Pentagon: Military mistakenly shipped live anthrax samples

[Suzanimal]

*sigh*



The CDC said Wednesday it is investigating what the Pentagon called an inadvertent shipment of live anthrax spores to government and commercial laboratories in as many as nine states, as well as one overseas, that expected to receive dead spores.

"At this time we do not suspect any risk to the general public," CDC spokeswoman Kathy Harben said.

A Pentagon spokesman, Col. Steve Warren, said the suspected live anthrax samples were shipped from Dugway Proving Ground, an Army facility in Utah, using a commercial delivery service.

Warren said the government has confirmed one recipient, a laboratory in Maryland, received live spores. It is suspected, but not yet confirmed, that anthrax sent to labs in as many as eight other states also contained live spores, he said. Later he said an anthrax sample from the same batch at Dugway also was sent to a U.S. military laboratory at Osan air base in South Korea; no personnel there have shown signs of exposure, he said, and the sample was destroyed.

"There is no known risk to the general public, and there are no suspected or confirmed cases of anthrax infection in potentially exposed lab workers," Warren said.

A U.S. official said Wednesday evening that four people in three commercial labs had worked with the suspect anthrax samples and the CDC has recommended the four be provided "post-exposure prophylaxis," or preventive treatment. The official was not authorized to discuss the details because they involved non-government lab employees, and so spoke on condition of anonymity.

The anthrax samples were shipped from Dugway to government and commercial labs in Texas, Maryland, Wisconsin, Delaware, New Jersey, Tennessee, New York, California and Virginia.

The Defense Department, acting "out of an abundance of caution,":rolleyes: has halted "the shipment of this material from its labs pending completion of the investigation," Warren said.

Contact with anthrax spores can cause severe illness.

Harben said one of the laboratories contacted the CDC to request "technical consultation." It was working as part of a Pentagon effort to develop a new diagnostic test to identify biological threats, she said.

"Although an inactivated agent was expected, the lab reported they were able to grow live Bacillus anthracis," she said, referring to the bacteria that cause anthrax disease.

The CDC is working with state and federal agencies on an investigation with the labs that received samples from the Defense Department, she said.
Harben said all samples involved in the investigation will be securely transferred to the CDC or other laboratories for further testing.

http://www.wsbtv.com/ap/ap/top-news/pentagon-military-mistakenly-shipped-live-anthrax-/nmPpT/

[pcosmar]

Hard to tell a "mistake" from a "cover story" with people who are essentially dishonest.


and if it was a mistake,,and it was contained,,, Why publish it to the "news" services? (Ministry of Truth)

[donnay]

Hard to tell a "mistake" from a "cover story" with people who are essentially dishonest.


and if it was a mistake,,and it was contained,,, Why publish it to the "news" services? (Ministry of Truth)

Great points, as usual. SMH.

[Occam's Banana]

This is how things like Zombie Apocalypses get started ...

[acptulsa]

So, given that the U.S. signed a treaty banning chemical and biological weapons some odd ninety years ago, why does the Army even have any live anthrax to grossly mishandle?

[asurfaholic]

So, given that the U.S. signed a treaty banning chemical and biological weapons some odd ninety years ago, why does the Army even have any live anthrax to grossly mishandle?

Because.....


Terrorists!

[Acala]

LOL. Idiots playing with fire. Scientists have a tendency to become complacent about the dangers of the materials they work with regularly. For another example, read about the "Demon Core".

[acptulsa]

LOL. Idiots playing with fire. Both scientists and soldiers have a tendency to become complacent about the dangers of the materials they work with regularly.

Fixed that for you.

So, of course, the logic of Washington, the District of Calamity positively dictates that we put the most dangerous substances on the face of the earth in the hands of people who are both soldiers and scientists.

