Powdery substance found at Witspos sorting center found to be harmless

The discovery of the powder, which spilt form a package, led to the closure of the centre on Friday. 

In a statement, the POst office said operations were suspended after several mail processing employees fell ill after being exposed to the substance. 

"Following the cordoning off of the area for investigation, it emerged that 18 of our employees that have come into contact with the item had taken ill and they were immediately sent to hospital," read the statement. 

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It went on: "The City of Johannesburg’s Emergency Management Services (EMS) and the police have been on site to assist with the incident since last night. Bio-management and environmental teams are currently rehabilitating the working area and it is anticipated that operations will resume in the next 24 hours."

All affected employees were discharged from hospital after treatment.  

The police's Kay Makhubela said on Saturday morning that the substance was tested and found to be harmless. 

Police are therefore not investigating any case related to the incident. 

The post office statement concluded: "Customers are requested to bear with us during this time as all deliveries outbound from the Witspos mail centre are expected to be delayed by 24 hours."