The 2001 Anthrax Attacks​

Picture
Roszel Road Post Office, from Nov. 7, 2001 U.S.1 newspaper.
Historical Overview
The September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks changed the course of history. Yet, what's not quite as remembered today is the fact that in the weeks after those attacks, a different threat was spreading quietly through the mail in central New Jersey: anthrax.[1],[2],[3],[4] 

This serious disease is caused by Bacillus anthracis, a bacterium that can form hardy spores and enter the body through skin cuts, inhalation, or ingestion.[5] Without treatment, it can release powerful toxins that disrupt the immune system, damage tissues, and can ultimately cause death.[6],[7],[8]

The first known attack letters - five in total - were postmarked September 18 and sent to ABC News, CBS News, NBC News and the New York Post, all located in New York City, and to the National Enquirer at American Media, Inc. in Florida.[9],[10] They traveled through the Trenton Processing and Distribution Center at 680 Route 130 in Hamilton, which handled much of the region's mail. [11],[12] A second mailing, postmarked October 9, went to U.S. Senators Tom Daschle and Patrick Leahy in Washington, D.C.[13],[14],[15],[16]

The first death was Robert Stevens, in Boca Raton, Florida, on October 5.[17],[18] Ultimately, twenty-two people became ill and five died.[19],[20],[21] New Jersey recorded six cases, and all six patients survived.[22]
Picture
Anthrax-laced letter sent to Senator Patrick Leahy. From Wikipedia. Click for source.
The Hamilton center closed on October 18 after investigators connected the illnesses to the facility.[23],[24] Testing there found anthrax in dozens of samples, and more than one thousand workers, visitors, and related contacts were advised to take antibiotics.[25],[26]

Because Hamilton handled about two million pieces of mail per day, its closure slowed service across the region.[27],[28] Trucks, tents, mobile units, redirected bulk mail, and temporary outdoor service became part of local mail delivery. Postal workers questioned why warnings, test results, and medicine had not come sooner, and later federal reviews found that early guidance had not fully anticipated that envelopes could leak spores during sorting.[29],[30],[31]

On October 26, officials reported that a single colony of anthrax had been found at the "Princeton" Post Office at 213 Carnegie Center Drive - which, despite its name, is in fact in West Windsor.[32],[33],[34] They closed this facility that evening and shifted service outside while additional samples were taken.[35],[36],[37] Tests ultimately proved there was no widespread infection in the facility, and the building reopened on November 5.[38],[39] Officials concluded the colony was most likely due to cross-contamination from mail that had passed through Hamilton, not evidence that attack letters had been mailed to or from West Windsor.[40],[41],[42],[43]
Picture
Mobile post office at Carnegie Center Drive facility, from Oct. 31, 2001 "Town Topics."
Multiple other local postal sites, such as the Princeton Junction post office at 331 North Post Road were tested or evaluated as the investigation widened.[44],[45],[46],[47] The Palmer Square post office at 20 Palmer Square in Princeton Borough later tested positive for a trace amount in a letter carrier case, but officials cleaned the area and kept the office open, judging risks to workers to be low.[48],[49] Investigators ultimately identified a street mailbox at 10 Nassau Street in Princeton as the source from which the attack letters were likely mailed.[50],[51]

Federal summaries later identified that two processing centers were particularly heavily contaminated: Hamilton and Brentwood, with twenty-one other facilities experiencing a lesser level of contamination, in New York Connecticut, Florida, North Carolina, New Jersey and Washington, D.C.[52],[53],[54]

In the wake of the 9/11 attacks, the anthrax letters sparked further fear across the nation.[55],[56],[57] Mercer County hazmat teams answered hundreds of calls about suspicious powders, and a "Fleet Bank" branch on Nassau Street in Princeton closed briefly after a white-powder scare that tested negative.[58],[59] Princeton University, local schools, banks, offices, and the media reviewed mail-handling and security practices as bioterrorism became part of everyday public discourse.[60],[61],[62] Nationally, the fear after September 11 also had broader social consequences, such as harassment of and discrimination against Muslims, Sikhs, Arabs, South Asians, and people perceived to belong to these groups.[63],[64]
Picture
Anthrax, from Wikipedia. Click for source.
The speed of cleanups depended on the level of contamination.[65],[66],[67],[68] The West Windsor and Palmer Square post offices required targeted cleaning, follow-up sampling, temporary disruption, and, ultimately, a quick return to service.[69],[70],[71] In contrast, the Hamilton facility required a much longer remediation and renovation and did not reopen until March 2005.[72],[73] Brentwood also remained closed for years, while the Hart Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C. was fumigated with chlorine dioxide under federal oversight.[74],[75]

