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Tony Harkey,
GSS property and mail supervisor, was one person who handled
the envelope. He placed it in a Ziploc bag and called the
University Police Department, who upon inspecting the questionable
envelope called the Anchorage Police Department. APD took
it to be examined in a lab and later called the university
to confirm that the envelope was not hazardous.
“We work
with the U.S. Postal Service, university police and UAA's
Environmental Health and Safety department to develop and
train employees on safe mail handling procedures,”
Harkey said.
Since the mailroom
scare, rubber gloves have been offered to mail-handling
employees to help rid fear and concern.
“We're the
first line of defense for screening incoming mail,”
Cummings said. “We're doing nothing different today
than we did two weeks ago.”
Ninety percent
of all mail addressed to UAA comes through the GSS mailroom
- at least 30,000 pieces weekly. The new director of marketing
and communications for the university, John Dede, commends
the mailroom for the way it handled the incident, and says
there is no cause for alarm.
“The likelihood
that [terrorists] would target UAA or Anchorage is very
remote, because they want mass-media exposure,” Dede
said. “There's no cause for hysteria, but heightened
awareness now is probably a good idea.”
If the parcel
IS suspicious:
- Don't open
it; Isolate the parcel.
- Evacuate the
immediate area.
- Call the UPD
(APD if off campus) to report that you've received a parcel
in the mail that may contain biological or chemical substances.
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