Mercury cleanup stopped

Mercury cleanup has ceased at an East Carson City apartment complex, and it's not clear whether the 22 people who were displaced will be allowed to return home.

Carson City Fire Chief Stacey Giomi said that as of Monday the fire department was no longer involved in the cleanup at Bella Lago Village, 1600 Airport Road.

He said it's now up to owner Ben Farahi to clean the units or keep them empty.

"We gave him a corrective action and that corrective action was that no one can occupy the units in that building until the mercury vapor levels in apartment 114 are below the federal safe levels for residential structures of 1,000 nanograms per cubic meter," said Giomi.

Giomi said a vapor reading from Monday indicated the unoccupied apartment in which 20 pounds of mercury was found last week was still registering between 3,000 and 5,000 nanograms. The other 19 apartments in the building were below 1,000 nanograms.

It was not known if the cleanup was finished or if the cost was too great.

The cleanup is expected to cost tens of thousands of dollars, all of which is the responsibility of Farahi. He declined comment when reached at his Reno office on Thursday.

The highly toxic material was discovered by a maintenance crew when they removed the carpet and padding Aug. 25 from the hallway of the vacant apartment.

Testing for mercury vapor indicated unsafe levels in the 19 surrounding apartments, and city officials to order the evacuation of the 22 tenants. Since then the tenants have been staying at an area hotel, allegedly paid for by Farahi.

Health and Human Services Director Marena Works said her office is prepared to assist the displaced families in finding other accommodations.

If they need to get into their apartments to recover their belongings, they must make an appointment by contacting Health and Human Services at 887-2190 and ask for Frances.

The investigation into why someone would have such a large amount of mercury continues.

It is not illegal to possess mercury, said Sheriff Ken Furlong.