A Mysterious Lab Is Shutting Down. It’s the End of an Era for Biosecurity.
The ‘Area 51 of the East Coast’ will be replaced by a new lab in America’s heartland.
About a mile off the tip of Long Island’s North Fork, past a patch of rough sea and a long, sharp reef, there’s a wild, sequestered place known as Plum Island. Some may have heard of it: It’s been rumored to be the origin point of Lyme disease and the Montauk Monster, and made a cameo in The Silence of the Lambs. Some call it the Area 51 of the East Coast.
That’s because on Plum Island scientists study some of the most infectious pathogens known to man. On the west side of the island, sealed behind decades-old metal doors and frozen inside tamper-proof containers, are vials of rinderpest and foot-and-mouth disease virus, two of the most feared animal contagions of all time. A single detection of foot-and-mouth disease in the wild could wipe out entire herds of livestock and completely halt international agricultural trade. It’s the reason why travelers must declare if they’ve been on a farm, ranch or pasture when entering the United States. Plum Island is currently the only place in the country where the live virus can even be studied.