Plumbing the mysteries of Plum Island

"The facts are they were researching hundreds of thousands of hard and soft ticks," said Carroll. "And at the same time, an unknown bacteria has found its way into the mouth of the Connecticut River in Old Lyme, ten miles away, where tens of thousands of birds fly."

In fact, a person can only get Lyme disease when a black legged tick infected with a very distinct bacterium attaches to the body and passes it on.

Researchers insist that neither the black legged tick nor the Lyme disease bacterium were ever on Plum Island.

There is, however, no controversy about this: Plum Island is in serious need of improvements.

"Here is a research facility that was built 55 years ago and yeah, it needs upgrading, of course, to meet modern capabilities," said Grubman.

Rodriguez likened the facilities to an old building, "and as any old house as we all know, it take more resources to keep 'em up but it is safe and it's functional.

The Department of Homeland Security plans to move the operations off Plum Island, to Manhattan - not Manhattan, New York, but Manhattan, Kansas, in cattle country.

But it doesn't look like it will happen any time too soon.

"It'll probably be eight to ten years until it's functional, so we have to be able to maintain the capabilities that we have here," said Grubman.

The move to Kansas was cut from the federal budget this year, and opponents say if foot and mouth disease escapes the lab there, it could do the most damage the fastest. But that objection hasn't stopped the plan.

USDA scientists credit research on Plum Island for preventing famine by stopping outbreaks of animal disease in developing nations overseas, and keeping those diseases from coming here.

Researchers Marvin Grubman and Luis Rodriguez say they understand people like a good mystery, but they say what really goes on at Plum Island is a better story.

"We're one of the best-kept secrets for scientific research in animal health in the U.S.," said Rodriguez. "We're very well-known internationally. If you ask any veterinarian anywhere in the world, they all know about Plum Island. For a scientist, it's really hard to take sometimes that you know that people when they talk about Plum Island, the first thing they talks about a monster or something like that.

"I think our good science speaks for itself, and hopefully people will see that."

For more info:

• "Lab 257: The Disturbing Story of the Government's Secret Germ Laboratory" by Michael C. Carroll (William Morrow)

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[alexanderdavis]

The reason that decreasing the deer population results in a decrease in Lyme disease is that the adult deer tick needs a large blood meal from a sizeable mammal (90% are deer) in order to reproduce. Mice are inadequate and only host the smaller larvae and nymphs. It was the deer overpopulation which has spread Lyme disease, not mouse overpopulation. As explained in this information, "Simply reducing deer numbers to natural levels, without any other actions of any kind taken, can eradicate Lyme Disease." :
http://www.eradicatelymedisease.org/lyme.html

[thefactchecker]

The reference is suspect (all the key quotes come from a report by the state government of Connecticut), which uses correlations without proving causation, and it finds other excuses to kill deer. Also curious is the claim that the ticks need "sizeable mammal(s)". Most ticks are barely visible, and when fully gorged, they are still minute, and certainly not so big that they would not be able to satisfy themselves on a mouse. I would really like to see a supporting reference from an independent group not from the state of Connecticut, which has long had an aggressive deer eradication program.

[thefactchecker]

"And every other scientific expert we spoke to agrees. Durland Fish, the Lyme expert at Yale University, has said of Carroll's conclusions, "He should stop making these things up. It just scares people." "

Four comments:
First, "every other scientific expert" could be interpreted as "50% of the scientific experts". And how many "scientific experts" did the author contact? Two? Four? Were they independent, or "scientific experts" employed in some fashion or other by Plum Island or some other branch of Homeland Security?

Secondly, Fish's comment is a pure ad hominem attack. Carroll has researched Plum Island thoroughly and provided detailed evidence, along with a very interesting back story and credible details as to how, when, where and why Lyme Disease likely was developed and escaped Plum Island. The epidemiology of the disease matches up with the evidence in Carroll's book. If Fish is doing anything other than handing out misinformation, where is his evidence, his book? What is his alternative explanation? The virus traveled here on magic fairy dust, shortly after the US placed on Plum Island an ex-Nazi who specialized in tick-borne viruses, and the placement of that scientist is just a coincidence with the sudden emergence of the disease? The inclusion of Fish's comment, without proper follow-up, is pure spin.

Thirdly, the author of this article has apparently not even read Carroll's book. What about Carroll's claims that duck enteritis and West Nile virus also originated in Plum Island? And what about the fact that Plum Island was chosen with the reasoning that escaping diseases would be blown out to sea? Instead, it is on a migratory pathway for birds of every type, which are a great vector for diseases, and it is not suited to withstand hurricanes?

Fourth, in response to a reader's comment, killing every deer on the Eastern seaboard won't eradicate Lyme Disease. Mice are the most prolific hosts, and pesticide-soaked cotton balls in their nests is a more effective measure. But the ticks aren't called "mice ticks", so hunters rationalize their cruel acts by dressing themselves up as good Samaritans, working to eradicate Lyme Disease by slaughtering deer.

[LymeWarrior]

Bravo, couldn't have said it better myself!

[inletbeach]

Instead of moving this lab to Manhattan Kanaas, what about South Sudan
or Somalia?

