CONTAGION

Army Ignored Anthrax Lapses for 10 Years

Despite reported warnings to lab officials.

A brigadier general leading an Army biodefense lab is facing disciplinary action for alleged failures that allowed the facility to ship live anthrax to other areas for more than a decade. The military’s accountability investigation alleges that several others at the Dugway Proving Ground facility were also culpable. Maj. Gen. Paul Ostrowski led the investigation, and said, “Over time, you see there is complacency that the leadership should have recognized and taken action to correct.” The review found that leadership had received warnings of scientific and safety issues and did nothing to correct them. All of this was the case despite serious previous safety problems in the same labs involving anthrax.