Infectious Disease Research in and Around New Orleans

[DOGG]

Summary: At the very least, there are two Level-3 biolabs in New Orleans and a cluster of three in nearby Covington. They have been working with anthrax, mousepox, HIV, plague, etc. There are surely other labs in the city.

http://www.thememoryblog.org/archives/000588.html

[StAUG]

You'd figure anthrax would be stored in something airtight, which would make it waterproof... right? :P

[King_Crud]

If it was airtight how would they survive?

http://www.showandtellonline.com/images_splash/anthrax.jpg

[BlueBoy]

Scientists were testing the sterotype that black people can't swim.

Experiment successful.

[DOGG]

Years of Research Ruined in Katrina Flood (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/13/AR2005091301341.html)-- As rising floodwaters swamped New Orleans, Louisiana's chief epidemiologist enlisted state police on a mission to break into a high-security government lab and destroy any dangerous germs before they could escape or fall into the wrong hands.

Armed with bolt cutters and bleach, Dr. Raoult Ratard's team entered the state's so-called "hot lab," and killed all the living samples.
[CUT]
At least Ratard's team was able to retrieve laptop computers containing vital scientific data. Many other scientists in the region weren't so fortunate, losing years of research, either through storm damage or voluntary destruction.

[nibls66]

Mice Infected With Bubonic Plague Missing 2 hours, 50 minutes ago

NEWARK, N.J. - Three mice infected with the bacteria responsible for bubonic plague apparently disappeared from a laboratory about two weeks ago, and authorities launched a search though health experts said there was scant public risk.

The mice were unaccounted-for at the Public Health Research Institute, which is on the campus of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey and conducts bioterrorism research for the federal government.

for the rest go here http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050915/ap_on_sc/missing_mice