[mitchie124]

How about Washington D.C.?

[lillyhorton]

If NASA, A government funded project, didn't create a stronger form of small pox in space I might concider the rumors of Plum Island fiction. Since they did I do not trust anything that comes out of government especially those from Il. We still have problems in the Gulf due to BP oil spill reguardless of what our government tells us. We have seen and will continue to see evidence of radiation poisoning in the US despite the government reasuring us it won't reach our shore line. Area 51 didn't exist for the longest time. The world was once flat and everything in the universe revolved around EARTH.

[johnnyos48]

I was a copier tech for Xerox 10 years ago and went to Plumb Island occasionally to fix copiers. I just went to the Admin, never the Bio side.
What you didn't mention in your piece was all the Canadian geese that were on the island. What is to keep those same geese from flying not only to Long Island, but along the east coast, wherever the geese normally fly.
If just one of those birds gets infected by something, the BIO-DISASTER could be catastrophic. It would be a Terrorist Attack of our own making. Especially if it's a Weaponized disease.

[djseavy]

Just another fine example of why people have no faith in the government. It seems that most hush-hush projects end up backfiring, and the cost to the taxpayer is astronomical. Of course rumors are going to spread. The more the government covers up its activities, the more rumors will start flying.

[lymediseaseadvocate]

What a sad and disturbing segment. Lab 257 is not a science fiction book and is factual. Obviously the Center for Disease Control is accomplishing it's agenda to diminish the knowledge of the hazards at this facility to the public. Where was the information about employee protests, Senator Hillary Clinton speaking out, the National Guard troops deployed there for training who so many were stricken with lymes disease. Did anyone notice the reporter walking the ungarded beaches of Plum Island with the scientist..... when they included in the segment that it is a target for a terrorist attack? The photos leaked from Plum Island of open toxic waste dumps...the animal abuse from the repeated useless and cruel tests. Why wasn't the history revealed of the german dr.s brought to the US for asylum who were running the lab when established with "Neo Nazi" agendas, ( all documented ) factual, for their expertise in biological warfare. What mention of the Biological "meltdown" following Hurricane Bob in 1991. West Nile Virus, Lyme Disease, Rift Valley Fever,Foot and Mouth Disease,African Swine Flu, and Rinderfest, are some of the projects approved and worked on at Plum Island. The accounts that often the labs were run more like a Highschool science lab rather than with the proper protocol and security needed for such deadly biological diseases to be tested.
I ask of CBS to take another look at this story and do justice for all citizens impacted by the negligent behaviors on Plum Island and issues surrounding checks, balances , and controls, with research. We inevitably all are at risk for facilities such as this to be held accountable.

[barachohmaba]

They keep the public blind, deaf, or stupi! Partial selective sencorship reporting!!! read borach ohbama down this thread...

[BellaRifatta]

Thanks LymeDiseaseadvocate. It's truly unfortunately the CBS would publish and article like this. Lab 257 is an incredibly well researched historical account of the activities that have (and still are) taking place on Plum Island. Durland Fish and Yale denounce Carroll's efforts because THEY OWN THE LYME DISEASE AND LYMErix PATENTS. (Yale's Bb Flagellin Patent, 5.618,533 and Yale's LYMErix Patent, 5,747,294)
They stand to profit hugely from the Lyme epidemic. CBS, please cover this! This is the cover up of the century! Hundreds of thousands will soon be sick from Lyme and related co-infections.
A better account of what is really happening at Plum Island and its connection to Lyme can be found here:
http://www.rense.com/general28/truths.htm for those who are interested to learn more.

[alexanderdavis]

The biological WMD are the deer. Over the past century the deer population has exploded and so has the deer tick population. We are suffering the consequences which require vast life-style changes necessary to try to avoid the Lyme disease plague. Deer are the primary host of the adult egg-laying deer ticks which require a blood meal from a large mammal. Each adult tick can lay 3000 eggs which hatch into larvae and then nymphs, hosted by small mammals like mice. Going after the deer breaks this cycle. In Bridgeport CT, lowering the deer population 74% resulted in a 92% decrease in nymphal deer ticks. In Groton CT the deer population was reduced from 77 per square mile to 10 per square mile, and the Lyme Disease incidence decreased by 83%.. See pages 2-4: http://www.ct.gov/dep/lib/dep/wildlife/pdf_files/game/urbandeer07.pdf

[barachohmaba]

Nice too see some of us have researched it and know the true stories!!!

[barachohmaba]

All lies! refrence; Lyme disease United coalition, www.LDUC.org ticks can survive fro - 217 degrees abd move! ther cant be killed in your dryer! and you don't have to be bitten by one of the 80 diffrent insects that carry it in there blood ALIVE as larva, it can simply leach thru your skin. everyone alive has it!!! Google Jim jemsek,; Speaks the truth and see, he is the world accredited AIDS Doctor! Jim Jemsek, "speaks the truth" youtube, or under our skin. accredited and researched by a shared data base among colleges, it marked highly!

[dbuls1238]

you forgot to mention that plum island was mentioned in the movie "silence of the lambs".