Johnson Junior High mercury contamination checks continue; reopening date uncertain

By Ricardo Torres-Cortez

Saturday, Sept. 10, 2016 | 2:47 p.m.

Screening and cleaning of possible mercury contamination will continue at a west valley middle school through the weekend, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, and it’s unknown whether classes at the school will resume Monday.

Southern Nevada Health District official will answer questions from parents at Johnson Junior High School from 8 a.m. to noon Sunday, the EPA said, and the Clark County School District will keep affected families updated. The toxic liquid metal was detected in the school’s gymnasium Wednesday, and classes were canceled Thursday and Friday.

Over the weekend, the EPA is visiting the homes of students whose belongings were discovered to have high levels of mercury. Exposure to the silver-colored metal can harm people’s brains, hearts, lungs and immune systems, according to the EPA.

More than 700 bags containing personal belongings that had been left at the school for screening had been deemed clear of mercury toxicity as of Saturday afternoon, officials said. About 225 families had been contacted and 111 bags had been picked up as of Saturday afternoon.

Once families are contacted, they can pick up the remaining bags between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Additionally, about 50 families have brought bags of clothes to be screened, officials said. About 10 of those bags have been kept for evaluation. The seven buses that serve the middle school have also been inspected and deemed safe.

District Superintendent Pat Skorkowsky said Friday that most of the school had been cleared of potential contamination.

The discovery was made by a teacher who saw students playing with the mercury during an assembly, officials said. Five to 10 drops of the substance were found, officials said.

Las Vegas Fire & Rescue was called to the school, in the 7700 block of Ducharme Avenue, and said it was its largest-ever contamination-related response.

Staff members and students were quarantined in classrooms while they waited to be screened — some as late as 5 a.m. Thursday. One by one, the approximately 1,200 students were swiped with a wand that checked for mercury residue.

Contaminated students were cleaned off, a process that involved wipes for their hands, dipping their feet into a tub of chemical soap, washing their hair and/or changing into school-provided physical education uniforms. Everyone was eventually cleared of mercury residue.

Officials continue to investigate how the mercury got there.

"We believe it was brought in, but we can't confirm that at this time," Skorkowsky said.

Las Vegas Sun reporter Kailyn Brown and the Associated Press contributed to this report.