The federal investigation into the attacks gradually shifted from tracing mail routes to identifying who prepared and mailed the spores.[76],[77] In 2010, the Justice Department formally closed the case and concluded that Army scientist Bruce Ivins, who committed suicide in 2008, had acted alone. However, some scientists, journalists, and former investigators have continued to question aspects of the evidence. Because Ivins died before any charges were filed or a trial could occur, the case was never tested in court.[78],[79],[80]

The anthrax attacks, and the broader public discourse around terrorism, prompted the United States Postal Service (USPS) to undertake many operational and technological changes - for instance, routine screening for biological hazards, irradiation of government mail, revised ventilation, employee training, and accelerated mail tracking improvements.[81],[82],[83],[84]
Picture
Nassau St. mailboxes, from Aug. 14, 2002 "Town Topics."
Bibliography
  1. Bewley, Joel, Tom Hester Jr., and Kevin Shea. “New Anthrax Site Found: West Windsor Mail Bin Had Trace; Test Mix-Up Revealed.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 27, 2001, A1, A18.
  2. Bewley, Joel, Tom Hester Jr., and Kevin Shea. “Anthrax Threat Spreads: Non-Mail Worker from Hamilton Treated for Skin Form.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 30, 2001, A1, A14.
  3. United States Postal Inspection Service. “The U.S. Postal Inspection Service Looks Back at the 20th Anniversary of the Anthrax Mailings.” November 4, 2021. https://www.uspis.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Press-Release-Anthrax-A-Look-Back-20th-Anniversary-Final.pdf.
  4. Coryell, Lisa. “Anthrax Suspicions Keep HazMat Teams Busy.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 26, 2001, A10.
  5. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “About Anthrax.” https://www.cdc.gov/anthrax/about/index.html.
  6. Cleret-Buhot, A., J. Mathieu, J.-N. Tournier, and A. Quesnel-Hellmann. “Both Lethal and Edema Toxins of Bacillus anthracis Disrupt the Human Dendritic Cell Chemokine Network.” PLoS ONE 7, no. 8 (2012): e43266. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0043266.
  7. Liu, Shihui, Yi Zhang, Mahtab Moayeri, Jie Liu, Devorah Crown, Rasem J. Fattah, Alexander N. Wein, Zu-Xi Yu, Toren Finkel, and Stephen H. Leppla. “Key Tissue Targets Responsible for Anthrax-Toxin-Induced Lethality.” Nature 501 (2013): 63–68. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature12510.
  8. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “CDC Guidelines for the Prevention and Treatment of Anthrax, 2023.” MMWR Recommendations and Reports 72, no. 6 (November 17, 2023). https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/rr/pdfs/rr7206a1-H.pdf.
  9. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Anthrax Epidemiologic Investigation Team. “Investigation of Bioterrorism-Related Anthrax, United States, 2001: Epidemiologic Findings.” Emerging Infectious Diseases 8, no. 10 (October 2002): 1019–1028. https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/8/10/02-0353_article.
  10. United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and United States Postal Inspection Service. Amerithrax Investigative Summary. Washington, DC, February 19, 2010. https://www.justice.gov/archive/amerithrax/docs/amx-investigative-summary.pdf.
  11. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Anthrax Epidemiologic Investigation Team. “Investigation of Bioterrorism-Related Anthrax, United States, 2001: Epidemiologic Findings.” Emerging Infectious Diseases 8, no. 10 (October 2002): 1019–1028. https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/8/10/02-0353_article.
  12. Bewley, Joel, Tom Hester Jr., and Kevin Shea. “New Anthrax Site Found: West Windsor Mail Bin Had Trace; Test Mix-Up Revealed.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 27, 2001, A1, A18.
  13. United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and United States Postal Inspection Service. Amerithrax Investigative Summary. Washington, DC, February 19, 2010. https://www.justice.gov/archive/amerithrax/docs/amx-investigative-summary.pdf.
  14. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Anthrax Epidemiologic Investigation Team. “Investigation of Bioterrorism-Related Anthrax, United States, 2001: Epidemiologic Findings.” Emerging Infectious Diseases 8, no. 10 (October 2002): 1019–1028. https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/8/10/02-0353_article.
  15. Shea, Kevin, and Larry Hanover. “Hunt Narrows for Anthrax Source: Smaller Slice of Trenton Postal Area Seen as Location for Drop of Tainted Letters.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 2, 2001, A1, A16–A17.
