[Judith Anne]

Did anyone see this?

Ship Channel docks quarantined due to dangerous parasite
By The Associated Press


(5/16/05 - HOUSTON) — Two docks and part of a third at the Houston Ship Channel were quarantined Monday after federal officials found a shipment of lumber infested with a parasite dangerous to plants.

U.S. Department of Agriculture inspectors found that a lumber shipment aboard a Chinese vessel had its wrapping material infested with the organism, said Felicia Griffin, a spokeswoman for the Port of Houston Authority.

While the parasite is harmful to plants, Griffin said it poses no danger to humans.

After the organism was discovered during a routine inspection, two docks and a portion of a third were shut down while the wrapping material was removed and the lumber was cleaned.

"We're putting the wrapping material into Dumpsters and preparing to incinerate it," Griffin said. "The quarantine is aimed at containing it."

The cleanup was expected to be completed by noon Tuesday. The several hundred tons of lumber will still be usable once it's cleaned.

Griffin said she did not know the name of the parasite and officials with the USDA did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/news/05...local_ship.html

My question is, what parasite are they talking about?

[Cindy]

I don't know, the link you posted is not complete, so, I'll have to check. Here's the only interesting thing I've seen this week along those lines:

SCIENCE DAILY.com (Source: Cornell University): Ithaca, New York - "ALIEN WOODWASP, THREAT TO US PINE TREES, FOUND IN N.Y." (May 14, 2005)

[Cindy]

Ok, here is your link:

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/news/051605_APlocal_ship.html

Not enough info, let's check these links:

http://www.newscientist.com
http://www.sciencedaily.com

This is interesting, but not related to your story:
http://www.newscientist.com/channel/health/bird-flu

Nothing related to your story in those links.

http://www.click2houston.com/news/4495288/detail.html

Article snippet: "At 1 p.m., a ship arrived in Houston from China with an illegal rice-straw packing material that has the potential of carrying diseases, according to authorities."

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&ie=UTF-8&ncl=http://www.kltv.com/Global/story.asp%3FS%3D3352342

http://www.altavista.com/web/results?itag=ody&q=%22in+rice+straw%22&kgs=0&kls=0

http://www.altavista.com/web/results?itag=ody&q=%22rice+straw%22&kgs=0&kls=0

[xVIer]

Hi Judith,
This article from The Houston Business Journal doesn't mention anything about parasites but says that the straw might carry diseases...I wonder if this is the ship that the Coast Guard intercepted and escorted to a US port last week from the mid-Alantic...
http://houston.bizjournals.com/houston/stories/2005/05/16/daily18.html
mrs.x