Anthrax Bank Robbery Declared Unlikely

FBI Offers Info Source

In the midst of predictions of terrorism during Y2K, we were made aware of the anthrax threat. The feared scenario was that a bank robber could threaten to spread anthrax spores, which were said to be lethal to anyone within breathing or contact areas. Bank security officers were cautioned that disaster response would be different for this type of crime inside a bank office. Isolation of exposed individuals and closing in of the area would be warranted, rather than evacuating.

Then we started hearing reports of incidents on the east and the west coasts.

Brooke Blake, Security Officer of Sun Trust in Atlanta, who is an advisor of the BANKERS' HOTLINE updated us in an interview on the subject of anthrax threats.

BH: Brooke, have any incidents actually happened with anthrax, or is it just a scare tactic?

Blake: There have been no banks robbed or threatened yet, so far as we know. Last summer several business offices is Southern California, including the IRS, received envelopes said to contain anthrax. Then Washington, DC had an incident. The first week of January there were more than 10 envelopes received in Connecticut, Ohio, Indiana, Alabama, and Florida. Closer to home for me, we just had one sent to a person here in Atlanta, Georgia.

BH: Were there really anthrax spores in the envelopes?

Blake: No. To this point it has been 99% hoax. To be truthful, deliberately infecting someone with anthrax would be a complicated, dangerous process. Someone would have to get the bacterium that causes anthrax, make it form spores, and then figure out how to transmit those spores to someone else. It isn't something you can cook up in the kitchen!

BH: So is it really a serious threat?

Blake: The Department of Defense thinks so. All military personnel have been vaccinated against the disease. Local and state public health officials have been trained on how to handle anthrax scares. And the FBI takes all such threats seriously.

BH: Should we recommend vaccinating bank employees?

Blake: That's hardly necessary. Anthrax can be deadly to persons only if they remain untreated after inhaling or eating anthrax spores. However, there are eight days for treatment with antibiotics before the disease becomes life threatening. So it's hardly the "breathe-in-fall-down" type of a problem reported on the rumor mill.

BH: What happened in Atlanta?

Blake: A tenant in the same complex as our branch received an envelope and opened it. The message inside said he had been exposed to anthrax. Every public safety officer in the vicinity responded. Everyone in the immediate area had to evacuate, including all our employees, and anyone exposed directly was isolated, had to strip, and be hosed down. It was a messy situation!

BH: How do we learn of threats and what to do about them?

Blake: I'd suggest every bank security officer get on board with the FBI's ANSIR program. ANSIR stands for the Awareness of National Security Issues and Response. This program provides un>
BH: How do our security officers sign on to that?

Blake: Information is disseminated nationwide via the ANSIR-Email network. Each of the FBI's 56 field offices has an ANSIR coordinator and is equipped to provide national security threat and awareness information to corporate recipients within their jurisdiction. To find out where to sign up, security officers should access the www.fbi.gov web page and find out where their local office is. Call them, and ask for the ANSIR coordinator.

I think it's important for the bank security officer to work closely with local and federal law enforcement. The security officer's training and background makes him or her a natural leader in the time of national emergency. That's important for the financial institution, the community and the country. We're not as institution specialized as we used to be. Preparation really does prevent panic in times of disaster or calamity. We must be prepared.

Brooke Blake, Security Officer and Training Officer for SunTrust Bank based in Atlanta is an advisor and contributor of information and articles to the HOTLINE. His most recent contribution related branch response when Mark Barton opened fire and killed people in the office next to one of his branches. He can be reached at Brooke.Blake@suntrust.com.

Copyright © 2000 Bankers' Hotline. Originally appeared in Bankers' Hotline, Vol. 10, No. 1, 1/00