TOWN AND COUNTRY, Mo. – There is new information about the emergency shutdown of the Town and Country Post Office due to a package leaking mercury.
FOX 2 has learned environmental crews are retracing the package’s route over concerns about possible exposure along the way.
The day after it was confirmed that a mercury leak shut down the busy post office, caution tape was placed around a loading dock and a large USPS truck at the Town and Country branch.
Workers on-site were wearing disposable boots.
Big blue mailboxes remained sealed, with postal police standing guard at the entrance, turning customers away for the third straight day.
Workers for the same mercury decontamination company on-site in Town & Country were at the USPS distribution center in Hazelwood, walking into the building holding protective breathing gear.
Mercury evaporates into a toxic gas at room temperature.
The USPS released a statement Monday night acknowledging the closure of the Town and Country location because of “suspected environmental concerns” but continued to provide no further details to its customers.
The USPS did not respond to questions from FOX 2.
The post office is in Congresswoman Ann Wagner’s district. She was finally able to confirm with USPS officials Tuesday that a mercury leak was the issue.
She was on another call with USPS officials Wednesday and had new information about both the Town and Country branch as well as the Hazelwood distribution center.
“They may be looking at other locations, especially at that big site in Hazelwood, to see if there was any spillage there but they do not believe that to be the case,” Wagner said. “The initial indication points to the situation being completely localized at that Town and Country Post Office. There’s some misinformation that it may be in other locations–it is not.”
“How are we going to get our mail if it’s shut down? I’ve never heard of a post office being shut down. Someone has to let us know,” customer Shirley Gorman said Wednesday.
She had received just one piece of junk mail over the past three days.
At her behest, Wagner said, the USPS posted a “service alert” on its website late Wednesday afternoon. It reads:
“Town and Country Post Office, 1100 Town and Country Commons Dr., 63017 — Operations are temporarily suspended. Retail operations and Post Office Box section have been relocated to Chesterfield Post Office, 16105 Swingley Ridge Rd., 63017-9998. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday, 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Delivery operations have been relocated to Ballwin Post Office, 15455 Manchester Rd., 63011-9998.”
Lawmakers in Washington are now pushing for an expedited re-opening of the Town and Country branch.
“You can’t just close down post offices for seven days, 10 days or longer, and expect people to shrug their shoulders. Folks need their mail,” U.S. Senator Josh Hawley said. “I mean, get it open right now.”
“Don’t tell me it’s going to take 10 days to clean up and leave everybody hanging,” Wagner said. “I was not getting the level of answers, responses that I thought that my constituents and the public deserved.”
It shouldn’t take congressional intervention for the USPS to share important information with its customers, according to Wagner. She pointed out that it was illegal to send anything containing mercury through the mail.
Postal inspectors are reportedly tracking down who mailed the package in question in this case.
There’s no word of injury or illness from mercury exposure.
