Nevada Insurance Workers Flee Office Amid Pigeons, Chemical Spray

The Nevada Division of Insurance is operating out of temporary quarters after nearly half of the staff got sick following a chemical treatment performed to roust pigeons from the Carson City headquarters.

Staff left so quickly that documents and papers were left on desks, said Daniel Burns. communications director for Gov. Jim Gibbons. "It became clear that for the safety of the state staff, they would have to be moved out of that building. That decision was made very quickly," he said.

The office at 788 Fairview Dr. was plagued for weeks by an infiltration of pigeons. Management of the privately owned building hired a contractor to address the problem. The contractor sprayed a "substance" much like grape seed oil that got into the ventilation system. Some 30 of approximately 75 employees complained a range of irritations and reactions, forcing the closure, Burns said.

Documents and records left behind that were left exposed are being copied, as the originals must be disposed of, Burns said. "You can't use the documents because whatever was sprayed was on them, too," he said.

An investigation is ongoing -- including as to whether the ill effects were due to the spray or the pigeons, Burns said. Part of what has yet to be determined is the state of documents and records kept in file compartments. If they came in contact with the spray, they may also need to be disposed of, he said.

Staff has been working out of a combination of the division's Las Vegas office and space borrowed from other agencies since the July 27 closure. The old office will be vacated and the insurance division moved into a new headquarters in September, according to a division statement. The division can still be contacted by consumers, producers and others in the interim, though access may be limited, according to the statement.

The division is operating as best as possible, Burns said. "The number-one issue is the safety of the people who work for the state," he said.

(By Sean P. Carr, Washington Correspondent: [email protected])