TECHNOLOGY BOLSTERING U.S. MAIL SECURITY EFFORTS

Sep 1, 2005 12:00 PM

After five people, including two postal workers, died from exposure to anthrax in 2001, the U.S. Postal Service has stepped up efforts to make the mail safer.

In late July, the Manchester Processing and Distribution Center in New Hampshire became the state's first to receive the Postal Service Biohazard Detection System.

According to district manager Jim Adams, the machines have been installed in many of the postal system's 280 processing facilities over the past two years.

Adams tells the Nashua Telegraph that the machine is a standalone unit that will require no additional manpower to process letters. The system uses DNA matching to detect anthrax in air samples collected from mail canceling equipment as it operates.

Information provided by the postal service describes the unit as containing an air-collection hood, a collection and analysis cabinet and a networked computer.

The system works by collecting airborne particles around the mail in a sterile water base. The liquid samples are injected into a cartridge, which is labeled with a barcode for identification. Samples are then compared with a template for the anthrax DNA sequence.

A complete test takes 90 minutes. If the system detects anthrax, an alarm notifies personnel of the potential threat. While the system currently tests only for anthrax, it may be expanded to test for other biohazards in the future.

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