San Juan Basin Health Department will be open Monday after a mercury spill forced the health department to close for several days.

A blood pressure monitoring machine broke Tuesday, spilling a small amount of mercury on the second floor of the Columbine Building, which houses the health department, according to Durango Fire & Rescue Authority.

The Environmental Protection Agency flew in a team from Denver to measure mercury contamination and make recommendations for mitigation.

The health department reopened at 10 a.m. Friday after being cleared by the EPA for re-entry, said the health department’s communications director Jane Looney in a news release Friday.

A final test by the EPA Response Team found that levels in the area near the spill were below normal background levels for mercury, Looney said.

herald@durangoherald.com