MIAMI, Oct. 10 (UPI) -- In Miami the false alarms and hoaxes involving anthrax have gotten so bad, firefighters are running out of disposable contamination suits.
"We've had to order more," said Assistant Fire Chief Joe Fernandez.
Prosecutors said Wednesday there have been no arrests yet, but they are considering treating false anthrax calls and mailing envelopes with mysterious white powder in them as serious criminal offenses.
The death of Bob Stevens, 63, of anthrax in Atlantis, Fla., Friday have sparked fears that it was linked to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington and also touched off hundreds of false alarms -- intentional and accidental -- throughout Florida and the rest of the nation.
About 1,000 people were locked down in an Internal Revenue Service center in Covington, Ky., when white powder was found in the mailroom. Police and firemen rushed to a shopping mall in Lincoln, Neb., when a box labeled "anthrax" was found.
But most of the action was in Florida. A St. Petersburg Times columnist received an envelope containing what looked like sugar or salt. His desk was encased in plastic and reporters nearby went about their business. A preliminary test produced no sign of anthrax.
In Naples, Fla., 75 workers were detained in two buildings after employees and a bank and a law firm found white powder covering mail delieved by a private courier service. No evidence of anthrax was found.
At a Hollywood, Fla., parking lot, the scene approached the bizarre as firemen in contamination suits scrubbed off fully clothed office workers with push brooms and hoses. After a few minutes of scrubbing, one woman broke out into laughter.
White powder found under a computer key board was later found to be harmless.
Officials in Broward County, where there were dozens of calls, urged calm.
"Of all those calls, not one case has been confirmed as being hazardous. Not one. Not anthrax, not anything else," said Sheriff Ken Jenne of Broward County, where a fire station and a police station were among the locations that had to be locked down temporarily.
But officials said if residents get one of the calls or an envelope that looks like it could be serious, they should notify authorities immediately.
Miami Police Lt. Bill Schwartz of Miami said he deplored the hoaxes.
"People who are taking advantage of the horrible, horrible situation to add to people's anxieties are, in and of themselves, terrorists," he said.
"What a terrorist does is play on people's fears, and this is exactly what the enemy wants," Schwartz said.
Ed Griffith of the Miami-Dade County state attorney's office, said he was aware of any arrests for making calls or sending letters, but he said such cases will be pursued.
"If we've got a prosecutable case, we're gong to prosecute it. This isn't a joke, this is a serious offense," he said.
