We've come to expect certain things from the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), like almost-daily mail delivery and consistent access to post office services—at a minimum. As a federal agency, the USPS is required to reliably serve all areas across the country. That is, within reason. Because while regular service is essential, the Postal Service is also responsible for keeping both its employees and customers safe, and in order to uphold that responsibility, the agency must sometimes curtail operations. Read on to find out where the USPS is now suspending services because of "safety concerns."
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The Postal Service regularly adjusts operations in certain areas.
ShutterstockThe USPS is not always able to provide service to Americans the way we expect it to. On countless occasions, the agency has had to suspend delivery or temporarily close post offices for various reasons.
Back in the spring, certain residents in Santa Monica, California, and Greenfield, Indiana, had their mail delivery stopped because of attacks on postal carriers. Then just last month, two different natural disasters—Tropical Storm Fiona and Hurricane Ian—prompted the temporary closure of several post offices in Florida, South Carolina, Georgia, and Puerto Rico.
Now, the Postal Service is halting operations in other areas because of a different safety issue.
The USPS just suspended services in two places.
iStockTwo recent updates to the USPS' Service Alerts page indicate that some customers across the U.S. are dealing with newly curtailed operations. On Oct. 14, the agency announced that its post office in Pemberton, Ohio, is now "temporarily closed." According to the Postal Service's update, PO Box customers from this location can now pick up their mail at the Sidney Post Office. Other nearby retail options for residents in this area include post offices in Quincy, Port Jefferson, Maplewood, DeGraff, and Rosewood.
That same day, a news release from the Postal Service's New York branch revealed that a post office in Stanley, New York, would be temporarily closing "effective immediately." According to this announcement, PO Box customers in Stanley can now pick up their mail at the post office in Hall. "Mail delivery in Stanley will continue as normal. However, customers will be directed to the Hall Post Office to pick up vacation mail, signature-required items, or oversized articles," the USPS said.
The two post offices were closed because of "safety concerns."
ShutterstockThe Postal Service said that both the Pemberton Post Office and the Stanley Post Office are "temporarily closed due to safety concerns." In the Oct. 14 news release, the USPS revealed that the specific issue in Stanley was connected to the building's roof. According to the agency, the post office has been closed down because of "unforeseen roof repairs."
On the other hand, the USPS did not offer a further explanation beyond "safety concerns" in its update for the Pemberton closure. But on Oct. 13, NBC-affiliate WDTN in Shelby County, Ohio, did report that a fire had broken out at the city's post office. "Smoke was seen coming from the USPS building," according to the news outlet.
These post offices will remain closed until further notice.
iStockBoth the post office in Pemberton and the post office in Stanley will remain closed "until further notice," according to the USPS. "A timeframe for completion of repairs in Stanley has yet to be determined," the Postal Service said in its news release. And a spokesperson for the agency told Dayton radio station WHIO that the fire damage in Pemberton is forcing mail services to move to Sidney, but gave no timeline for when operations would restart in Pemberton.
If the past is any indication, there's no guarantee that the temporary closures will be short. As of Oct. 14, another community in Ohio has been without the use of their post office for four months now, ABC-affiliate WCPO in Cincinnati reported. According to the news outlet, a post office in Lynchburg was closed in June after sustaining "significant interior damage" as a result of an electrical fire. But "caution tape still hangs on the building and a note posted on the front door gives no timeline as to when it will reopen," per WCPO.
