Joe Biden's brother hospitalized after powder scare

Francis Biden, 57, said this morning that the package - a manila envelope - was retrieved from his roadside mailbox at about noon by his girlfriend, Mindy. It was addressed to him.

"She retrieved it, but I was the one who opened it," Biden said, declining to give Mindy's last name. "It was mailed from India."

Biden said the moment he opened it, a white powder spilled from the envelope and onto his skin. He said he immediately called authorities, who evacuated neighbors from his block and closed off the street for more than eight hours. The neighbors were eventually let back into their homes at about 9 p.m.

Biden and his girlfriend were taken to Bethesda Memorial Hospital in Boynton Beach. Mindy was released Saturday, but Biden stayed overnight.

"I was the only one who came in contact with the powder, so they kept me," he said.

He was released Sunday morning and said medical personnel had found no ill effects from the powder.