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Anthrax: Brentwood Fumigation to Begin This Weekend After preparing for almost a year, U.S. officials are expected to begin fully decontaminating the anthrax-tainted Brentwood Road postal facility in Washington this weekend (see GSN, Nov. 25). During a community meeting yestereday, U.S. Postal Service officials provided details on the plan to sanitize the facility using chlorine dioxide gas. Technicians plan to pump 2,000 pounds of gas into the facility starting Saturday, the Washington Post reported. Scrubbers will then operate for 20 hours Monday to neutralize the gas, officials said. Technicians are scheduled to enter Brentwood later in the week to collect thousands of spore strips and samples to determine whether the decontamination effort was a success. A committee of Washington Health Department and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency specialists are expected to meet 30 days later to determine what, if any, further action is needed. During yesterday’s meeting, postal officials told Brentwood-area residents and postal employees that the chlorine dioxide gas poses little risk. Several safety measures have been established, including the installation of 26 air monitors around the facility and the establishment of a safety perimeter of 282 yards, officials said. Additionally, technicians from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency plan to patrol the area in a specially equipped bus and monitor air quality during the decontamination, the Post reported. Several area residents and postal employees expressed concerns over the plan and criticized postal officials, the Post reported. “Last year, they were ignorant (about how to respond to an anthrax attack), but this year, they’re experts,” said James Harper, a Brentwood worker and member of Brentwood Exposed, an employee support group (see GSN, Dec. 9; Manny Fernandez, Washington Post, Dec. 12). For further information, see: CDC Frequently Asked Questions About Anthrax Journal of the American Medical Association Background on Anthrax GSN Anthrax Attack Chronology (Dec. 12, 2001)
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