[presence]

So, given that the U.S. signed a treaty banning chemical and biological weapons some odd ninety years ago, why does the Army even have any live anthrax to grossly mishandle?

lol

you didn't read the fine print of that one; its "defensive" anthrax



Both the U.S. bio-weapons ban and the Biological Weapons Convention (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biological_Weapons_Convention) restricted any work in the area of biological warfare to defensive in nature (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodefense). In reality, this gives BWC member-states wide latitude to conduct biological weapons research because the BWC contains no provisions for monitoring of enforcement.[62] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_biological_weapons_program#cite_note-littlewood-62)[63] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_biological_weapons_program#cite_note-cirincione2-63) The treaty, essentially, is a gentlemen's agreement amongst members backed by the long-prevailing thought that biological warfare should not be used in battle.[62] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_biological_weapons_program#cite_note-littlewood-62)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_biological_weapons_program



Its kind of like our Chemical Weapons treaty. US and Russia hold 1000X more than anyone else. Our schedules for destroying them are always conveniently delayed. And we have stockpiles of VX, blister, and mustard like this one in Utah spread all over the country:

http://media.graytvinc.com/images/193x9ibihui8yjpg.jpg

[Created4]

The Pentagon’s Vaccine Factories (http://healthimpactnews.com/2013/the-pentagons-vaccine-factories/)

Why is the Pentagon developing and controlling vaccines?

In the aftermath of 9/11 and the 2001 anthrax attacks, the federal government decided not to let that crisis “ go to waste.” Allegedly to “better protect” civilians and troops against biochemical attacks, germ warfare, or pandemics (including normal, seasonal flu), it put the Pentagon squarely in the vaccine business.

The resulting initiative, embraced by the Bush Administration and then further championed by the Obama Administration:

- Realized the Pentagon’s seemingly obsessive dream of acquiring its own factories in which to manufacture vaccines;
- Wasted nearly a billion taxpayer dollars—against the advice of government analysts;
- Richly rewarded Big Pharma and several members of Congress; and
- Introduced terrifying possibilities of state-mandated and -controlled vaccines, including mind control vaccines.


Full Article (http://healthimpactnews.com/2013/the-pentagons-vaccine-factories/)

[pcosmar]

Interesting Top of the News story.

Jeb Bush is stumping in Michigan,,, at an Anthrax Plant

http://www.freep.com/story/news/politics/2015/05/28/job-bush-visits-lansing-plant-manufacturing-anthrax-vaccine/28087715/

Bush spent about 30 minutes taking questions from employees of Emergent Biosolutions, whose north Lansing plant employs more than 400 people and manufactures BioThrax, the only FDA-licensed anthrax vaccine.


"there are no coincidences"

"In politics, nothing happens by accident. If it happens, you can bet it was planned that way."

[Suzanimal]

Pentagon orders review after finding more labs received live anthrax samples


The Pentagon announced Friday it has identified additional labs that it accidentally sent live anthrax samples to, prompting Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work to order a review of all Pentagon laboratories.

"As of now, 24 laboratories in 11 states and two foreign countries are believed to have received suspect samples," a Pentagon statement said.

On Wednesday, defense officials said a military lab at the Dugway Proving Ground in Utah accidentally sent live anthrax samples to labs in nine states, and to the Osan Air Base in South Korea.

On Friday, Reuters reported that a live sample was also sent in 2008 to Australia.

"We continue to work closely with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), who is leading the ongoing investigation pursuit to its statutory authorities," the Pentagon statement said.

Work ordered the review after consulting with Defense Secretary Ash Carter, who is meeting with officials in East Asia.

Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Frank Kendall is leading the review, which will look into the "root cause" of the incomplete inactivation of the pathogen.

It will also examine Defense laboratory biohazard safety procedures and protocols, laboratory adherence to established procedures and protocols, and identification of systemic problems and the steps necessary to fix those problems.

Work also advised all labs that received anthrax samples from the Pentagon to stop working with the samples under further instruction from the Defense Department and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"There is no known risk to the general public and an extremely low risk to lab workers from the department's inadvertent shipments of inactivated samples containing small numbers of live anthrax to several laboratories," the statement said.

The CDC announced an investigation into the accidental shippings Friday, but the Pentagon said it would also conduct its own afterwards.

