Facebook site in US evacuates after sarin scare

A Facebook mail processing warehouse has been evacuated as Silicon Valley officials determine what caused mail to test positive for the nerve agent sarin.

File photo at the company's headquarters in Menlo Park.

File photo at the company's headquarters in Menlo Park. Source: AP

Facebook has evacuated four buildings and two people are being evaluated for possible exposure to the nerve agent sarin after a package at the company's Silicon Valley mail facility tested positive for the toxic compound.

The people who came in contact with the suspicious package about 11am on Monday did not show any symptoms of exposure, fire marshal for the city of Menlo Park Jon Johnson said.

"The facility tests all of the packages that come in and they had a positive test, so they just initiated their standard protocol," he said.

"Now we're just waiting to verify whether that's true or not."

Facebook spokesman Anthony Harrison said the company evacuated four buildings following the positive test and was co-operating with police.

"Authorities have not yet identified the substance found," Harrison said.

"As of now, three of the evacuated buildings have been cleared for repopulation."

Agents from the San Francisco office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation were responding to the scene, a spokesman for the agency said.

Sarin, a potent toxic compound that disrupts the nervous system, has been used as a chemical weapon.

Exposure can be fatal.


Share
2 min read

Published

Updated

Source: AAP


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world
Facebook site in US evacuates after sarin scare | SBS News