¡Salud y Saludos!

A recent incident involving the distribution and subsequent contamination of mercury has caused a stir in Durham. At last check, the Environmental Protection Agency was still on the scene helping with the clean-up process...in what may end up being a job lasting weeks.

So here’s what happened: A gentleman got hold of mercury that police say he stole from his workplace; he later took that mercury to a church service where he gave some to some of the children who attended. Apparently, the man simply thought it was a neat-looking substance that the kids might get a kick out of. One child, in particular, later took it to school and handed some out to several of his classmates—who, in some cases, have since shown signs of mercury poisoning. The church, a school, and several homes were all cordoned off as clean-up crews worked on removing enough of the toxin to safely allow people back inside.

Many of the victims—as well as the man who initially gave the mercury for the kids to play with—were Latino. Durham health workers relied on several bilingual staff--myself included--to help during the crisis. Even in the midst of all this mess, police admit that there was no ill-will or malice involved in the events that transpired. It was simply a lack of awareness on the dangers associated with the shiny metallic liquid. And that brings me to the point of this writing. This was another case where lack of knowledge could have had terrible consequences. This is a lesson not lost on any of those who worked this incident. Many of us at the scene recalled playing with the mercury in broken thermometers, as kids. This is just another example of how what we know about things today has altered how we deal with them. In the case of mercury, I suppose a couple of decades ago, many would have been shocked at seeing the magnitude of the response in Durham. Today, it’s enough to turn it into a federal incident requiring major clean-up.

In some ways, I’m glad to see the number of individuals who’ve acknowledged their surprise at seeing what a big deal mercury is today. These people have admitted they probably engaged in some risky play with the substance in their earlier years. So in this regard, this was not ignorance that was confined to just one cultural group. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. As we’ve seen in previous years, there have been situations that have come up where immigrant Latinos who have not received the same education—and who have different backgrounds and customs—have been involved in accidents that could have been prevented. Not being accustomed to or familiar with the use of safety equipment at construction sites or failing to recognize the dangers of carbon monoxide have been some notable examples.

In this most recent case of mercury poisoning, there was clearly a need for reaching out and educating this community on the dangers of this substance. But this also gave many of us who grew up here and believe ourselves to be well educated...a chance to realize there are still many things we’ve failed to learn along the way. Luckily, manufacturing practices have all but made it impossible for us here to get a hold of mercury by way of thermometers (what was the last time you saw a mercury thermometer at the drug store?). But there are still many things which might pose a danger to us, were it not for the fact that they’ve been made more inaccessible. Let’s hope that a combination of proper education—along with getting things out of the hands of those who may not realize the hidden dangers—will help make us all safer in the long run.

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Last Modified: June 6, 2006