New owners preparing to decontaminate Boca building hit by anthrax in 2001

South Florida Sun-Sentinel ^ | July 18, 2003 | Kathy Bushouse and Neil Santaniello

[Mitchell]

New owners preparing to decontaminate Boca building hit by anthrax in 2001

By Kathy Bushouse and Neil Santaniello
Staff Writers

July 18, 2003

Moon-suited crews will re-enter the former American Media Inc. headquarters in the coming weeks to collect anthrax samples, destroy documents, and begin formulating a plan to decontaminate the quarantined building.

Once inside, teams also will destroy computers and documents hastily left behind when American Media Inc. employees evacuated after tabloid photo editor Bob Stevens died from inhalation anthrax in October 2001.
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The computers' hard drives will be removed, dipped into a bleach-and-water solution....

AMI's files, their contents and any loose documents will be taken to two paper shredders set up in offices inside the building....
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[Mitchell]

If there is any evidence still inside the AMI building, it is being destroyed.

This article is a few days old by now, but I don't think it's been posted yet. I excerpted it, since that's required for the Sun-Sentinel. Click on this link to read the entire article.

[Mitchell]

Ping.

[Mitchell]

Ping

[Pan_Yans Wife]

In buying the building for $40,000 in April, Crown Companies also acquired everything inside -- the tabloids' files, computers, equipment, source lists and a 3 million-photo archive that includes such shots as Elvis Presley in his coffin.

Sounds like a real estate deal. I wonder how much the cleanup will cost Crown Companies?

[aristeides]

I'm surprised it isn't cheaper to build a new building than to do this decontamination. But, as you suggest, the destruction of the evidence may be the point.

Where has American Media moved to?

[Mitchell]

I wonder who is paying for the decontamination. Unless I missed it, the article doesn't say.

[Pan_Yans Wife]

My guess would be Crown. I do not believe the property would be insurable without decontamination. And, I wonder if AMI's insurance turned down the claim for cleaning of the property. It seems to me that the property value was greatly decreased, and that the cleanup costs are part of Crown's budget that they drew up before purchasing the property.

[Mitchell]

I'm surprised it isn't cheaper to build a new building than to do this decontamination.

Well, I don't know how much the decontamination costs. But the building sold for only $40,000 (!), so it really may be cheaper to do it this way than to build a new building or buy some other existing commercial building.

It might be of interest to look at the county property tax rolls and see what the assessed value of the building was, before the anthrax was sent.

[genefromjersey]

Tax value was about $ 4 million. Cleanup estimate: $ 6.9 million.For everything else, there's MasterCard.

[Mitchell]

So, unless the assessed value was very low, the clean-up cost is more than the original value of the building. (And the building will probably still be worth less than it used to be worth, even after clean-up, because of the residual risk, the notoriety, etc.)

So who is paying for the decontamination?

[genefromjersey]

The article didn't say - but it left the impression the buyer was handling everything.

The buyer must have some REALLY deep pockets !

[genefromjersey]

Hmmmm..... Money laundering at work ?????

[Princeton]

"Cleanup estimate: $ 6.9 million"


Big bucks for a little gas.



"Emergency Use of Paraformaldehyde for Anthrax Decontamination

During the course of October 2001, the U.S. Government identified several incidents of contamination of several government and commercial buildings with spores of Bacillus anthracis, commonly known as anthrax. Because these incidents have posed an immediate threat to public health, EPA has worked to immediately identify and employ agents that might be effective in the decontamination efforts.

EPA has identified paraformaldehyde as potentially effective for use on the surfaces and crevices of electronic and mechanical equipment. In order to decontaminate and eliminate anthrax spores from a mail sorting and stamping device located at the Department of Justice mailroom in Landover, MD, EPA declared a crisis exemption for the limited sale, distribution, and use of unregistered paraformaldehyde, manufactured by Hoechst-Celanese, containing 95 percent paraformaldehyde (CAS#30525-89-4). EPA declared this crisis exemption on January 7, 2002, but application was delayed until February 12, 2002. All onsite work will be performed by experienced personnel who are certified to perform hazardous materials decontamination work."

