Powder Sent to Hotels Near Super Bowl Is Harmless

Authorities in New Jersey today had to deal with a Super Bowl security scare that now appears to be a hoax. Envelopes with white powder turned up at several hotels near MetLife stadium and at other sites, but the powder appears to be cornstarch, reports NBC New York and the Star-Ledger. At least one envelope appeared to have baking soda, reports AP. The investigation and testing are continuing, but nobody who came in contact with the letters has fallen ill. All the envelopes contained a similar message, and one of the hotel managers described it as "nonsense," with references to al-Qaeda and the Dallas FBI. One letter got mailed to Rudy Giuliani's Manhattan office, but it, too, was deemed harmless. (More Super Bowl stories.)