The Site, Kidney Specialist of Savannah Clinic, is a business housed within a single story, brick building located at 500 E 66th Street, Savannah, GA. Geographical coordinates for the Site are North Latitude 32.03029 x West Longitude -81.09736. In response to NRC Report #874319, and at the request of Savannah Fire Departments' Hazardous Materials Division (Hazmat), EPA mobilized to the clinic to provide air monitoring at the incident involving the release of elemental mercury inside the clinic. The release originated from a Sphygmomanometer. Savannah Hazmat, first responder to the Site, recovered and staged the mercury but lacked the specialized equipment needed to provide adequate screening for mercury vapors.
- On June 16th, 2008 at the request of Savannah Fire and Rescue Department (SFRD), OSC Sims and START mobilized to the Site to provide air monitoring following the release of mercury inside the clinic. According to the Incident Report (see document section for full report), the mercury was reportedly released from a wall mounted Sphygmomatmeter. SFRD recovered, double-bagged and staged all cleanup/related materials inside the examination room (source room).
- Initial EPA screenings of the source room were less than 100 nanograms/cubic meter (ng/m3); however, readings taken throughout the rest of the building ranged as high as 32,000 ng/m3. Please see attached pdf of recorded readings for this situation assessment at: www.epaosc.net/sites/4171/files/6-16-08.jpg
- The OSC evacuated all occupants from the building and informed the owner of the screening results. The owner informed the OSC that she would hire a local contractor to dispose of the mercury waste and remediate the building. Prior to demobilizing the Site, per the owner's request, a sweep was performed of the her shoes to determine if the shoes were contaminated with mercury. The results of that sampling revealed readings of less than 500 ng/m3 for mercury vapors.
RP will continue cleanup action until levels are at or below ATSDR attainment goals.
Per health consultation with ATSDR, attainment goals for the clinic are established at 1,000 ng/m3.
|