" Since 1992, USDA also had similar exemptions for the use of paraformaldehyde to decontaminate high-containment microbiological laboratories at Plum Island, NY, and Ames, IA (effective until June 15, 2001).'

[Mitchell]

The article didn't say - but it left the impression the buyer was handling everything.

The buyer must have some REALLY deep pockets !

Even with deep pockets, no one pays $7 million for a $4-million property on a straight real-estate deal. It's not like the special nature of the property lends itself to some unusual business purpose. (They're not going to start an Anthrax Museum and become yet another Florida tourist attraction!) If anything, the property is worth less because of its history. (Who would want to work there, even after the clean-up?)

So there's something else to the story. I think the key question here is who is paying for the decontamination, and why.

If AMI's insurance were paying for it, or if the Federal government were paying for it as part of some sort of unofficial national insurance against terrorist acts, the beneficiary would have been AMI, and then AMI would presumably have been able to get near-market-value for the property (after the clean-up). But, with a tiny $40,000 price tag on the real estate, this clearly didn't happen.

As far as I can see, the report appears to be missing the details required to make sense out of it. (I guess it's possible that tax assessments in that area are substantially below true market value; I think there are places that do that. But the true market value would have to be 7 or 8 million dollars for this to make sense, assuming the $6.9-million clean-up cost is right. This seems unlikely.)

[Princeton]

No date, no further data here:

http://131.104.232.9/agnet/2002/2-2002/agnet_february_13-2.htm

PARAFORMALDEHYDE FACT SHEET

February 8, 2002
Environmental Protection Agency

http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/factsheets/paraformaldehyde_factsheet.htm
The following fact sheet is part of a series relating to chemicals that may
be used in Federal Anthrax decontamination efforts. EPA has approved these
pesticides against anthrax only for use by authorized personnel according to
the specific requirements of the applicable crisis exemption and approved
decontamination plans. These chemicals are not intended for use by the
general public.

What is Paraformaldehyde?
A white, crystalline powder with the odor of formaldehyde, paraformaldehyde
has been used as a fumigant for more than 30 years to decontaminate
laboratory facilities and to disinfect sickrooms, clothing, linen, and
sickroom utensils. When heated, paraformaldehyde releases formaldehyde gas,
which may be used as a decontaminant. Paraformaldehyde is also used in
dentistry and in the manufacture of synthetic resins and artificial ivory.
Antimicrobial Pesticides
Antimicrobial pesticides are substances used to control harmful
microorganisms including bacteria, viruses, or fungi on inanimate objects
and surfaces. Types of antimicrobial products have traditionally included
sanitizers, disinfectants, and sterilants.

A "sanitizer" is a substance that significantly reduces the bacterial
population in the inanimate environment but does not destroy or eliminate
all bacteria or other microorganisms.
A "disinfectant" is a substance that destroys or eliminates a specific
species of infectious or other public health microorganism, but not
necessarily bacterial spores, in the inanimate environment.
A "sterilant" is a substance that destroys or eliminates all forms of
microbial life in the inanimate environment, including all forms of
vegetative bacteria, bacterial spores, fungi, fungal spores, and viruses.
EPA's Registration of Pesticides
Before a pesticide can be marketed and used in the United States, EPA must
evaluate the pesticide to ensure that it meets Federal safety standards for
human health and the environment. Such evaluation is particularly important
for antimicrobial pesticides (i.e., sanitizers, disinfectants, sterilants)
that are used to reduce or eliminate microbial contamination. Once EPA
determines that a pesticide meets Federal safety standards, the Agency
grants a license or "registration" permitting its distribution, sale, and
use according to
approved label instructions.