  16. United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and United States Postal Inspection Service. Amerithrax Investigative Summary. Washington, DC, February 19, 2010. https://www.justice.gov/archive/amerithrax/docs/amx-investigative-summary.pdf.
  17. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Update: Investigation of Bioterrorism-Related Anthrax and Interim Guidelines for Exposure Management and Antimicrobial Therapy, October 2001.” MMWR Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 50, no. 42 (October 26, 2001): 909–919. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5042a1.htm.
  18. United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and United States Postal Inspection Service. Amerithrax Investigative Summary. Washington, DC, February 19, 2010. https://www.justice.gov/archive/amerithrax/docs/amx-investigative-summary.pdf.
  19. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Anthrax Epidemiologic Investigation Team. “Investigation of Bioterrorism-Related Anthrax, United States, 2001: Epidemiologic Findings.” Emerging Infectious Diseases 8, no. 10 (October 2002): 1019–1028. https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/8/10/02-0353_article.
  20. United States Government Accountability Office. U.S. Postal Service: Better Guidance Is Needed to Ensure an Appropriate Response to Anthrax Contamination. GAO-04-239. Washington, DC, September 2004. https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-04-239.
  21. United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and United States Postal Inspection Service. Amerithrax Investigative Summary. Washington, DC, February 19, 2010. https://www.justice.gov/archive/amerithrax/docs/amx-investigative-summary.pdf.
  22. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Anthrax Epidemiologic Investigation Team. “Investigation of Bioterrorism-Related Anthrax, United States, 2001: Epidemiologic Findings.” Emerging Infectious Diseases 8, no. 10 (October 2002): 1019–1028. https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/8/10/02-0353_article.
  23. Parmalee, J. A. “Two Post Offices to Reopen.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 5, 2001, A1, A8.
  24. United States Government Accountability Office. U.S. Postal Service: Better Guidance Is Needed to Ensure an Appropriate Response to Anthrax Contamination. GAO-04-239. Washington, DC, September 2004. https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-04-239.
  25. Bewley, Joel, Tom Hester Jr., and Kevin Shea. “New Anthrax Site Found: West Windsor Mail Bin Had Trace; Test Mix-Up Revealed.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 27, 2001, A1, A18.
  26. Shea, Kevin. “Mail to Get Zapped: Electron Beam to Clean Hamilton’s Stuck Letters.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 6, 2001, A1, A14.
  27. Spring, Kathleen McGinn. “Postal Drama: Will It End and When?” U.S. 1, October 31, 2001.
  28. McDonald, Raymond F., Jr. “Princeton Post Office Worked Valiantly to Deliver Mail During Anthrax Crisis.” Town Topics, November 28, 2001.
  29. McDonald, Raymond F., Jr. “Princeton Post Office Worked Valiantly to Deliver Mail During Anthrax Crisis.” Town Topics, November 28, 2001.
  30. United States Government Accountability Office. U.S. Postal Service: Better Guidance Is Needed to Ensure an Appropriate Response to Anthrax Contamination. GAO-04-239. Washington, DC, September 2004. https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-04-239.
  31. United States Government Accountability Office. U.S. Postal Service: Better Guidance Is Needed to Ensure an Appropriate Response to Anthrax Contamination. GAO-04-239. Washington, DC, September 2004. https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-04-239.
  32. Bewley, Joel, Tom Hester Jr., and Kevin Shea. “New Anthrax Site Found: West Windsor Mail Bin Had Trace; Test Mix-Up Revealed.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 27, 2001, A1, A18.
  33. Ayres, Karen. “W. Windsor Post Office Stays Shut.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 28, 2001, A12.
  34. Bearse, Myrna K. “Mail Operation Moves Outside Closed Facilities.” Town Topics, October 31, 2001.
  35. Bewley, Joel, Tom Hester Jr., and Kevin Shea. “New Anthrax Site Found: West Windsor Mail Bin Had Trace; Test Mix-Up Revealed.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 27, 2001, A1, A18.
  36. Ayres, Karen. “West Windsor Post Office Remains Shut.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 28, 2001, A1, A12.
  37. “Temporary Postal Quarters.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 2, 2001, A1.
