Postal Service readies facilities for cleaning

Postal Service officials announced Tuesday that decontaminating two large mail processing plants that were infected with the anthrax virus last October will be done properly, even if it takes a long time.

"It's in our best interest to [clean the facilities] quickly," said Thomas Day, vice president of engineering for the Postal Service. "But we want to do it right. No one will be going into those buildings unless they are clean."

Postal Service officials on Tuesday outlined their plans to decontaminate the District of Columbia's main mail processing plant on Brentwood Road. The facility has been closed since Oct. 21 after an anthrax-tainted letter was delivered to Sen. Tom Daschle, D-S.D. The letter was processed at the Brentwood facility. Two postal employees died after being exposed to anthrax spores that spread throughout the facility.

The agency will employ the same cleaning technique used on the Hart Senate Office Building, which closed after the letter to Daschle was opened. The process involves sealing the building and pumping chlorine dioxide into the workspace. A facility in Trenton, N.J., will be cleaned only after Brentwood has been tested and cleared for occupancy.

Decontamination at Brentwood has been delayed for a number of reasons, not the least of which is working out final details over the contract for the cleanup. Sources familiar with the negotiations said one of the sticking points is liability. The Postal Service is reluctant to waive a liability clause or indemnify the contractor should the cleaning process not work.

William Burrus, president of the American Postal Workers Union, which represents a majority of the employees at the facility, said that is the right approach. Any contractor should be held responsible for doing the job, he said.

Day would not specify other problems delaying the award of a contract. He's optimistic, however, that a contract will be awarded soon and that decontamination can begin within a couple of months.

Postal workers also want to see the facility open soon, said Burrus. While some will be nervous returning to Brentwood, Burrus said he has faith that public health officials will ensure that the building is 100 percent "clean" before letting employees back.

Cleanup costs are expected to total $35 million-$22 million for the Brentwood facility and $13 million for the facility in Trenton. The funds were appropriated by Congress in an emergency supplemental spending bill and will not affect the agency's troubled bottom line.