White powder found at MIT being checked

• 10/17/01 update, 4 p.m.: Tests are negative on white powder



• 10/17/01 update, 10:15 a.m.: Anthrax questions fielded at information session



• 10/16/01 update, 6:15 p.m.: A second report of white powder, at the Human Resources Department, apparently was a false alarm. It appeared to be construction dust on the outside of an envelope from a known person, according to Dr. David Diamond of the MIT Medical Department.

MIT Vice President Kathryn A. Willmore issued the following statement October 16, 2:15 p.m.

This morning, an MIT lecturer in Foreign Languages and Literature was exposed to a white powder after opening a piece of mail in his office on the third floor of Building 14.

He called the Campus Police, who responded immediately, together with the MIT Biosafety Office, and the Cambridge Fire Department Hazardous Materials Team.

The individual, along with two others in the area, were checked by the MIT Medical Department and decontaminated. The office has been sealed off and steps have been taken to decontaminate the office and other areas of the building.

The powder, less than a teaspoon, was collected by the hazardous Materials Team and is being delivered to the state laboratory for testing. Initial results should be available within a day.

Please refer to the advisory on mail handling, which is posted on the News Office website. The advisory is being distributed to the mail distribution centers for pick-up by individual offices.

Disposable gloves are available for free in Room 56-070 for anyone who wishes to use them for mail handling.

Information session: This afternoon (Tuesday, Oct. 16), between 4:30 and 6:00 p.m., Dr. David Diamond and Dr. Howard Heller of the Medical Department will be available in Room 26-100 to answer any questions members of the MIT community may have about biohazards.

The incident remains under investigation. We will keep you posted as we learn more. Please also check the MIT homepage and the News Office website for updates.

- Kathryn A. Willmore

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