"After the CDC investigation is complete, the department will conduct its own investigation with respect to any apparent lapses in performance and ensure appropriate accountability," the statement said.

"The department takes this matter very seriously and is acting with urgency to address this matter and Work expects review findings within 30 days."

http://thehill.com/policy/defense/243517-pentagon-orders-review-after-finding-more-labs-received-live-anthrax

[Suzanimal]

I read in another article they were shipped via FedEx.


Pentagon shipped live anthrax samples to Canada – report

New disclosures from Pentagon officials say samples of live anthrax were sent to three Canadian laboratories. The scandal now involves anthrax sent to labs in 12 states, Washington, DC, and three countries – Australia, Canada and South Korea.

An unnamed Pentagon official not authorized to speak publicly told USA Today that, so far, no one had been sickened by the shipments, and that military investigators are continuing to search anthrax samples and records to discover whether further samples were shipped to other labs.

The Pentagon admitted last Wednesday that live anthrax was inadvertently shipped from a military lab in Utah across state lines and out of the country over a one-year period from March 2014 to April 2015. The research samples were mistakenly marked inactive, according to officials.

The agency said the public was not at risk from the anthrax spores, which, if inhaled, can spark a high fever and other flu-like symptoms and be lethal even with treatment.

The samples, which the military said were shipped commercially, were for use in determining whether a new detection test for anthrax and other organisms works as expected. A Maryland lab first notified the Department of Defense about the live spores after receiving one of the shipments.

So far, 28 labs in 12 states and the District of Columbia have received samples, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. CDC bioterror lab regulators and the Pentagon are investigating why the military lab hadn’t thoroughly killed the anthrax specimens before shipping. An email sent to a CDC official said the methods used to kill anthrax spores are not always fully effective.

“We have concern that the inactivation procedures, when followed properly, are inadequate to kill all spores, and the US government is developing an approach to securing such possible samples from misuse,” wrote Daniel Sosin, deputy director of the CDC’s Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response, in an email to state officials that was obtained by USA Today.

...

http://rt.com/usa/264121-pentagon-anthrax-shipped-canada/

[angelatc]

So, given that the U.S. signed a treaty banning chemical and biological weapons some odd ninety years ago, why does the Army even have any live anthrax to grossly mishandle?

So they can test the new vaccine with it, silly!

If this was the private sector, someone would be fired already. But because this is the government, there will be a lengthy investigation. Nobody will be responsible, and government will get bigger as a result.

[Ronin Truth]

And we're supposed to trust these folks with nukes?

[donnay]

I read in another article they were shipped via FedEx.



http://rt.com/usa/264121-pentagon-anthrax-shipped-canada/

Yes because FedEX is allowed to ship stuff like that, they do it all the time for Big pHARMa.

Here's a flashback:

Truck Carrying Microbes Crashes In Winnipeg
CBC News
3-7-5

WINNIPEG - A Federal Express courier truck carrying a package of anthrax collided with a car in central Winnipeg on Wednesday, but officials say the package was not damaged in the crash.

The truck was carrying five packages to the Canadian Science Centre for Human and Animal Health, the federal virology lab downtown. The packages contained samples of anthrax, E. coli, salmonella, tuberculosis, influenza and a sexually transmitted disease.

Officials with the lab say the microbes were not in forms that could be lethal. The centre said it would not ship the more dangerous form of anthrax through a commercial courier.

The area surrounding the accident site at Logan Avenue and Sherbrook Street, just a few blocks from the lab was sealed off and the hazardous materials unit was called in to assess the situation. The intersection was reopened after it was determined the situation was safe.

While none of the substances spilled, questions are being raised about how dangerous goods are shipped to the lab and about safety precautions taken for people who live in the area.

"I firmly believe that it should have been a far more secure vehicle, because if an accident were to happen, the virus itself, there wouldn't have been a worry about the virus getting out or whatever," says Carol Swain, who lives in the area. "I mean, we have enough viruses going around, we don't need added things to it. A Fed-Ex truck is certainly not secure."

