From: AC [anonymous] Date: Fri, 19 Oct 2001 21:33:52 EDT Subject: Fwd: Hash and Anthrax To: [anonymous group] In case you did not se this already: From: DC [anonymous] To: AC [anonymous] Date: Fri, 19 Oct 2001 13:50:56 -0400 Subject: Hash and Anthrax ---------------------- Forwarded by DC From: DC [anonymous] To: ES [anonymous] cc: Subject: Hash and Anthrax B, I was contacted yesterday for this article by this reporter. Look at this: Runners club gets blame for scare White powder panic cost Newtown "thousands" By Brian Saxton THE NEWS-TIMES 2001-10-19 One member called it unfortunate. Another said it had been a huge misunderstanding. For years, the Hash House Harriers, describing itself as "the world's most eccentric running club," has used harmless household flour to mark its running trails. Runners follow specifically designed markers over a designated trail to a finishing line and then have a party with beer and songs. But Saturday, when 20 members of the Ridgefield chapter stood poised for an afternoon run in Newtown, tradition turned sour. With public fears mounting over the threat of bioterrorism, the sight of white powder spilling from a woman's bag as she walked Queen Street early that morning raised the chilling specter of anthrax. The street was sealed as the area swarmed with police, fire and health officials, the state Department of Environmental Protection and the FBI. Anxious residents were questioned and reassured. The nearby Merryhill Child Care Center curtailed a fund-raiser and was evacuated. DEP collected samples of the suspicious substance and sent them to the state Department of Public Health for analysis. On Monday, DEP announced it was only "harmless" baking flour. Thursday, the woman, in a voluntary first appearance at Newtown police headquarters, confirmed she had used it for marking the Ridgefield runners' trail. Police found 4-inch powdery circles along Queen Street, at Fairfield Hills, behind the middle school and St. Rose's and in the Elm Drive area. On Thursday, police closed the investigation without pressing criminal charges, but First Selectman Herbert Rosenthal, saying the runners should have given the town advanced warning of their activities, hinted the group may face civil action. I'm going to talk to the town attorney to see if we can recover some of the costs involved, he said. As well as creating a lot of public anxiety, it caused the town, state and town government to expend a lot of money. Rosenthal believes Saturday's scare cost thousands of dollars. State Attorney General Richard Blumenthal emphasized Thursday the need to investigate all reports of "suspicious materials" even if there's an innocent explanation. But he warned: "Groups that place white substances on the open road or some other public place might exercise a little more caution or common sense and notify the police before doing so." The woman's lawyer, Darien attorney Larry Ogren, who refused to reveal her identity, said no one intended causing any public alarm or wanted to perpetuate a hoax. "She feels terrible if anyone has suffered in any way," said Ogren. It's easy to call it faulty judgment in hindsight but it was an innocent act at the time. Ogren said it had been no one's intention to create a harmful incident, but added, Times are changing so rapidly. People's sensitivity has been heightened. The Ridgefield group on Oct. 4 used a similar method to mark a trail in Newtown and the run went off without a hitch, he added. One veteran member of the group, Gale Gustavson, who lives in Brookfield, described the incident as unfortunate. "We've been doing this for 15 years," she said. "If we'd put more thought into it maybe flour was not a good idea. It just didn't occur to the woman who did it." "If anyone had any idea it would have caused such a ruckus we wouldn't have done it," she said. Fellow runner Joseph Doucet, 58, of Ridgefield, a member since the 1980s,said it had all been "a huge misunderstanding." "Someone set the trail and never thought too much about it," he said. "It's been going on for 15 or 20 years on a weekly basis and now, all of a sudden, wow, it's suspicious." Doucet said some people he spoke to in the club were surprised by the reaction in Newtown but felt "very bad" about it. "Everyone's sorry if anyone was inconvenienced," Doucet said. Both Gustavson and Ogren agreed "adjustments" may be needed in planning future club events. "Clearly flour is a bad idea at this time," said Gustavson. Now we may have to start looking at using things such as maps and other methods. Ogren noted that a run organized by the New York Hash House Harriers in Tuckahoe earlier this week had used blue chalk and pieces of surveyor's tape for marking the trail. "It's the sort of thing that could be looked at by Ridgefield," he said. Contact Brian Saxton at bsaxton@newstimes.com or at (203) 426-3711. ************************************************************************** The information contained herein is confidential and is intended solely for the addressee(s). It shall not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Any unauthorized access, use, reproduction, disclosure or dissemination is prohibited. Neither SOCIETE GENERALE nor any of its subsidiaries or affiliates shall assume any legal liability or responsibility for any incorrect, misleading or altered information contained herein. **************************************************************************