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Some things were never meant to be mailed. One of those is mercury.

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A package of mercury that breaks open in the mail a tremendous safety risk

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to postal employees and customers.

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Mercury produces toxic vapors that, if inhaled, can lead to mercury poisoning.

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Hi. I’m Eric Manuel, United States Postal Inspector.

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HAZMAT incidents involving mercury spills have occurred at several postal facilities.

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Hundreds of postal employees were exposed to toxic mercury vapors,

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thousands of pieces of mail were destroyed, and millions of dollars were spent on clean-up costs.

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Antique items containing mercury, such as thermometers, barometers, and blood pressure gauges should never be mailed.

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You could be liable for civil penalties and subject to criminal prosecution.

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As a general rule of thumb, if you can see the mercury in an item, you can’t mail it.

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The Postal Service handles billions of pieces of mail every year.

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Most are perfectly safe and pose no threat to postal employees. Let’s keep it that way.

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For more information, visit USPIS.gov.