  38. Parmalee, J. A. “Two Post Offices to Reopen.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 5, 2001, A1, A8.
  39. Ayres, Karen. “Princeton Main Post Office Reopens: Some Customers Are Apprehensive.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 6, 2001, A9.
  40. Bewley, Joel, Tom Hester Jr., and Kevin Shea. “New Anthrax Site Found: West Windsor Mail Bin Had Trace; Test Mix-Up Revealed.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 27, 2001, A1, A18.
  41. Dee, Joseph. “Officials Nix Tests at N.J. Post Offices: Reject Checks of Post Offices.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 28, 2001, A1, A12.
  42. Bewley, Joel, Tom Hester Jr., and Kevin Shea. “Anthrax Threat Spreads: Non-Mail Worker from Hamilton Treated for Skin Form.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 30, 2001, A1, A14.
  43. United States Government Accountability Office. Anthrax Detection: Agencies Need to Validate Sampling Activities in Order to Increase Confidence in Negative Results. GAO-05-251. Washington, DC, March 2005. https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-05-251.pdf.
  44. “Area Post Offices Set for Environmental Testing.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 1, 2001.
  45. Dee, Joseph. “Officials Nix Tests at N.J. Post Offices: Reject Checks of Post Offices.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 28, 2001, A1, A12.
  46. Shea, Kevin, and Larry Hanover. “Hunt Narrows for Anthrax Source: Smaller Slice of Trenton Postal Area Seen as Location for Drop of Tainted Letters.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 2, 2001, A1, A16–A17.
  47. United States Government Accountability Office. Anthrax Detection: Agencies Need to Validate Sampling Activities in Order to Increase Confidence in Negative Results. GAO-05-251. Washington, DC, March 2005. https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-05-251.pdf.
  48. Princeton University. “Post Offices Reopened.” Princeton University September 11 Safety and Security Updates. https://pr.princeton.edu/sept11/safety.shtml.
  49. Princeton University. “Post Offices Reopened.” Princeton University September 11 Safety and Security Updates. https://pr.princeton.edu/sept11/safety.shtml.
  50. “Anthrax Found in Nassau Street Mailbox.” Town Topics, August 14, 2002.
  51. United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and United States Postal Inspection Service. Amerithrax Investigative Summary. Washington, DC, February 19, 2010. https://www.justice.gov/archive/amerithrax/docs/amx-investigative-summary.pdf.
  52. United States Government Accountability Office. U.S. Postal Service: Better Guidance Is Needed to Ensure an Appropriate Response to Anthrax Contamination. GAO-04-239. Washington, DC, September 2004. https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-04-239.
  53. United States Government Accountability Office. Anthrax Detection: Agencies Need to Validate Sampling Activities in Order to Increase Confidence in Negative Results. GAO-05-251. Washington, DC, March 2005. https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-05-251.pdf.
  54. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Anthrax Epidemiologic Investigation Team. “Investigation of Bioterrorism-Related Anthrax, United States, 2001: Epidemiologic Findings.” Emerging Infectious Diseases 8, no. 10 (October 2002): 1019–1028. https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/8/10/02-0353_article.
  55. Coryell, Lisa. “Anthrax Suspicions Keep HazMat Teams Busy.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 26, 2001, A10.
  56. Bewley, Joel, Tom Hester Jr., and Kevin Shea. “Anthrax Threat Spreads: Non-Mail Worker from Hamilton Treated for Skin Form.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 30, 2001, A1, A14.
  57. United States Postal Inspection Service. “The U.S. Postal Inspection Service Looks Back at the 20th Anniversary of the Anthrax Mailings.” November 4, 2021. https://www.uspis.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Press-Release-Anthrax-A-Look-Back-20th-Anniversary-Final.pdf.
  58. Coryell, Lisa. “Anthrax Suspicions Keep HazMat Teams Busy.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), October 26, 2001, A10.
  59. “Fleet Bank Reopens After Anthrax Scare.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 8, 2001.
  60. Bearse, Myrna K. “Mail Operation Moves Outside Closed Facilities.” Town Topics, October 31, 2001.
  61. Goldfarb, Zachary A. “Conference Looks at Post-9/11 Security.” The Daily Princetonian, April 25, 2002.
  62. “Hospitals Discuss How to ID Anthrax.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 2, 2001.
