South Milwaukee mercury spill; cleanup remains underway
South Milwaukee mercury spill; cleanup underway
A storage facility is still dealing with the cleanup after a Memorial Day mercury spill.
SOUTH MILWAUKEE, Wis. - A storage facility is still dealing with the cleanup after a Memorial Day mercury spill.
What we know:
Crews were called to a storage unit facility just after 4 p.m. near 11th and Columbia on Monday, May 26.
Chris Hitler said the top priority is keeping people safe after the spill outside a unit at his storage facility.
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"We don't want anyone to get hurt," Hitler said. "I've been doing this for 18 years and this is definitely the first."
He said he hired a third-party environmental remediation company to ensure clean-up and disposal meets environmental regulations.
While no injuries were reported and no evacuations were necessary, hazmat crews worked to clean up the spill at the site, blocking Columbia Avenue for several hours on Monday.
Dig deeper:
"No customers' units were affected," Hitler said. "This is completely outside on the asphalt. The remediation should be fairly quick once it starts, and hopefully it will happen in the next day or two ."
South Milwaukee mercury spill; hazmat crews clean up scene
Hazmat crews responded to a South Milwaukee storage facility on Monday, May 26.
The owner of the facility said he doesn't know who or what caused the spill.
"We initially got a call for some sort of liquid on the ground, that the person thought looked like mercury," Battalion Chief John Frost said. "We got on scene, confirmed it did look like mercury and called the Milwaukee hazmat."
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What they're saying:
The South Milwaukee Fire Department provided the following:
"The scene was stabilized, and the known mercury was safely contained and removed in accordance to department’s policies and procedures. After ensuring no immediate threat to life safety remained, the property was released back to the owner."
Frost confirmed on Monday the substance was found outside a storage unit.
"People are being very patient, a couple express, you know, desires to get in and unfortunately, police orders, I can't let them in until this is cleaned up, and I think they understand that," Hitler said.
The Source: The South Milwaukee Fire Department provided information and FOX6 News was on the scene.