USPS - October 23, 2001 - What We Can Do to Make the Mail Safe

USPS News: Press Releases
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, October 23, 2001

The United States Postal Service:
What We Can Do to Make the Mail Safe

Tuesday, October 23, 2001

To make the mail safe, the Postal Service is taking four important steps:
EDUCATE, INVESTIGATE, INTERVENE and PREVENT

The Postal Service is EDUCATING EMPLOYEES, BUSINESSES and THE PUBLIC

EMPLOYEES:

800,000 Postal Service employees are now part of the front line of defense against terrorism
Like police officers and firefighters, Postal Service employees have given their lives in the war on terrorism
We will not be defeated. We will not surrender. We will do everything humanly possible to make the mail safe and keep it moving.
Our employees are a formidable force: 800,000 strong, located on every street and in 38,000 post offices and facilities
We have directed our employees to exercise extreme vigilance and caution in handling and delivering the mail
We are providing our employees with up-to-the-minute information about the risks associated with anthrax and the best methods for handling mail
Information and vigilance are our employees' best weapons in the fight to keep the mail moving and defeat terrorism

BUSINESSES:
More than 90 percent of America's mail originates with businesses, which can make the mail safe by employing heightened scrutiny and security measures
In the past week, we have produced videos explaining safe mail room procedures and provided them to 15,000 businesses
We are educating people who handle mail at high-profile organizations that could be potential terrorist targets; they can take special precautions to protect themselves and others where they work
This is not a one-size-fits-all program; we encourage businesses to assess their individual situations and tailor their mail handling accordingly

THE PUBLIC:
The best tools the public can use to make the mail safe are CAUTION and COMMON SENSE
The Postal Service has mailed postcards to every address in the nation explaining how to identify and isolate suspicious mail; FOLLOW THESE COMMON SENSE DIRECTIONS
The proper steps are simple: Don't open or shake suspicious mail; Isolate it; Call the appropriate authorities
We are consulting the foremost public health experts to get the best advice for dealing with medical issues
We are committed to providing the public with the best, most current information we have about the state of the mail
Stay informed; the news media are providing up-to-the-minute information about the state of the mail
Send a card or letter to someone you know or love; don't be defeated by terrorism
Use the new "United We Stand" stamp that the Post Office is issuing Wednesday 10/24/01

The Postal Service is INVESTIGATING to see that justice is done

The Postal Inspection Service has 1,900 inspectors who are working night and day to bring the perpetrators of this attack to justice
While we don't provide details of our investigation, we have gathered significant information that can help us trace the origins of this attack and the originators
We are offering a $1 MILLION REWARD for information leading to the capture of the terrorists who attacked the mail; you can provide tips by calling 800 CRIME-TV
We will not tolerate any act that spreads fear through the mail
We are dealing harshly with hoaxes that falsely invoke the threat of anthrax; they divert resources away from fighting real threat and needlessly spread fear

The Postal Service is INTERVENING if the public or our employees are put at risk by terrorism

We have now lost members of the Postal Service family to this attack; nothing could be more painful or more serious to us
We are doing EVERYTHING HUMANLY POSSIBLE to assure the safety of our workers and the public
We are consulting the foremost public health authorities and basing our decisions on the up-to-the-minute information they provide
This is a new day and we are dealing with a new threat; we are moving quickly and decisively when new information becomes available
We have taken CONCRETE STEPS to react when workers are threatened:
- When we have evidence that a postal facility has been contaminated, we have closed it immediately
- When we have evidence that postal employees have been put at risk, we provide the appropriate testing or medication, depending on what health authorities advise us to do
- We are working closely with union leaders to help communicate safety procedures to our workers and ensure they are followed

The Postal Service is PREVENTING potential problems by adopting tough new safety measures

We are taking CONCRETE STEPS to assure the safety of the public:
- We are adopting and IMMEDIATELY deploying new technology that will fight anthrax that might move through the mail
- This new technology is already being used successfully to fight bacteria in the food supply
- This new technology will not be cheap but we are committed to spending what it takes to make the mail safe
We are taking CONCRETE STEPS to assure the safety of our workers:
- We are providing all our employees who process mail with masks and gloves for their protection; though there is no definitive public-health answer about the level of protection these devices provide, we are leaving no stone unturned
- We are directing all our employees to notify us if they seek admission to a hospital, so we can quickly detect any pattern of medical problems that might develop
- We are changing the procedures we use to clean mail sorting equipment; we are no longer using air gusts to scatter dust and other particles, and instead are vacuuming equipment in a way that absorbs dust and other particles
- We are directing postal facilities to use stronger, antibacterial cleaning chemicals as part of their routine maintenance

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