The drive-up collection boxes outside the U.S. Postal Service’s Rancho Bernardo Annex have been “compromised,” officials said, and those dropping off letters are advised to go elsewhere for now.
The annex at 16960 Bernardo Center Drive — which long-time residents know as Rancho Bernardo’s original post office — has six mail collection boxes outside. On Monday, three had a sheet of paper taped to block their chutes stating “Boxes are compromised with sticky residue. Do not use. Thanks.” Paper Box Sleeve
It is not clear if the other three collection boxes are functional.
U.S. Postal Inspector Patricia Mendoza said on Tuesday that an investigation is underway on the sticky substance that had been applied to the inside of the mail collection boxes.
When mail cannot fully drop inside the box it could potentially be pulled back out by those wanting to steal mail, authorities have said.
Mendoza is also advising people to use alternatives to outside collection boxes to drop off mail.
“Residents can also mail their items by handing their mail to a postal employee or by walking inside the post office and placing the mail in the mail slot located in the lobby,” she said.
Notifying postal employees of a situation immediately is important, she said.
“If anybody notices suspicious activity surrounding a collection box or damage on a mail receptacle, please contact the local Post Office to report it, and notify Postal Inspectors,” she said.
It wasn’t that easy for Rancho Bernardo resident Gail Kamph, who discovered the sticky substance on the afternoon of Aug. 7 when she was mailing some letters. After dropping her letters in the box she did not hear the light thump she always hears as they land inside.
“I could tell they didn’t go down,” Kamph said. “So I reached in and felt something sticky all the way across.”
She checked the chutes of all the other boxes and felt the same sticky substance, she said. It was stopping the mail from dropping all the way into the box.
Kamph said it was as if someone had poured glue down the chutes.
With the annex open, Kamph said she pulled into the parking lot and went inside to tell the postal employee at the lobby window that her letters did not go all the way down and that she felt something sticky in each of the collection boxes.
“It was very disturbing,” Kamph said. “They were not aware and said they would send someone out right away. So I waited in my car to make sure they picked up my letters.”
What Kamph said she expected to be a short wait turned into 90 minutes. After awhile, she went back inside to tell them no one had come out and was told they were short-staffed. So she tried calling the post office to reach someone “higher up,” she said, but was unsuccessful.
“People kept dropping off mail,” said Kamph, who told some some of the people that something was wrong with the boxes and advised them to mail their letters elsewhere.
On weekdays the posted collection times are 10:30 a.m., 3:15 p.m. and 5 p.m. Kamph said two employees came out around 3:30 p.m. — one to collect the mail and another carrying a bottle of glue remover and a rag. Seeing they only took the mail that landed in the bins inside the collection boxes, she told them they needed to reach way up to also get the letters she suspected were stuck up there.
“Tons of mail came down,” she said. “I do not know how long it was stuck. ... It was ridiculous,” Kamph said.
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service works closely with the U.S. Postal Service to ensure the safety and security of the mail to prevent mail theft,” Mendoza said. “If anyone witnesses a mail thief, please ... call police immediately, then report it to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service at 877-876-2455.”
To file an online report about problems, visit uspis.gov.
The Rancho Bernardo Post Office, at 16767 Bernardo Center Drive, Suite L1, has lobby hours from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays.
The RB Annex lobby is open from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on weekdays and 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturdays.
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