Postmaster General Clevelyn Crichlow yesterday allowed St. George's Post Office to re-open after Police gave the all clear to a mystery white powder found on the site on Monday.

The office was closed and staff sent home on Christmas Eve following the anthrax scare, which began after a substance was found on mail which had been left in the box overnight by customers.

Mr. Crichlow said the Post Office re-opened yesterday morning, meaning it was only closed to the public for a few hours during its usual schedule.

He said: "We are carrying on business as usual today.

"The substance was not anthrax and was not toxic, so my people were happy to go back in today."

Mr. Crichlow also reported a quieter than usual Christmas period for the Post Office with a noticeable drop in the number of cards and letters coming to the Island.

The Postmaster General said it could be that a large amount of mail is stuck in the US somewhere, caught up in the additional checks introduced after anthrax was found at mail distribution sites around the States.

He added: "Just being around the mail facility, I could see that the amount of mail was down on usual years.

"It just did not seem like Christmas.

"It was slightly above normal, but not by that much.

"The incoming mail was just not the same.

"I imagine it is a reflection of what happened on September 11.

"People are either not sending mail like they used to, maybe choosing some other means, or perhaps it's being held somewhere in one of the backlogs around the US.

"My gut feeling is that the mail has not been sent to us yet.

"I suspect it's going to hot up in the early part of January.

"People in Bermuda may get their Christmas mail late."