Preliminary tests indicate that whatever made a 59-year-old Eloy man ill Thursday night was not anthrax, health officials said Friday.
According to officials, the Eloy resident was rushed to the Casa Grande Regional Medical Center shortly before 5 p.m. Thursday after developing a rash and breathing problems upon opening an envelope with a white substance.
As doctors tended to the patient, a portion of the hospital's emergency department was closed as a precautionary measure, said Kai Gerkey, a hospital spokesman.
The man was released from the hospital within four hours and the envelope was taken to the Arizona Department of Health Services lab in Phoenix by a member of the Arizona Department of Public Safety's hazardous materials unit.
Courtney Casillas, a department of health spokeswoman, said preliminary tests came back negative for anthrax, although further testing will be done to confirm the results.
