Hurricane Helene: Public Health Department Closures

Latest updates: Hurricane Helene

Our public health departments' hours of operation may be affected by power and staffing outages. This means that some closures may not appear on the state government office delays and closings map. The health and safety of our employees and our clients remains our highest priority. We are working to get services restored as safely and quickly as possible.

Learn more about DPH's role with hurricanes, floods, and weather emergencies.

Ricin (Ricinus communis)

Ricin is a poison made from the waste left over from the processing of seeds of the castor bean plant, Ricinus communis. Castor beans are processed throughout the world to make castor oil and ricin is part of the waste "mash" produced when castor oil is made. Ricin can be in the form of a powder, a mist, or a pellet, or it can be dissolved in water or weak acid. Exposure to ricin would require a deliberate act to make the substance and introduce it into the systems of victims. Unintentional exposure to ricin is very unlikely.

Basic Ricin References

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (www.cdc.gov) maintains a webpage devoted exclusively to ricin (http://emergency.cdc.gov/agent/ricin/qa.asp) which includes excellent technical documents about the poison. Links are provided below to these documents, selected from the several dozen available, as useful for persons, including health care professionals, looking for a rapid, basic orientation to ricin.

Information for the General Public from the CDC

Information for Health Professionals from the CDC

Ricin Reporting

Physicians and health care facilities should report suspected cases of exposure to ricin to their local county health department.

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Risks and Hazards