Toxin scare at Florida school
By Michael Reed
The St. Augustine Record
An unknown substance was found in the mail at the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind this morning. The Federal Bureau of Investigation reportedly took possession of a "white powdery substance" and transported it to a lab in Jacksonville.
The scare coincides with the Boca Raton anthrax investigation of a tabloid newspaper building, in which one man died and two other people are known to have been exposed.
"We're treating this as that type of incident, even though we don't know that it is," Lt. Jeremy Masters from the St. Augustine Police Department said. "With everything that's happened in the country, we can't afford to take any chances."
The substance was delivered by mail in an envelope to the student bank inside the Walker Annex building, according to school spokeswoman Kathy Gillespie.
At least 15 people, including students, were quarantined inside the Walker Annex while officials diagnosed the threat.
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