By AMANDA RIDDLE, Associated Press Writer BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) - FBI agents wearing white moon suits and
gas masks scoured the newspaper offices of two men whose exposure to anthrax
has prompted heightened fear of bioterrorism across the country. The search turned up no further sign of anthrax in Robert Stevens'
office since traces were discovered on his computer keyboard. Stevens,
63, a photo editor with the Sun tabloid, died last week of inhaled anthrax,
a rare, particularly lethal form of the disease. Preliminary testing at the federal labs on the anthrax that killed
Stevens has found a possible match to a strain connected to an Iowa lab,
a law enforcement official said Wednesday. The official, speaking on condition
of anonymity, said further testing to definitively make the match could
take several days. Anthrax spores also were found in the nose of mailroom worker Ernesto
Blanco, 73. He remained in good condition, Florida health department spokesman
Tim O'Connor said. O'Connor didn't identify the hospital, but Raphael Miguel, Blanco's
stepson, said Wednesday that his stepfather was at Cedars Medical Center
in Miami. He said Blanco was to be moved out of intensive care by the end
of the day, adding, ``We expect that his spirits will lift a little bit.'' Health officials said there have been no additional cases of contamination,
but some 770 people were awaiting test results to determine whether they
had contact with the anthrax at the Boca Raton headquarters of publisher
American Media Inc. It could take days for the nasal swab test results
to come back. Follow-up blood tests also were planned, and those results
could take weeks. The AMI building was shut down as FBI crews removed bags of evidence
filled with plastic containers resembling Tupperware. One contained what
appeared to be a next-day air envelope. ``We have in essence gone into the building, cleaned the building
out, taken all samples as possible, and are following any trail - any possible
trail,'' President Bush said in Washington. ``Thus far it looks like it's
a very isolated incident.'' The CDC has said it has virtually ruled out environmental causes
as the source. Attorney General John Ashcroft has stated there is no indication
of terrorism in the anthrax case, but said the case could become a ``clear
criminal investigation.'' Barbara Reynolds, spokesman for the CDC, said Wednesday that investigators
are not assuming that Stevens was initially exposed in the newspaper office.
``The most important question ot answer is, where did the person who became
ill or anyone else exposed get that exposure?,'' she said. On Tuesday, emergency officials responded to calls around the state
about suspicious white powders being mailed or delivered to homes and businesses.
The anthrax cases also prompted reports of possible infections in Texas
and Wisconsin. Firefighters in suburban Fort Lauderdale were quarantined for 12
hours, and officials closed a bank and law firm in Naples, on Florida's
west coast. Dozens of people were sent to hospitals for tests, but there
were no reports of anyone becoming sick. O'Connor said on Tuesday that it was ``highly unlikely'' that anthrax
could be transported through a white powder. In Temple Hills, Md., outside Washington, an armed man sprayed a
substance into a subway station during a scuffle with police. Authorities
took the man into custody and said it did not appear to be a terrorist
act. An Internal Revenue Service tax processing center in Covington,
Ky., was locked down Tuesday after an employee reported receiving a letter
that contained a white powder. Preliminary tests found no harmful substances,
police said. Health officials have emphasized that there is no public health
threat. Anthrax tests at Stevens' home were negative, said Dr. Jean Malecki,
director of the Palm Beach Health Department. - Associated Press Writer Karen Gullo contributed to this report. - On the Net: CDC: http://www.cdc.gov
