The Ides of March are upon us, and we have a possible bioterror attack on our hands. More on that in just a second. First, we turn to the corner of North Capitol and F streets. Last week, we told you about how St. Patrick’s Day port-a-johns outside the Dubliner signaled the first sign of spring. Well, the drinking tent went up this past weekend, as you can see from this DCist photo we snapped. And there have been sightings of revelers festooned in shamrocks and green top hats, a full four days before St. Patrick’s Day.

Now on to troublesome news …

More Bioterror Fears: A Virginia official tells the Post that two events previously thought unrelated — a suspicious biological substance at a Defense Department mailroom in Fairfax County and positive and negative tests for anthrax at a off-site Pentagon facility in Arlington — “might” be related. And through all of yesterday’s drama, the events showed that there were flaws in the communication of emergency coordinators which is now causing alarm.

Mara Salvatruchas Sting: In a nationwide crackdown, more than 100 “reputed” members of the Mara Salvatruchas, the Central American gang with a strong network of affiliates in the D.C. area, were arrested. The Post reports that while a third of the MS-13 members arrested in the greater sting were from the D.C. area, the U.S. attorney in Virginia notes that with 2,000-some members in Fairfax County, the arrests, though important, are just the tip of the iceberg. The AP, via WJLA, notes that law enforcement officials fear that the MS-13s are spreading into the Shenandoah Valley.

Briefly Noted: Surface Transportation Board says D.C. can’t ban hazardous rail shipments … In speech before National League of Cities, Mayor Williams pushes for D.C. vote in House … Man auctions 9/11 flag on eBay for $371,300 to pay for kidney treatment …