Facebook evacuates buildings after possible sarin exposure

San Francisco

FACEBOOK Inc evacuated four buildings and two people were being evaluated for possible exposure to the nerve agent sarin on Monday after a package at the social media company's Silicon Valley mail facility tested positive for the toxic compound.

The people who came in contact with the suspicious package at about 11 am PT (1800 GMT) did not show any symptoms of exposure to sarin, said Jon Johnston, fire marshal for the city of Menlo Park, California, where Facebook is based.

"The (Facebook) facility tests all of the packages that come in and they had a positive test, so they just initiated their standard protocol. Now we're just waiting to verify whether that's true or not," he said.

Fire personnel were preparing to enter the mail facility at around 6 pm to assess the packages, Mr Johnston said.

Facebook spokesman Anthony Harrison said the company evacuated four buildings following the positive test and was cooperating with police in the investigation. "Authorities have not yet identified the substance found. As of now, three of the evacuated buildings have been cleared for repopulation," Mr Harrison said.

Sarin, a potent toxic compound that disrupts the nervous system, has been used as a chemical weapon. Exposure can be fatal. REUTERS