The Defense Logistics Agency until 2010 stored 12,500 barrels of mercury in the warehouse before it was moved to Nevada Watch video
HILLSBOROUGH - The site of the massive warehouse fire that has been burning through the night sending towering plumes of smoke over New Jersey was until several years ago the location of the nation's largest stockpile of mercury.
The warehouse at Veterans Industrial Park was used by the Defense Logistics Agency Depot as a storage facility for 12,500 barrels of mercury since the early 1940s.
In a 2009 file photo, then-Hillsborough Mayor Frank A. DelCore and U.S. Rep. Leonard Lance look over drums of mercury during an inspection held at the National Defense Stockpile in Hillsborough. (JERRY MCCREA/THE STAR LEDGER) The mercury was moved out of the Hillsborough warehouse in 2010, following a lengthy battle by U.S. Rep. Leonard Lance (R-7th Dist.) and other local politicians.
It is unclear what was currently being stored at the warehouse complex off Route 206 in Hillsborough. The fire started just after 3 p.m. Thursday and raged through the night as hundreds of firefighters from surrounding counties were called into assist.
The federal logistics agency undertook an extensive, multi-year study of proposals for relocating the mercury before finally moving it to an Army depot in Nevada.
The federal government stored about 2,500 metric tons of mercury at the site during World War II and continued adding to it over the years. Mercury was previously used to calibrate aircraft equipment, clocks and thermometers.
Hillsborough residents told to avoid smoke, schools closed
If inhaled or digested, mercury attacks the brain's neurons, causing health issues ranging from nervous twitching to respiratory failure.
"This is a wonderful early Christmas present for the residents of Hillsborough," U.S. Rep. Leonard Lance, (R-7th Dist.) at the time said. "Many thought this day would never come. Yet because of the hard work of many I am pleased to announce that the final shipment has left Hillsborough Township successfully."
Keith Brown may be reached at kbrown@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @KBrownTrenton. Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.