Winnipeg Free Press - ONLINE EDITION
Crews respond to hazardous material call at Canada Post
A Canada Post worker had to be treated by paramedics this morning after he apparently ingested a hazardous substance from a damaged envelope while he was sorting mail, according to a witness. A Haz-Mat responder enters the building. (KEN GIGLIOTTI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS)
WINNIPEG – Two Canada Post employees were hospitalized this morning after an unknown substance was released from a damaged envelope at post office’s downtown processing plant.
The discovery of the substance led to an evacuation of the building and the closure of Smith Street between Graham Avenue and St. Mary Avenue around 7:30 a.m.
A hazardous-materials team entered the building to determine the nature of the substance. According to Neal, the envelope was from a vitamin supplier, apparently sending samples to a customer. When the envelope was run through a mail sorting machine, the tablets were crushed into a powder.
The haz-mat team gave the all-clear around 10:50 a.m. and all employees were let back into the building and Smith Street re-opened.
A witness told the Free Press he was working on the third floor of the Graham Avenue building when he noticed a letter carrier handling a standard letter envelope that looked partially open. Some kind of "green powder" spilled out, he said.
The witness said the carrier, who he knew well since training him in 2006, seemed to be experiencing a burning sensation in his chest.
"He had a really bad reaction…and I saw him kind of going downhill," he said.
A spokesman with the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service said the worker and a supervisor had to undergo a decontamination process and were given clean clothes. They were inspected by paramedics at the scene before being transported to hospital.
The supervisor was released and was expected to return to work later in the day. An update on the status of the worker is pending.
Kathi Neal, spokeswoman for Canada Post, said the Crown corporation followed safety protocol by completely evacuating the facilities while the incident was under investigation.
"We’d rather be safe than sorry" when dealing with a situation like this, she said.
Hundreds of employees milled about the parking lot across the street from the building after it was evacuated, eventually breaking out a Frisbee as the hours wore on. Bottled water and Popsicles were eventually distributed to help employees keep cool.
Neal sais she didn’t expect any major postal service disruptions as a result of the incident.
History
Updated on Friday, August 27, 2010 at 1:11 PM CDT:
Adds information about source of envelope.
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