The scene was declared safe by 1:45 p.m. The envelope the powder was sent in had a return address of Trenton, and law enforcement will be investigating further.
HOPEWELL TOWNSHIP — Crushed Tylenol capsules mailed from Trenton to the Mercer County Corrections Center caused a brief white powder scare inside the jail yesterday afternoon, officials said.
Two corrections officers who opened the mail and discovered the powder were quarantined, but did not experience any symptoms and did not need to be decontaminated, Trenton Fire Department Battalion Chief Frank Fanning said.
Hopewell firefighters and Trenton’s Hazmat team were sent to the county’s jail facility off Route 29, which was not locked down during the roughly hourlong incident, said Julie Willmot, a county spokeswoman. The mailroom near the visitors lobby, where the mail containing the powder was opened, was secured but the rest of the facility operated normally, she said.
The incident began around 12:30 p.m. when an employee opened the mail and saw the possible white powder, she said.
Treating the situation as a hazardous materials incident, the corrections officers covered the envelope the powder came in and vacated the mailroom. Two Trenton firefighters wearing respirators and turnout gear were sent inside to investigate, Fanning said.
The scene was declared safe by 1:45 p.m. The envelope the powder was sent in had a return address of Trenton, and law enforcement will be investigating further, Fanning said.
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