FROM THE ARCHIVE

Indian affairs building still closed

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TUESDAY, DECEMBER 18, 2001

Fumigation of the Senate building that houses the Indian Affairs Committee was halted on Monday, lending doubt as to when the offices of 50 members will be open.

The Hart Senate Office Building has been closed since October 17, after an anthrax letter was opened in the office of Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.). The Environmental Protection Agency had been fumigating the building in an attempt to rid it of anthrax spores but stopped yesterday afternoon over concerns a ventilation problem prevented the effectiveness of the activity.

The Indian committee has suspended hearings until the building is reopened. Tribal leaders are hoping the committee will hold a hearing on the controversial reorganization of the Bureau of Indian Affairs sometime in February to coincide with one being held by the House Resources Committee.

In related anthrax news, federal health authorities want Congressional staff members who may have been exposed to take a vaccine for the potentially deadly bacterium. As many as 3,000 Senate and postal workers may be affected once Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson approves the plan.

Meanwhile, the State Department closed the offices of Deputy Secretary Richard L. Armitage for more than two hours yesterday afternoon over an anthrax scare. Samples of a letter opened are being tested although it could be a hoax.

Get the Story:
Hart Fumigation Is Suspended (The Washington Post 12/18)
Anthrax Vaccine Urged for Hill Staff (The Washington Post 12/18)
State Dept. Hit by New Anthrax Scare (The Washington Post 12/18)