrax Letters Written By Same Person, Releases Profile of Offender
Nov. 9, 2001 -- Update: The FBI announced today that the same person likely sent three anthrax-tainted letters to NBC, the New York Post and Sen. Tom Daschle. The agency also released a profile of that person, asking the American public to take note if anyone they know matches the characteristics.
The FBI Profile of Letters and Offender

Postmaster Asks for $5 Billion to Help Recover from Terrorist Attacks
Nov. 8, 2001 -- Update: The postmaster general asked a Senate panel today to provide $5 billion to help the reeling U.S. Postal Service recover from terrorist attacks and to make the mail safe from bioterrorism threats. (11/8/01)

New Anthrax Test Developed; Traces of Bacteria Found in Pentagon
Nov. 5, 2001 -- Update: Scientists at the Mayo Clinic announced the development of a new test that may be able to identify anthrax bacteria in as quick as 30 minutes, compared to the current test which takes at least a day. (11/5/01)

Local Systems in DC and Elsewhere Respond to Public Health Crisis
Nov. 1, 2001 -- Washington, DC Mayor Anthony Williams talks about how the city is coping with anthrax scares and security threats. (11/1/01)
Nov. 1, 2001 -- RealAudio: Susan Dentzer reports on how local public health systems are handling the latest emergencies. (11/1/01)
Extended Excerpts: Dr. Tara O'Toole, Dr. Venkat Mani and Dr. Georges Benjamin
Oct. 31, 2001 -- Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health, discusses the medical community's response to the anthrax threat. (10/31/01)

New York Hospital Worker Dies of Inhalation Anthrax
Nov. 1, 2001 -- Update: Officials find the anthrax that killed a New York hospital worker matches the bacteria found in previous attacks. There are still no clues about how the Bronx resident contracted the fatal disease.
Oct. 31, 2001 -- Update: A 61-year-old hospital worker with a mysterious case of inhalation anthrax died early Wednesday, the nation's fourth fatality in a month of bioterrorism.

Anthrax Cases Confirmed in New York, New Jersey
Oct. 30, 2001 -- Gwen Ifill and Susan Dentzer track the latest anthrax developments.

Postal Service Responds to Anthrax Threat
Oct. 30, 2001 -- Update: Officials at the U.S. Postal Service say they're taking steps to protect employees from possible anthrax-tainted mail.

New Jersey Woman Tests Positive for Skin Anthrax
Oct. 29, 2001 -- Update: A New Jersey woman today became the first non-postal employee in the state to be diagnosed with cutaneous anthrax, the less serious "skin" form of the disease.

Anthrax Traces Found in State Dept., Supreme Court Buildings
Oct. 29, 2001 -- Update: Traces of anthrax bacteria are found in on-site mailrooms at the State Dept. and U.S. Supreme Court, as well as in mail facilities serving the Food and Drug Administration and the Voice of America.

Homeland Security Director Ridge Updates Anthrax Threat
Oct. 29, 2001 -- RealAudio: Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge and Heath and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson say 575 health officials have been assigned to biothreat cases in NY, NJ, DC, and FL.

Third New Jersey Postal Worker Diagnosed with Anthrax
Oct. 28, 2001 -- State health department officials say one of two female postal workers with a respiratory illness has been confirmed with inhalation anthrax. Two other New Jersey postal workers were previously diagnosed with the less-serious cutaneous form of the disease.

Health officials say they will start prescribing the antibiotic doxycycline to people at-risk of the disease instead of the previous drug of choice, Cipro, to better balance the antibiotics used in the population.

Report: FBI and CIA Suspect Domestic Extremists in Anthrax Attacks
Oct. 27, 2001 -- The Washington Post reports top FBI and CIA officials believe the anthrax attacks on Washington, New York and Florida were likely the work of extremists in the U.S. who are probably not connected to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida terrorist network.

Anthrax Found at Off-Site Mail Facilities Serving Federal Buildings
Oct. 26, 2001 -- Update: Traces of anthrax bacteria have surfaced in off-site mail facilities for the Supreme Court, the Central Intelligence Agency, the State Department and two army facilities.

State Department Mail Worker Infected with Anthrax
Oct. 25, 2001 -- Update: A worker at an off-site State Dept. mailroom in Sterling, Va. has been hospitalized with inhaled anthrax, the most deadly form of the bacteria. Meanwhile, investigators have uncovered two other anthrax-contaminated spots in the Hart Senate Office Building.

Views From the Front Lines
Oct. 25, 2001 -- Chief Postal Inspector Ken Weaver on the U.S. Postal System's response to the anthrax threat.
Oct. 25, 2001 -- RealAudio: Six U.S. mayors discuss how their cities are reacting to the recent anthrax outbreaks.
Oct. 25, 2001 -- RealAudio: Washington DC Mayor Anthony Williams on the District's anthrax cases.
Oct. 25, 2001 -- RealAudio: Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge Ridge recounts the recent anthrax cases.