No risk to public

Centre officials say all safety protocols were followed, and no changes to those protocols are planned as a result of the crash. They note the packages the diseases are shipped in are designed to withstand a plane crash.

"What we have seen today is actually how successful our process is, in terms of response, and in terms of the safety of the material and the quality of the material and the packaging system we're using," says lab spokesperson Stephane Wagener.

"We are certainly highly satisfied with the response today, because it again showed to us that we have highly-trained professionals, that we are aware of what's happening and there never was any risk to the public."

A spokesperson for Federal Express says each of its drivers is trained to handle dangerous goods, including materials for the federal virology lab and the Centres for Disease Control in Atlanta.

http://www.rense.com/general63/microb.htm


Another Flashback:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wg-52mHIjhs&eurl=http://foundingfather1776.wordpress.com/2009/03/06/flu-vaccine-accidentally-contaminated-with-live-avian-flu-virus/

[donnay]

Oops! Portrayed as bungling idiots... :rolleyes:

Bungling US military scientists sent live anthrax samples to Canada in latest biohazard security blunder (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3106700/U-S-military-lab-shipped-live-anthrax-samples-Canada-USA-Today.html)

[pcosmar]

And we're supposed to trust these folks with nukes?

You can trust them if you wish..

Me,, not so much.

[Suzanimal]

Geez, Am I the only person that didn't get live anthrax from the Pentagon.

1 of Pentagon's own labs may have received suspect anthrax


WASHINGTON (AP) - A laboratory on the grounds of the Pentagon compound is among dozens of facilities that may have mistakenly received live anthrax, officials said Tuesday.

Officials suggested the Pentagon lab case may have happened several years ago, although the timing was unclear. Some labs around the country and in South Korea mistakenly received the suspect anthrax in recent months.

A comprehensive investigation has been under way since last week.

The Pentagon has struggled to keep up with the expanding scope of its investigation into where the potentially live anthrax was sent after it mistakenly left the Army's Dugway Proving Ground in Utah and why it was not detected earlier. A key question is why some portion of Dugway's anthrax samples were not rendered inactive, or dead, before sending them to research labs.

Earlier Tuesday, the Pentagon said it determined that possibly live anthrax was mistakenly sent to labs in Canada and Washington state, in addition to the numerous labs in the U.S. and abroad that were announced last week.

A Pentagon spokesman, Col. Steve Warren, said Canadian and Washington state authorities have been notified.

Patrick Gaebel, a spokesman for Health Canada, said Canada's National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg, Manitoba, was told by the Pentagon that a test kit sent there in 2006 could possibly contain live anthrax bacterium. Gaebel said the kit was intended for the lab to validate its anthrax detection system. He said they've located the testing kit and have confirmed it has not been used for over five years.

"There is very low risk of illness and there have been no reports of illness among the staff," Gaebel said.

Donn Moyer, a spokesman with the Washington state Department of Health, said the anthrax was sent to InBios, a private lab in Seattle. Moyer said it was not opened and there was no exposure.

Another U.S. defense official said the suspect anthrax may also have been received at a lab on the grounds of the Pentagon, although not inside the building. The Pentagon Force Protection Agency uses inactivated anthrax to calibrate biological threat sensors, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss Pentagon security. The officials said it was unclear how recently the Pentagon agency received the suspect samples.

The anthrax was supposed to have been inactivated before being sent to labs across the U.S. for research but apparently was not.

Massachusetts state health officials said Tuesday that a private lab called IQuum, owned by Roche Molecular in Marlborough, Mass., received small amounts of active anthrax spores mistakenly delivered by the Defense Department. The sample was last handled at IQuum in July 2014 and has been frozen since then, state health officials said.

...

Read more: http://www.cbs46.com/story/29218864/1-of-pentagons-own-labs-may-have-received-suspect-anthrax#ixzz3bzqPXoXS

[tod evans]

Geez, Am I the only person that didn't get live anthrax from the Pentagon.

