Frozen vials marked "Smallpox" found in lab freezer in Pennsylvania, CDC says
CBSN
Philadelphia — Federal health authorities on Wednesday confirmed the discovery of some frozen vials labeled "Smallpox" in a freezer at a facility in Pennsylvania that conducts vaccine research.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the vials "were incidentally discovered by a laboratory worker" who was cleaning out the freezer.
"CDC, its administration partners, and law enforcement are investigating the matter and the vials' contents appear intact," CDC spokesperson Belsie González said in an email.
Ashley White received her earliest combat action badge from the United States Army soon after the first lieutenant arrived in Afghanistan. The silver military award, recognizing soldiers who've been personally engaged by an attacker during conflict, was considered an achievement in and of itself as well as an affirming rite of passage for the newly deployed. White had earned it for using her own body to shield a group of civilian women and children from gunfire that broke out in the midst of her third mission in Kandahar province. All of them survived. She never mentioned the badge to anyone in her battalion.