All-clear after white powder alert

A white powder that caused Texas office workers to break out in a rash and sent firefighters scrambling to decontaminate dozens of people was not hazardous, the fire department announced.

"There is no hazardous material, just dust," said a spokesman. The alert came when two people at a Hotels. com office in McAllen opened envelopes containing white powder and immediately broke out in hives.

The irritation was probably caused by a combination of fear and the smell of raw sewage following plumbing work in the building, the spokesman added.