Response to letter highlights base capabilities

  • Published
  • 509th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. (ACCNS) --   Emergency response forces put new equipment to the test while responding to a report of a suspicious letter at the post office here recently.

Though the letter turned out to be harmless, base officials took no chances when Airman Nicholas Albright, who works in the base information transfer center, noticed an envelope with questionable markings.

Then some white powder fell out of it, said Airman Veronica Witlock, one of Albrights coworkers.

Airman Chrisma Lopes, another member of the team, called for assistance. Security forces cordoned off the immediate area around the post office and clothing sales until the substance in the letter could be identified.

This task fell to the base bioenvironmental team.

Two technicians Senior Airmen Kelly Johnson and Joyce Baum entered the building wearing protective gear as a precaution. They used both a handheld assay device and a newer hazardous material identification system to reveal the contents of the letter.

This was the first time the HAZMAT ID Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer was used here in a real-world response, and one of the few, if not the only, documented cases of real world use in the Air Force, said 2nd Lt. Michael Horenziak, a 509th Medical Group bioenvironmental engineer.

The new equipment allowed the team to quickly confirm the material was not hazardous.

Once the letter was available to sample, the total time, including opening the plastic containing the letter, and taking the sample, was 40 minutes, Airman Johnson said.

The first confirmation of a negative sample was given in about 15 minutes with the Hazmat ID, but the handheld assay takes a while longer to take a sample, she said. About 15 to 20 minutes after the HAZMAT ID reading, a negative reading for the HHA was also given.

Lt. Col. Leslie Martin, who led the base disaster control group response team, said that while the situation turned out to be non-threatening, it still provided great training for responding agencies. It also demonstrated the value of some of the Air Forces newest equipment.

This was a great team effort by security forces, the fire department and bio, the colonel said. The new equipment was so specific it could tell us the letter contained dairy cream -- even the brand.