In certain emergency situations, EPA may issue a crisis or emergency
exemption allowing for the sale, distribution, and an unregistered use of a
pesticide product for a limited period of time. In order for the Agency to
consider a pesticide for use in an emergency situation, a State or Federal
agency must first request the crisis exemption, allowing EPA to review the
safety and effectiveness of the proposed new use. Prior to issuing the
exemption, EPA performs a multidisciplinary risk assessment of the requested
use, relying largely on data that have already been supplied for the
pesticide. If, during this review, EPA notes any adverse human health or
environmental concerns, EPA may deny the exemption request.

Currently Registered Uses for Paraformaldehyde
Registered Uses
In 1964, paraformaldehyde was registered as a sanitizer and fungicide for
use on barber and beauty shop equipment. Since then, paraformaldehyde has
been registered and used as a disinfectant, sanitizer, fungicide, and
microbicide. Sites on which this chemical is registered for use include
household and domestic dwellings; ships and shipholds; bedding and clothing;
and nonfood/nonfeed-transporting trucks.
Emergency/Quarantine Uses
Until recently, paraformaldehyde was registered and used to control
microbial growth in laboratories and to decontaminate animal facilities.
However all registrations for this use of paraformaldehyde were canceled due
to nonpayment of fees by the manufacturer.
Subsequently, paraformaldehyde has been allowed for quarantine use in a
poultry health laboratory in Arkansas, a use which is effective through June
15, 2004 (quarantine exemptions are authorized for 3 years.) The same use
pattern has also been authorized to the Department of Defense since 1993 and
is effective until July 6, 2002 (three quarantine exemptions). Since 1992,
USDA also had
similar exemptions for the use of paraformaldehyde to decontaminate
high-containment microbiological laboratories at Plum Island, NY, and Ames,
IA (effective until June 15, 2001).


Determination of Safety and Efficacy for Registration
EPA has reviewed data related to safety and effectiveness before allowing an
emergency exemption for paraformaldehyde to be used specifically for anthrax
decontamination. Based on a review of the data made available to the Agency
to support the emergency exemption request, EPA has determined that
paraformaldehyde could be effective for use in a decontamination program
that includes pre-sampling, treatment, and post-treatment sampling.

Applying Paraformaldehyde
To apply paraformaldehyde, the fine white powder must first be heated,
releasing the formaldehyde gas that fumigates and decontaminates all
surfaces in the enclosed space. Liquid disinfectants cannot reach every
surface, including crevices, so a fumigant such as paraformaldehyde is used
when all surfaces need to be decontaminated.

Emergency Use of Paraformaldehyde for Anthrax Decontamination
During the course of October 2001, the U.S. Government identified several
incidents of contamination of several government and commercial buildings
with spores of Bacillus anthracis, commonly known as anthrax. Because these
incidents have posed an immediate threat to public health, EPA has worked to
immediately identify and employ agents that might be effective in the
decontamination efforts.

EPA has identified paraformaldehyde as potentially effective for use on the
surfaces and crevices of electronic and mechanical equipment. In order to
decontaminate and eliminate anthrax spores from a mail sorting and stamping
device located at the Department of Justice mailroom in Landover, MD, EPA
declared a crisis exemption for the limited sale, distribution, and use of
unregistered paraformaldehyde, manufactured by Hoechst-Celanese, containing
95 percent paraformaldehyde (CAS#30525-89-4). EPA declared
this crisis exemption on January 7, 2002, but application was delayed until
February 12, 2002. All onsite work will be performed by experienced
personnel who are certified to perform hazardous materials decontamination
work.

To ensure the safety of the applicators and those in the surrounding
community, EPA has approved specific guidelines regarding air
monitoring and application procedures. The site will be set-up so that
contamination does not migrate to outside the work area as a result of work
activities. Physical barriers and security controls will be established to
ensure that only authorized personnel, with all necessary training and
personal protective equipment, can access the site. After fumigation has
been completed, authorized personnel will conduct environmental sampling to
determine whether any viable anthrax spores remain. If viable organisms are
found in specific locations, either fumigation treatment will be repeated or
an alternative means of decontamination will be used.