Combating the Anthrax Threat
Oct. 24, 2001 -- Centers for Disease Control Director Dr. Jeffrey Koplan discusses health officials' response to the anthrax threat.

Analysis of Post Office Anthrax Cases
Oct. 23, 2001 -- Gwen Ifill gets the reaction of three experts to the recent anthrax cases in New Jersey and Washington, D.C.

Anthrax Spores Found at Off-Site White House Mailroom
Oct. 23, 2001 -- Update: Spores of anthrax were also found at a remote mail facility that serves the White House, spokesman Ari Fleischer said. He said the facility was closed and its employees would be tested for anthrax exposure.
Oct. 23, 2001 -- RealAudio: President Bush says he considers himself safe inside the White House.
Oct. 23, 2001 -- RealAudio: White House spokesman Ari Fleischer on anthrax in an off-site facility that sorts mail for the White House.

Anthrax Blamed in DC Postal Worker Deaths
Oct. 23, 2001 --RealAudio: D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams and other officials discuss the anthrax deaths.
Oct. 22, 2001 --A public health expert and a former postal inspector discuss the latest rash of infections in Washington.
Oct. 22, 2001 -- Update: Background on the two inhalation cases and the two suspicious deaths likely linked to an anthrax-tainted letter.
Oct. 22, 2001 -- RealAudio: DC officials announce the two deaths and the second anthrax infection.
Oct. 21, 2001 -- Update: A postal worker in Washington, DC is diagnosed with the more severe inhaled form of anthrax.
Oct. 21, 2001 -- RealAudio: A press conference from Inova Fairfax Hospital, where the DC man infected with inhalation anthrax is receiving treatment.

4 Anthrax Cases in New York, Strains Match DC, FL
Oct. 19, 2001 -- Update: Tests on the anthrax found in New York, DC and Florida show that the strains are indistinguishable.
Oct. 19, 2001 -- Update: A second postal employee in New Jersey tested positive for an anthrax infection. He likely handled a letter sent to NBC.
Oct. 19, 2001 -- RealAudio: The head of Homeland Security, Tom Ridge, updates the anthrax situation, including a new skin infection at the NY Post.

The Fear Factor
Oct. 18, 2001 -- Three regional reporters discuss public reaction to the anthrax threat.
Oct. 18, 2001 -- RealAudio: Reports from Chicago, Portland, Oregon and San Francisco on the response to the anthrax scare.

CBS, Postal Employees Test Positive for Anthrax Skin Infection
Oct. 18, 2001 -- Update: Officials confirm two more cases of cutaneous anthrax, one is an assistant to CBS anchor Dan Rather and the other a New Jersey postal worker.
Oct. 18, 2001 -- RealAudio: CBS News President Andrew Heyward and Dan Rather provide more information on the anthrax case.
Oct. 18, 2001 -- RealAudio: New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani confirms the CBS anthrax case.

House Shuts Down After Senate Staffers Exposed to Anthrax
Oct. 17, 2001 -- Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Fred Thompson (R-Tenn.) discuss reaction to the recent Capitol Hill anthrax attack.

Newsmaker: John Ashcroft
Oct. 17, 2001 -- The Attorney General talks to Jim Lehrer about the anthrax investigation and progress in the Sept. 11 case.

Tests Link Florida, New York Anthrax Cases
Oct. 17, 2001 -- Preliminary tests show the anthrax sent to the American Media company in Boca Raton, Fla. and NBC News in New York were the same strain. FBI officials told the Associated Press they are following "substantive leads" as to who may be behind those acts.

Anthrax Detected in N.Y. Gov. Pataki's New York City Office
Oct. 17, 2001 -- New York Governor George Pataki says officials are still determining how anthrax spores ended up in his New York City office.
RealAudio: Gov. Pataki's news conference.

House to Shut Down After Senate Staffers Exposed to Anthrax
Oct. 17, 2001 -- Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Fred Thompson (R-Tenn.) discuss reaction to the recent Capitol Hill anthrax attack.
Oct. 17, 2001 -- RealAudio: Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases discusses the health issues associated with anthrax.
Oct. 17, 2001 -- Update: Speaker Dennis Hastert says the House of Representatives and its office buildings will close after staffers for Sen. Tom Daschle and members of the Capitol police test positive for anthrax exposure.
Oct. 17, 2001 -- RealAudio: Speaker Hastert's afternoon press conference.
Oct. 17, 2001 -- RealAudio: Sen. Daschle says the Senate will remain in session.
Oct. 17, 2001 -- RealAudio: Speaker Hastert's morning press conference announcing the shutdown.