No Radiation Found in Hawaii Mail (Yet?)
Although low levels of radiation have been found in mail from Japan at two of five United States Postal Service international service centers, no radiation has been detected at the Honolulu center yet.
The radiation levels were detected at the New York and San Francisco centers during routine screenings conducted by the Customs and Border Protection, said Duke Gonzalez, media spokesman for the United States Postal Service in Hawaii.
“No radiation has been detected in Japan mail at the Honolulu ISC/Processing & Distribution Center,” he wrote in an e-mail to Civil Beat. “We are working with CBP officials in Honolulu to ensure that all incoming mail from Japan is properly screened for radiation.”
No mail will be processed or delivered until it has been cleared by the CBP. Still, Gonzalez said, postal employees may request and use personal protective equipment such as gloves and masks while handling mail from Japan.
“We are making every effort to ensure the safety of our employees, customers and the mail,” Gonzalez said.
The USPS has five international service centers in Honolulu, New York, Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Each of them distributes and dispatches international mail received from designated service areas.