1 of Pentagon's own labs may have received suspect anthrax


Now see, if only government was permitted to eavesdrop in real time they would have been aware of the terrorist(s) within their ranks...:rolleyes:

[Suzanimal]

Live anthrax sent to 51 labs in 17 states and 3 nations – Pentagon


The Department of Defense admitted that 51 labs in 17 states and three different countries received suspected live samples of anthrax over the course of a one-year period, and added that the number of recipients may rise as the investigation continues.

On May 22, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notified the Pentagon that one of the private lab partners had detected the growth on live anthrax on a sample that was “supposedly inactivate… we felt that it was [an] inactivate and safe shipment,” Deputy Secretary of Defense Robert O. Work said at a briefing on Wednesday.

“But it turned out not to be the case,” he added.

The Department of Defense said that the probe has not found any indication that the samples were sent as a result of a deliberate action or that anyone had been infected by the lethal bacteria. The agency also said there was no danger to the public from the anthrax.

The Pentagon previously said that the anthrax had “accidentally” been sent to 24 laboratories in 11 states and two foreign countries. The three countries that received the live spores were Australia, South Korea and Canada. In the US, a lab in the District of Columbia also received a shipment of the anthrax, on top of those in the 17 states.

...

The Pentagon promised to update the number of labs that received the live samples on a daily basis, as the investigation continues.

http://rt.com/usa/264717-pentagon-live-anthrax-sent/

[Suzanimal]

Army shipped live anthrax for 10 years, couldn't effectively kill bacteria - CDC


A US Army research facility mistakenly shipped live anthrax to labs in the US and abroad for more than 10 years because of ineffective sterilization methods for killing the deadly bacteria, according to a federal report obtained by USA Today.

In the three-page report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the US Army facility in Utah was cited for three violations of federal regulations for working with potential bioterror agents, and was ordered to cease shipment of “inactivated” anthrax specimens immediately.

The Dugway Proving Ground’s Life Science Test Facility is at the center of the scandal. It was initially reported to have shipping live anthrax to at least 51 labs in 17 states and three countries – Australia, Canada and South Korea. However, the newly divulged CDC report shows that anthrax was shipped out at least 74 times to dozens of labs in the US and at least five foreign countries between January 2005 and May 2015.

According to the report, Dugway scientists were using Cobalt 60 gamma radiation to kill or deactivate anthrax specimens before shipping them to government or private labs for further research. But its procedures for irradiating anthrax “did not account for the variable amounts of spores treated in the gamma cell irradiator,” noted the report. Additionally, those standard procedures failed to account for spore samples “at varying concentrations, volumes and levels of irradiation.”

If inhaled, anthrax spores can be fatal, but so far there have no reports of infections. About 31 people who worked with the specimens are on antibiotics as a precaution.

USA Today contacted the military for comment on the report’s findings, but they declined to comment.

“We are conducting an investigation of this matter, and the CDC report is a component of that investigation,” said Army Col. Steve Warren, a Pentagon spokesman.

A spokesperson for the CDC’s Division of Select Agents and Toxins, which authored the report and regulates labs working with potential bioterror pathogens, said the agency had shared its report with the military but had no further comment.

http://rt.com/usa/267958-live-anthrax-shipped-decade/

[Occam's Banana]

Army shipped live anthrax for 10 years, couldn't effectively kill bacteria - CDC

http://rt.com/usa/267958-live-anthrax-shipped-decade/

I blame Donald Sutherland and Morgan Freeman.
(Where's Dustin Hoffman when you need him ... ?)

[Suzanimal]

At least 192 labs accidentally received live anthrax – Pentagon


The Pentagon has admitted that a US Army lab accidentally shipped live anthrax to at least 192 laboratories over the past decade. The figure is more than double the number the agency reported in June.

The agency said on Monday that the list now includes labs in all 50 states, as well as Guam, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands and Washington, DC. The labs received live anthrax because of ineffective sterilization methods for killing the deadly bacteria.

Seven foreign countries also received the shipments, including Australia, Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, South Korea, and the UK, according to the Department of Defense’s Laboratory Review site.

