Clovis East, Reyburn Intermediate will reopen Tuesday after mercury cleanup

Clovis East High and Reyburn Intermediate schools will reopen on Tuesday after rooms on the campuses were tested and confirmed clear of mercury, school district officials said.

The two schools were closed Friday after a student brought loose mercury to campuses on Thursday, the district said in a news release.

Mercury is a shiny, silvery liquid metal that can cause serious health problems, according to the New York State Department of Health.

Mercury may be found in thermometers, thermostats, blood pressure units, barometers and gas pressure regulators.

Spilled mercury is hard to clean up, especially if it rolls into cracks and crevices, or if it is on fabric, upholstery or other porous material.

Crews removed carpeting and some items from a handful of classrooms and cleaned all hard surfaces. Two classrooms will require new carpet to be installed, so those classes will meet at another location this week. Crews patched the carpet in another classroom, which will get new carpeting.

Assessments were completed before and after the work to confirm the clean-up job was effective at removing all the metal from the classrooms and sidewalks.

Fresno County Department of Public Health, the Environmental Protection Agency and and local law enforcement all responded to the incident, the district said.

As of Thursday night, the district said no students had reported suffering from symptoms of mercury exposure.

This story was originally published January 15, 2018 at 2:13 PM with the headline "Clovis East, Reyburn Intermediate will reopen Tuesday after mercury cleanup."