Charlotte Officials Dissect Response to Smallpox Hoax

The smallpox scare at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport last week was a false alarm, but a great chance for emergency workers to test their skills.

"We learned a lot. We gained a lot of information," said Charlotte Fire Department Deputy Chief Jeff Dulin.

Last Friday a man on a US Airways flight from New Orleans stood up as the plane was taxing to the gate and said he had smallpox. The plane had to be quarantined and the man was rushed to an isolation unit at Carolinas Medical Center for testing. The tests determined he did not have the disease and everyone was allowed off the plane several hours after landing.

Officials from almost a dozen agencies spent Thursday afternoon at the emergency management office in uptown Charlotte. They met behind closed doors to dissect their response to the hoax.

The group discussed ways to improve communications and security, especially because so many agencies were involved.

Dr. Wynn Mabry, with the Mecklenburg County Health Department, said, "This was a lot more than somebody being sick on an airplane or even saying that they had a communicable disease or raising a threat."

Some said next time the people in charge should call the shots from the scene andot their headquarters. One suggestion was to have a command post at the airport.

"We didn't have that set-up out there. We were basically operating from locations here in downtown," Dulin said.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is no longer investigating the case. Agents say the man who made the threat was taken for psychological evaluation and treatment and asked that his name not be released. They did confirm, however, they were concerned because the man had served in the Navy and would have more access to bioterrorism diseases.