  63. United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division. “Combating Post-9/11 Discriminatory Backlash: Enforcement and Outreach.” https://www.justice.gov/crt/combating-post-911-discriminatory-backlash-6.
  64. United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. “What You Should Know about the EEOC and Religious and National Origin Discrimination Involving the Muslim, Sikh, Arab, Middle Eastern and South Asian Communities.” https://www.eeoc.gov/wysk/what-you-should-know-about-eeoc-and-religious-and-national-origin-discrimination-involving.
  65. Copeland, Claudia. Anthrax-Contaminated Facilities: Preparations and a Standard for Remediation. Congressional Research Service, November 4, 2005. https://www.everycrsreport.com/reports/RL33191.html.
  66. “Anthrax Clean-Up: No Windfall.” U.S. 1, January 15, 2002.
  67. United States Government Accountability Office. Anthrax Detection: Agencies Need to Validate Sampling Activities in Order to Increase Confidence in Negative Results. GAO-05-251. Washington, DC, March 2005. https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-05-251.pdf.
  68. United States Government Accountability Office. U.S. Postal Service: Better Guidance Is Needed to Ensure an Appropriate Response to Anthrax Contamination. GAO-04-239. Washington, DC, September 2004. https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-04-239.
  69. Parmalee, J. A. “Two Post Offices to Reopen.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 5, 2001, A1, A8.
  70. Ayres, Karen. “Princeton Main Post Office Reopens: Some Customers Are Apprehensive.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 6, 2001, A9.
  71. Spring, Kathleen McGinn. “Postal Drama: Will It End and When?” U.S. 1, October 31, 2001.
  72. Isherwood, Darryl R. “Anthrax Gone; Some Fear Remains: Anticipation, Trepidation on Post Office Reopening.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), March 19, 2005, A1, A13.
  73. Isherwood, Darryl R. “Anthrax Gone; Some Fear Remains: Anticipation, Trepidation on Post Office Reopening.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), March 19, 2005, A1, A13.
  74. United States Government Accountability Office. Capitol Hill Anthrax Incident: EPA’s Cleanup Was Successful; Opportunities Exist to Enhance Contract Oversight. GAO-03-686. Washington, DC, June 2003. https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-03-686.pdf.
  75. United States Environmental Protection Agency. “Senate Hart Building Decontamination Progressing.” December 2, 2001. https://www.epa.gov/archive/epapages/newsroom_archive/newsreleases/f93e59a8346b3cf985256b1700590dcb.html.
  76. Shea, Kevin, and Larry Hanover. “Hunt Narrows for Anthrax Source: Smaller Slice of Trenton Postal Area Seen as Location for Drop of Tainted Letters.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 2, 2001, A1, A16–A17.
  77. United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and United States Postal Inspection Service. Amerithrax Investigative Summary. Washington, DC, February 19, 2010. https://www.justice.gov/archive/amerithrax/docs/amx-investigative-summary.pdf.
  78. United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and United States Postal Inspection Service. Amerithrax Investigative Summary. Washington, DC, February 19, 2010. https://www.justice.gov/archive/amerithrax/docs/amx-investigative-summary.pdf.
  79. Federal Bureau of Investigation. “Amerithrax or Anthrax Investigation.” https://www.fbi.gov/history/cases-and-criminals/amerithrax-or-anthrax-investigation.
  80. National Research Council. Review of the Scientific Approaches Used During the FBI’s Investigation of the 2001 Anthrax Letters. Washington, DC: National Academies Press, 2011. https://doi.org/10.17226/13098.
  81. Shea, Kevin. “Mail to Get Zapped: Electron Beam to Clean Hamilton’s Stuck Letters.” The Times (Trenton, NJ), November 6, 2001, A1, A14.
  82. United States Government Accountability Office. United States Postal Service: Information on the Irradiation of Federal Mail in the Washington, D.C., Area. GAO-08-938R. Washington, DC, July 31, 2008. https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-08-938r.
  83. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Responding to Detection of Aerosolized Bacillus anthracis by Autonomous Detection Systems in the Workplace.” MMWR Recommendations and Reports 53 (April 30, 2004). https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/rr53e430-2a1.htm.
  84. Kosar, Kevin R. The U.S. Postal Service Response to the Threat of Bioterrorism Through the Mail. Congressional Research Service, February 11, 2002. https://www.everycrsreport.com/reports/RL31280.html.

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