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The incident happened on Saturday, Jan. 27 around 7:30 p.m., when a mercury thermometer broke inside a Somers residence on Lakeview Terrace, according to the Somers Volunteer Fire Department.
After the resident reported the incident to the department, the Westchester County Department of Emergency Service's Hazardous Materials Team was also called to the home to help deal with the spilled mercury.
Arriving crews soon evacuated the home's occupants and learned that one of the residents had tried to clean up the substance, possibly coming into contact with it in the process.
Hazmat team members then entered the residence and confirmed the presence of mercury in both the bathroom and the kitchen, fire officials said.
After crews stabilized the scene and made sure there was no further danger posed by the substance, a total of six people and three pets were checked for mercury exposure. Luckily though, none was found.
Four residents and the three pets were then displaced from the home until a specially-trained contractor arrived to safely dispose of the spilled mercury. In total, the response took around four and a half hours, firefighters said.
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