Editor's Note Mail Scare

by Bob Neubauer

A lot has changed in the world of mail since our cover story on the University of Washington's mail operation. With anthrax-contaminated letters turning up in offices around the country, mailrooms are being relied on to intercept suspicious packages, even as mailroom employees worry about their own safety.

Overall, the in-house mail centers I contacted said they have not altered mail-handling procedures as a result of the anthrax scare; rather they are trying to help employees recognize suspicious mail before it's opened.

At the University of Washington, which processes about 75,000 pieces of mail a day, the emphasis is now on keeping people informed, both in the mailroom and on campus. Frank Davis, associate director of Publications Services, says e-mails were quickly sent to all faculty and students—about 50,000 people—telling them who to contact about suspicious pieces of mail and listing typical characteristics of suspicious packages. Also, a United States Postal Service representative is scheduled to talk to UW mailroom employees about handling suspicious mail.

"There's a heightened sense of awareness," Davis says.

On the East Coast, Yale University's in-plant, which handles some mail sorting and opening, has provided gloves and face masks for mail handlers, if they want them. Since envelopes are opened with automated slitters, operators are being warned not to stand near the machines and to watch for dust rising from the envelopes.

"At the same time, we don't want people to panic," notes Director Richard Masotta, who says his operation is trying to strike a balance between caution and business as usual.

Yale and other organizations are offering seminars on how to handle mail safely and what to look for on an envelope. Red flags should go up, for instance, if there's no return address, if a package is marked "confidential" or if it carries excessive postage. State government agencies that don't receive much out-of-state mail, like the Texas Department of Health and Human Services, are watching for postmarks from other states.

The California Office of State Publishing's supervisor of mail and messenger services was sent for training on how to recognize suspicious mail, and he, in turn, trained others. OSP has altered its mail opening procedures, says Guy Blair, acting state printer, so all mail now gets opened in one area.

All this attention to the very few actual anthrax mailings has led to a number of scares. In Missouri, according State Printer Gary Judd, one state department became concerned when powder was discovered on a mail tray. An investigation, however, revealed it was drywall powder from a part of the building under construction.

Despite such false alarms, mail centers remain on alert. The vigilance of in-house mail employees is becoming the first line of defense in a war that threatens to affect us even where we work.