No hazardous material found after Borough Hall evacuation

An incident involving a suspicious package that sickened two employees at Borough Hall is over after investigators found no hazardous substances at the scene, Public Safety Deputy Director Charles Davall wrote in a Campus Safety Alert to the University community Wednesday afternoon.

A package addressed to the mayor’s office led to the evacuation of Borough Hall and the closing of Stockton Street after two employees in the clerk’s office suffered allergic reactions, local news outlets reported. Investigators have not yet determined what caused the employees to fall ill.

Some employees who suffered less severe reactions were kept in the hall, but officials said no one was taken to the hospital. Roughly 20 other employees were quarantined outside the building and surrounded by yellow caution cape. Police blocked off much of the surrounding area and urged passers by to stay away from the site.

The piece of mail, which came through the U.S. Postal Service, was delivered to the hall this morning and then opened by Deputy Clerk Delores Williams, who began to experience an allergic reaction on her fingers. The clerk notified her supervisor, who also suffered an allergic reaction after coming into contact with the package. Emergency personnel were called to the scene, and the building was evacuated at 11:20 a.m.

Mercer County Sheriff Kevin Larkin told the Associated Press that the package, an envelope mailed inside a larger envelope, had been sent by a 70-year-old man in a Louisiana nursing home who suffers from a brain condition. Larkin said the man believed he could receive help from a Princeton research center.

"He was trying to contact the center asking for vitamins and other information," Larkin said. Officials would not release his name. Larkin said the investigation would continue and did not know if charges would be filed.

Borough Police Lt. David Dudeck told The Princeton Packet that the man originally sent the letter to a Princeton company, but that it was returned to him. The man then wrote a letter addressed to the mayor of Princeton explaining his need for medication and enclosed the original letter. Officials said he did not mention Borough Mayor Mildred Trotman by name.

The envelopes were tested onsite and nothing radiological or chemical was found, but the package was being sent to the state health lab for additional testing.

Authorities from the FBI, the New Jersey Department of Homeland Security and the New Jersey State Police were also called in to investigate. The Trenton Fire Department’s Hazardous Materials Unit, Princeton Fire Department, Princeton First Aid & Rescue Squad, Plainsboro Rescue Squad, Mercer County Sheriff’s Office and Trenton Emergency Medical Services all responded to the incident.

Davall said that the University temporarily suspended campus mail service this afternoon as a precautionary measure, but that normal mail service will resume tomorrow. He said the incident was contained to Borough Hall and is over and that all affected roadways have reopened. All Borough Hall offices, except the police department, remained closed for the rest of the day.