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Germ Expert Says Panicky People Can Iron Mail
a hot, moist steam iron and moist fabric could kill anthrax spores.
Germ Expert Says Panicky People Can Iron Mail
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A leading bioterror expert said on Tuesday people who feel panicky about opening their mail amid the anthrax scare can use a hot steam iron and a moist layer of fabric to kill germs.
Ken Alibek, a top former Soviet germ warfare scientist who is now a U.S.-based author and researcher trying to develop defenses against bioterror, told a surprised congressional briefing on nonproliferation that a hot, moist steam iron and moist fabric could kill anthrax spores.
Pressed by surprised lawmakers who were not sure if they had heard him right, he repeated that several times.
``Iron your letters,'' he said, adding that a microwave oven was not as good as an iron and that including moisture was essential because spores could survive dry heat.
For large amounts of mail, in big cities or postal distribution centers, he recommended setting up portable gamma radiation units to sterilize letters. ``This problem could be solved,'' he said.
Alibek repeated the advice of many other experts that people should not buy gas masks. But he said that if his biotech company and two others doing similar work got ''significant funding,'' they probably could bring to market new antiviral drugs that would work against several potential bioterror weapons within two years. ``We've had interesting results with animals,'' he said.
Connecticut Republican Christopher Shays, who convened the hearing, noted that the chances of anyone getting anthrax-contaminated mail were extremely small.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A leading bioterror expert said on Tuesday people who feel panicky about opening their mail amid the anthrax scare can use a hot steam iron and a moist layer of fabric to kill germs.
Ken Alibek, a top former Soviet germ warfare scientist who is now a U.S.-based author and researcher trying to develop defenses against bioterror, told a surprised congressional briefing on nonproliferation that a hot, moist steam iron and moist fabric could kill anthrax spores.
Pressed by surprised lawmakers who were not sure if they had heard him right, he repeated that several times.
``Iron your letters,'' he said, adding that a microwave oven was not as good as an iron and that including moisture was essential because spores could survive dry heat.
For large amounts of mail, in big cities or postal distribution centers, he recommended setting up portable gamma radiation units to sterilize letters. ``This problem could be solved,'' he said.
Alibek repeated the advice of many other experts that people should not buy gas masks. But he said that if his biotech company and two others doing similar work got ''significant funding,'' they probably could bring to market new antiviral drugs that would work against several potential bioterror weapons within two years. ``We've had interesting results with animals,'' he said.
Connecticut Republican Christopher Shays, who convened the hearing, noted that the chances of anyone getting anthrax-contaminated mail were extremely small.
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Dear Reader:
Well, I can confirm for you that it's no hoax, but whether or not ironing your mail is really a good idea is another question altogether.
According to news reports, highly regarded bioterrorism expert Ken Alibek (once in charge of germ warfare research for the former Soviet Union and now living in the United States) testified at a Congressional hearing on October 16 that people who are afraid their mail may be contaminated with anthrax can use a steam iron to disinfect it.
"If you are scared," he said, "just iron this letter. After that, they (anthrax spores) become harmless."
Alternatively, you can use your microwave oven. But, Alibek said, that's less reliable because dry heat isn't as effective against the spores as wet heat.
Not to challenge an expert opinion, but I feel obliged to point out that Mr. Alibek's recommendations run counter to what U.S. government agencies advise, namely to sequester any suspicious letters or packages — handling them as little as possible — and call authorities immediately.
If you iron your mail, that means handling it even more, thereby increasing your chances of coming into contact with contaminants. Furthermore, if you succeed in killing spores by this method, that would only make it more difficult — perhaps even impossible — for investigators to determine through testing whether anthrax was actually present in the item in the first place.
It's also worth noting that thus far anthrax-contaminated mailings have been confirmed in only a few government and media office buildings. While authorities have investigated thousands more cases that turned out to be false alarms and hoaxes, there have been zero known instances of anthrax delivered to people's homes.
Personally, if I received a suspicious item in the mail I'd do what the U.S. Postal Service and Centers for Disease control recommend: dial 911 immediately and stay as far away from it as I possibly could until the hazardous materials team arrived.
Leave the ironing to the experts, I say. Your philosophy might be different.
— David Emery