Tempe Public Library closed due to mercury spill Tempe Public Library, 3500 S. Rural Road, is temporarily closed to allow for a cleanup effort after small amounts of mercury were found inside and outside the building today. The library is expected to reopen Friday at 9 a.m. The city has contracted with an EPA-certified cleanup crew to remove the mercury. No library patrons or staff are believed to have been put at risk by the mercury, which is most dangerous only after prolonged exposures. Tempe Police and Fire are conducting a joint investigation into who brought the mercury to the library. After library closing Wednesday night, Fire responded to a call claiming that kids had been on site playing with mercury. The fire crew found trace amounts of the heavy metal outside the library entrance and cleaned it up. Today at about 1 p.m. the library was closed after a patron noticed mercury near a library computer. About 200 patrons and staff were asked to leave the building. Since then, additional amounts of mercury were detected in the library parking lot. The city's cleanup contractor is working with Tempe Fire to complete an assessment to determine how much mercury is on site and what cleanup will entail. Tempe expects the library to reopen Friday at 9 a.m. The city wants to undertake a thorough uninterrupted cleanup in order to ensure the safety of library patrons and staff. The city will provide updates as they become available. Source: Tempe Public Library Technorati Tags: mercury, Tempe Public Library  | 
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