“It’s déjà vu all over again,” said US Rep. Tim Murphy (R-Pennsylvania), a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, referring to the new count at a Tuesday hearing, according to USA Today.

“What we have here is a pattern of recurring issues, of complacency, and a lax culture of safety,” he said.

Among the labs receiving multiple violation letters is the US Army’s Dugway Proving Ground facility in Utah, which is at the center of the international scandal over its shipment of live anthrax.

The Defense Department originally claimed in May that it accidentally sent live anthrax samples to labs in nine states and South Korea. By June, however, more than 51 labs in 17 states were reported as having received anthrax accidentally, as were labs in three foreign countries.

...

http://www.rt.com/usa/311025-pentagon-live-anthrax-labs-double/

[Suzanimal]

*sigh*


Did U.S. military labs mishandle bubonic plague, viruses?

(CNN)The U.S. Department of Defense is looking into possible mishandling of bubonic plague and equine encephalitis samples at its laboratories, a Pentagon spokesman said Thursday.

The new inquiry is part of an investigation into the mishandling of anthrax at Department of Defense labs, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said.

The department hasn't determined whether samples containing plague bacteria and specimens of the deadly virus were shipped from its labs, Cook said.

"One of the things they're doing right now is trying to assess whether any of these substances, first of all, pose any sort of threat; second of all, whether these substances were shipped to any other laboratories," he said.

UK received live anthrax from Pentagon

He said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention determined there is no risk to the health of workers or the public.

Pressed by reporters for more answers about the investigation at a briefing Thursday, Cook said he was revealing everything he could.

"We're trying to be as forthcoming as we can be right now without alarming the public," he said.

Labeling, storage raise concerns

The latest investigation started after CDC inspectors found a sample of the plague in a freezer outside of a containment area on August 17 at the Edgewood Chemical Biological Center in Maryland, Cook said.

Investigators are working to determine whether the sample posed an "infectious threat," Cook said. Army tests found it was not infectious.

"That's the scientific work that's being done at this particular time, determining exactly what happened there, and whether or not ... there was mislabeling," he said.

Investigators are also looking into whether samples of equine encephalitis were labeled properly in logs, he said.

Anthrax shipments sparked inquiry

Earlier this year the Defense Department began an investigation after determining live anthrax samples had been shipped from Pentagon labs to 86 research facilities in the United States and at least seven foreign countries over the last several years.

Last week, the secretary of the Army directed an immediate review of safety procedures at all Defense Department labs and facilities involved in the handling of toxic agents, such as anthrax.

The review ordered by Secretary John McHugh follows the discovery of anthrax contamination at a facility in Utah along with instances of incomplete record keeping at two other facilities in the United States.

Bacteria, virus can be deadly
Cook didn't provide details about the samples in question. A report in USA Today said the investigation involved specimens of Yersinia pestis, the bacteria that causes plague, and also two viruses that can cause serious illnesses: Eastern equine encephalitis and Venezuelan equine encephalitis.

Yersinia pestis, the same type of bacterium that was responsible for the plague pandemic that wiped out 60% of the European population between the 14th and 17th centuries, maintains a foothold in the United States and around the globe in rodents and the fleas that live on them. Today, the infections are treatable with antibiotics if they're caught early enough. Since 1970, there have been anywhere from a few to a few dozen cases of plague every year in the United States, most of them occurring in Western states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Eastern equine encephalitis and Venezuelan equine encephalitis are viruses that can be spread to humans by mosquitoes. According to the CDC, only a few cases of the illness are reported in the United States each year, but it's one of the most severe mosquito-transmitted diseases in the country, resulting in death in roughly a third of cases and causing significant brain damage in most survivors.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/10/politics/pentagon-investigation-bubonic-plague-equine-encephalitis/index.html

[RJB]

Samples?

Is that like the free samples at a grocery store?

Try our awesome new strain of anthrax, for free!

[GunnyFreedom]

http://glenbradley.net/imghost/2015_09SEP/pentagoops.jpg