Responding to Mercury Incidents

Mercury is the only elemental metal in its natural physical state to be liquid at standard temperature and pressure.  You can pour it out of a container; watch it separate into little globs; roll them back together with your hands; and pour it back into the container.  What we don’t realize is that mercury vapors are is extremely toxic.  Mercury vapors can be inhaled and absorbed through the skin and mucous membranes.  Acute exposure from inhalation of mercury vapors can cause short term health effects such as difficulty breathing, coughing, chest tightness, and upset stomach.  Chronic exposure to mercury has been known to cause headaches, weakness, tremors, emotional changes like mood swings, decreased cognitive functions and kidney problems.  

On March 21, 2011, Kern County Environmental Health and Bakersfield City Fire Department responded to an elementary school for a jar of mercury brought in by a couple of students.  This course will address the challenges First Responders faced from what seemed like a simple response call to a full scale hazardous materials response to mitigate, isolate, and decon 70+ students and faculty staff members while under the watchful eye of concerned and frightened parents.

The course will help the audience determine and evaluate what steps to take initially when responding to a mercury spill.   Lessons learned on the logistical challenges faced on how to decon children, disseminate public information, and multiple location responses will be discussed.  Cleanup techniques performed and acceptable cleanup action levels for mercury will be defined.  

Attendees will gain the knowledge and the ability to apply the necessary skills needed for proper response and mitigation procedures, the understanding of the effectiveness of utilizing a joint multi agency response team, identifying the risks associated with mercury releases, and the proper ways of handling a cleanup.