Plum Island staffers taken to PBMC for eye irritation from cleaning equipment

Seven staff members from the Plum Island Animal Disease Center were taken to Peconic Bay Medical Center in Riverhead this morning for evaluation after they complained of eye irritation following “a routine autoclave run” at the facility, a U.S. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

” Out of an abundance of caution” the staff members were brought to the hospital by a PIADC bus for medical evaluation at about 9 a.m., DHS spokesperson Brad Lake said. There were no injuries, he said.All seven people were released from hospital with no further symptoms after observation. All are reported feeling fine.

PBMC President Amy Loeb said this afternoon the hospital is functioning normally. She declined further comment and referred questions to the facility’s director of operations, Alan McIntyre. He referred a reporter to the agency’s Science and Technology communications office.

The transport from Plum Island to PBMC quickly sparked rumors in the community, largely due to the nature of the secure federal laboratory’s work. 

The Department of Homeland Security operates the facility, situated off Orient Point, in partnership with the USDA. Its mission is to protect U.S. agriculture from highly contagious livestock diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease and African swine fever — diseases that, by their nature, can spread rapidly across national borders and cause major economic, trade and food-security impacts. Plum Island’s scientists conduct research, develop vaccines and provide diagnostics, training, and outbreak response support. 

The Plum Island Animal Disease Center has been in operation since 1954. 

It is currently the only U.S. federal lab permitted to work with live foot-and-mouth disease virus and African swine fever virus. The federal government is transitioning this work to USDA’s new National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility in Manhattan, Kansas, which will eventually replace the Plum Island Animal Disease Center. 

Southold Town Supervisor Al Krupski said he was not informed by the federal government about any incident at the facility today.  He said Southold Town has emergency management plans to handle all types of emergencies, including incidents at Plum Island, and regularly updates those plans and its personnel receive continuing training. Krupski said he is confident that, should there ever be an incident requiring a response from local emergency workers, DHS would promptly inform the town.