Bureau of Prisons Sites Test Positive for Anthrax

A Department of Justice building has tested positive for minimal amounts of anthrax spores, three weeks after the government mail room from which it receives its mail showed signs of the deadly bacteria, authorities said.

The anthrax was found at the Bureau of Prisons headquarters. Six sites at the building were tested; four were clean and two yielded positive results, Justice Department officials said. Both were confined to a mail room that has been closed since Oct. 28, when anthrax was found at a suburban Maryland postal facility that processes the agency’s mail.

With the mail rooms closed, staff were told to report to work today as scheduled. Spokeswoman Susan Dryden said employees potentially affected by the anthrax have been taking antibiotics.