BOSTON, MA – A 10-story building in Boston which houses a biomedical research laboratory was evacuated after smoke activated the alarm system. An electrical problem at Boston University’s Center for Advanced Biomedical Research biomedical research laboratory was the apparent cause of the smoke.
Hundreds of scientists and other workers were evacuated from the building, which houses vials of the highly infectious bacteria Francisella tularensis bacterium. A hazardous materials team dressed in Level A protective clothing entered the building and shut off the electricity, causing the smoke to dissipate. No contamination was found and fire officials said the public was never in danger. Decontamination stations which had been set up in the street were not needed.
BioSafety Level 3 lab
The facility is a Biosafety Level-3 lab, one of 6 in the city. Biocontainment laboratories are specially designed facilities to provide safe settings for work with the most serious infectious microorganisms. The Centers for Disease Control specifies four levels of biocontainment precautions. The Biosafety Level 3 designation applies to clinical, diagnostic, teaching, research, or production facilities in which work is done with indigenous or exotic agents which may cause serious or potentially lethal disease as a result of inhalation exposure. Laboratory personnel must have specific training in handling pathogenic and potentially lethal agents, and must be supervised by competent scientists who are experienced in working with these agents.
All procedures involving infectious materials are conducted within biological safety cabinets or other physical containment devices, or by personnel wearing appropriate personal protective clothing and equipment. The laboratory has special engineering and design features.
Some local residents and environmentalists have expressed concern about the facility, which sits in a densely populated section of the city. Fire and BU officials, however, expressed confidence that safety precautions at the lab as well as preparedness by the hazmat team ensure the public’s safety.
Security precautions
The bacteria is stored in a double-locked freezer. “Even if there was a fire,” explained Stephen Morash, BU’s manager of emergency planning and response, “it would likely have simply destroyed the bacterium. It’s not a very hearty organism.”
Many of the emergency personnel who responded to the alarm had previously toured the lab and were familiar with the layout.
The evacuation was done in two stages. Initially only the ninth floor – where the smoke was discovered – was cleared. The rest of the building was evacuated after the incident was declared a Level 3 hazardous materials response.
Tularemia
Francisella tularensis bacterium causes tularemia, also known as ‘rabbit fever,’ which can be contracted through the bite of an infected tick or fly, by handling infected animal carcasses; by eating or drinking contaminated food or water; or by inhaling airborne bacteria. Symptoms include sudden fever, chills, headache, muscle aches, joint pain, dry cough, progressive weakness, and pneumonia. It can be fatal, although this is not common.
Air sampling found no evidence that the lab had been contaminated by chemical or biological agents. The lab will remain closed pending an investigation.
