ANTHRAX THREAT CLEARS VALLEY BUILDING; DEADLY BACTERIA FEARED AT LARGE FOR SECOND TIME IN CITY.

Byline: Steve Carney Daily News Staff Writer

An anonymous caller claiming deadly anthrax bacteria had been released Friday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Warner Center forced the building's evacuation, the second such threat in the city in two days.

Preliminary tests for the presence of anthrax were not conclusive, but none of the 91 people who had been evacuated and quarantined showed symptoms of the infection, and they were allowed to go home at 10:40 p.m.

The incident started at 2:08 p.m. when someone called to say anthrax spores had been introduced into the ventilation system at the courthouse, 21041 Burbank Blvd., said LAPD Lt. Anthony Alba.

Police and firefighters evacuated the building occupants to a grassy area outside, where they waited into the afternoon as temperatures dropped. Fire officials later fed the evacuees and brought in buses to keep them out of the cold.

Firefighters, police officers and FBI agents examined the air system on the building's roof, and swabbed samples from air vents throughout the building. The samples were flown to the county Department of Health Services laboratory downtown for testing.

``We never take it for granted that it might be a hoax,'' Alba said.

Kept in a quarantined ``hot zone'' behind red barrier tape, the evacuees paced, made cell-phone calls, laughed and joked with each other. They applauded when they were told they'd be getting warm blankets, which firefighters tossed to them like peanuts at a ballgame about 4:20 p.m. The buses were brought in later.

Only a few rescue workers were allowed near the people, in case they had been exposed to the anthrax spores, which can be transmitted through breathing, Los Angeles Fire Department Capt. Steve Ruda said.

Because preliminary test results were inconclusive, each of the people who had been quarantined was given a four-day prescription for antibiotics.Health officials also told them to wash their clothes and shower when they got home.

The disease caused by the anthrax bacteria is most commonly found in livestock, but has up to a 90 percent mortality rate if inhaled by humans. The anthrax travels through the lymph and blood systems, spreading infection to tissues throughout the body.

Early flu-like symptoms, such as chills and chest pains in the first two days after exposure, give way to bluish skin, labored breathing and low blood pressure after three to five days. Antibiotics are used to combat the disease.

On Thursday, a Westwood office building received an anthrax threat in the form of a letter that was later determined to be a hoax.

On Monday, a similar incident occurred in Riverside County when a Perris School District secretary opened a letter that read: ``you've been exposed to anthrax,'' according to The Associated Press.

Anthrax hoax letters have been received in Colorado, Kentucky and Tennessee.

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PHOTO Bankruptcy court workers quarantined behind emergency tape talk to firefighters during investigation of an anthrax threat Friday in Woodland Hills.

John Lazar/Daily News