8 January 2007

Powder scare at ANU

| matthewb99
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There was a White Powder scare at the ANU today…..

Colleagues,

A note to let you know that at about 12:00 noon today, a bag containing a white powder was discovered in Building 10A (Human Resources). The appropriate procedures were followed, and the powder subsequently found not to be toxic.

The relevant authorities now conduct more sophisticated tests to identify the composition of the powder. These tests will take a couple of days to complete.

With respect to the staff, those in the building at the time the bag was discovered were allowed out but were kept together until the test result was returned. They have been advised to contact their doctor in the unlikely event that unusual symptoms appear during the next couple of days. I suggest the same action be taken by anybody in the building between 3:30pm Friday and noon today. I stress that this comment is based on the standard advice of the relevant authorities.

Notwithstanding this event so early in 2007, I take this opportunity to wish you all a healthy(!), happy and enjoyable year. I suspect that it will be, as they say, interesting since education, and maybe higher education, appears to be looming as an election issue.

Best wishes,

Ian Chubb
Vice-Chancellor

[ED – Ainslie 76 added the following:

“A mysterious bag of white powder was discovered in the Human Resource building at ANU today around 12 noon. The relevant authorities we contacted and staff evacuated from the building according to procedure. The powder was found to be non toxic, but further more extensive tests are being carried out to determine the nature of the powder. Staff and anyone who was in the building from 3:30 pm Friday have been advised to seek medical attention if any unusual symptoms occur. “]

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Surely a baggy of white powder found anywhere in the ANU has got to be heroin or coke or something druggie. It could have been ajax and someone would have snorted it. What’s happening to uni’s when some poor student is too scared to own up to their stash?

Two of clubs4:25 pm 09 Jan 07

In order to try and find out who the bag belonged to, yes, it was necessary in the end to open it. I’ve met very few people who have their name emblazoned on the outside of their bag.

Standard protocols have the unfortunate habit of being non-specific. But you’ll have to direct your complaints about this one to the people who wrote it.
Until then when someone inadvertedly handles a package containing an unidentified substance it’s “call security”. Let the people who have relevant expertise (e.g. the AFP and ACTFB officers who attended) decide what needs to be done.

Quite frankly, none of us needed the inconvenience.

Standard protocol involving opening somebody elses property and having a look around for loose $50 notes ?

Standard protocol would dictate that since the powder was in a bag inside another bag, unless the thing was set to explode or disperse by a tertiary device attached to, or inside the internal bag, that it was, infact, harmless.

Seriously, have a think about that for a minute. How on earth can a powder get out of a bag of its own volition unless there was another method of extraction, and that said, how would that make an innocent bag of Milk flavoured Anthrax dangerous in any way to anybody other than the over inquisitive ?

Standard protocol SHOULD also be written to protect the over inquisitive, therefore what you were following was not standard protocol.

Fragile wanker.

Two of clubs3:23 pm 09 Jan 07

Maelinar, The powder was in a bag inside another bag. When nobody was able to identify the owner of said bags, standard protocol was followed.
If you think us fragile wankers enjoyed sitting locked out of the office for 4 & 1/4 hours without being allowed to go anywhere think again.

Not so much as fragile wankers but merely a possible ligation ass covering exercise I suspect.

p.s. If I were a terrorist wanting to take out the seat of power, I’d take out the Glenlock Interchange.

Wheels of Democracy ever turning be damned when a centralised public service cant get to work/gridlocked.

Since the apparent harm in dealing with white powders seems to be in moving/interacting with them, why didn’t staff just leave it the fuck alone ?

Biggest store of Anthrax in the world is absolutely non-contagious unless you decide to go swimming in the stuff, then its your own damn idiotic fault (as well as commendations for getting past all that security).

Time to get the tension spring out of those highly strung public figures of the ANU who think that they are that damn important that anybody let alone a terrorist would have the inclination to give a toss about them, let alone send them enhanced post.

Fragile wankers.

serves you right for using powerded milk you dopey fucking wanker.

Two of clubs12:59 pm 09 Jan 07

Mr Evil, quite a few people probably have the shits with HR 😉

shock horror – it wasn’t anthrax !!

and the powder was…..


The bag in question had been identified as belonging to a staff member who innocently left it at reception on Friday night. It contained no personal items and a sealed plastic bag with skim milk.

Obviously someone has got the shits with ANU HR!

WIN normally go to the opening of an envelope. You were just unlucky, Two of clubs.

Two of clubs9:25 pm 08 Jan 07

WIN didn’t even show up. We were so disappointed.

Did the bag it was contained in say Plain Flour?

someones crack stash?

opps. i was trying to be clever but im no good at this HTML linking and i cut off my link to Wiki.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2001_anthrax_attacks

I’m tired of this sort of reaction here in australia to these sorts of things. Untill there is an attack here or a clear threat (like they caught some guy with Anthrax and stamps), we shouldn’t be reacting this way.

Has there ever been an biological attack on Australian soil ever? NO.

Has there been a defined and quantified threat to Australian interests using biological attacks such as this? No.

I worked in a government just after 9/11 when there was those anthrax letters were sent. They were opening all mail in a central spot for at least a year despite neither of those above questions being a yes. I was cynical at the time and in hindsight, i feel it was justified.

Perhaps the people in authority need to read up on

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