Mercury spill closes portions of Cincinnati VA Medical Center

An environmental response team responded to the Cincinnati VA Medical Center last week after mercury leaked out of an old pipe that was moved during construction. 

During the evening of Nov. 1, Engineering Service personnel were removing a section of non-functioning drain piping out of an active construction area on the first floor, VA officials said. During the removal of the pipe, liquid spilled out onto the floor in the construction area.

It was determined to be mercury, officials said.

The drain pipe, which was considered to be a “dead pipe” was not connected to any water or drainage systems within the Medical Center.

The VA medical center's department of Industrial Hygiene and Safety was contacted the next morning and determined that an outside commercial environmental response team needed to come on site and evaluate the situation further.  
 
The outside environmental firm advised IH&S to close off specific areas in the hospital for testing and as a precaution, officials said. Hallways around the spill site were closed off as an additional precaution. 
 
The Ohio EPA and the Cincinnati Health Department are also working with the VA for advisement and testing as well as a cleanup strategy. Officials said some sections of the hospital have been deemed safe and are scheduled to reopen. 

Officials said there is minimal risk to veterans, employees and visitors. 

The mercury spill is the latest minor building failures at the Corryville hospital, which serves more than 44,000 veterans in Greater Cincinnati. Last month, during a required weeklong test of its building-wide electrical system, the hospital experienced a power failure that shut down hallway lights for about six hours one night. The next night, another failure cut power for several more hours.

Hospital officials said the clinical staff had been prepared for the testing and put in temporary lighting, even glow sticks, to compensate. Hospital Director Vivian Hutson said last month that no patient care was affected by the testing or the temporary failures.

Reporter Anne Saker contributed.