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TextCounty Responds to Hazmat Incident
Fairfax County Office of Public
Affairs
12000 Government Center Parkway, Suite 551
Fairfax, VA 22035-0065
703-324-3187, TTY 703-324-2935, FAX 703-324-2010
March 14, 2005
10:45 p.m.
County Responds to Hazmat Incident
Fairfax County, in coordination with federal, state, and regional
officials, is responding to the activation of a Department of Defense
detection system at the Skyline office complex in Fairfax County,
located at 5111 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church. The mail facility is a
part of an inter-connected building with addresses at 5109, 5111, and
5113 Leesburg Pike.
Fairfax County health and public safety officials responded to the
scene this afternoon and provided employees and occupants of the
facility information and instructions on anthrax. County officials are
also monitoring the situation and will provide more information as it
becomes available.
At this time, it is not clear if this is a false positive or a true positive result. Therefore, additional laboratory tests are being conducted, including cultures to confirm the presence of Bacillus anthracis and determine if the organisms are capable of causing disease.
As a precautionary measure, county health officials indicate that all three buildings at the scene will be closed until further notice when appropriate testing has been completed. However, health officials stress that the general public is not at risk of exposure.
The health department is also advising medical officials in the county and region of the circumstances in order to respond to questions from occupants of the Skyline facility.
Anthrax is a disease caused by bacteria that create spores. People can get sick when spores enter the body. Spores can enter the body in different ways, resulting in different types of illness. When the spores enter through a cut or a sore, a skin infection can occur. When the spores are breathed in, they may cause serious breathing problems.
For more information about anthrax, visit the Virginia Department of Health Web page at www.vdh.virginia.gov/EPR/Agents_Biological_Anthrax.asp and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site at www.bt.cdc.gov.
The Fairfax County Health Department has set up a 24-hour, recorded
information line at 703-246-2411, TTY 703-591-6435. It will be updated
as information becomes available. Additional information can be
found on the Health Department Web page at www.fairfaxcounty.gov/hd.
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