NEWPORT, Ind. -- Tom Burch has been nervous for almost 40 years, knowing that the deadliest substance in the world was just four miles west of his home.

In fact, Burch, 70, helped make the VX nerve agent that the U.S. Army will begin destroying in about two weeks at the Newport Chemical Depot.

Officials said Thursday that VX neutralization will begin May 5 to 15, but they would not release the exact date for security reasons.

"I'll be tickled to death when it's gone; I'll sure sleep better," said Burch, who worked in a laboratory testing VX in the 1960s.

"But it looks like they're taking every step they can (to be safe), and that pleases me to no end."

He was one of dozens of residents from the surrounding area who attended a public information session here Thursday.

Officials from the Army and Parsons, the contractor hired to destroy the agent, were on hand to answer questions.

About 1,600 tons of VX -- enough to kill more than 1 billion people -- have been stored at the depot since 1969. It is the only place the agent was made.

VX -- developed as a weapon to deter the Soviet Union but never used -- is so deadly that a single pin drop can kill a person in minutes. But officials say there are so many precautions in place that an accident during destruction is almost impossible.

The agent will be destroyed in airtight buildings by mixing it with hot sodium hydroxide and water. The byproduct, a caustic chemical called hydrolysate, will stay in Newport until the Army decides where it will be disposed.

The Army wants to ship the chemical to a DuPont Co. plant in New Jersey for final treatment and release it into the Delaware River. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a study that said neutralizing and transporting the byproduct was safe, but the study also raised concerns about whether it could be treated adequately for release into the river.

Jeffrey L. Brubaker, the Army's project manager in Newport, said DuPont has submitted proof to the CDC that it can make the byproduct safe for release.

"I remain very confident that we will be able to resolve the issues from the report," he said.

Richard Rife, project manger for Parsons, said last-minute preoperative checks have been performed.

"We are confident we will start in the 10-day window; frankly, it's looking good. I'm really rarin' to go," he said.

"I think it's significant that this country prides itself in complying with treaties it signs. We have an obligation to get rid of this stuff, and we will soon get rid of it here, which I suppose makes a lot of local citizens happy," Rife said.

Officials said they have beefed up security at the depot but would not give specifics.

Brubaker said a final "walkdown," looking at the entire system, will be done today with senior managers from the Army and Parsons.

"It's an exciting time for the work force. They will be relieved when they process the first ton container," Brubaker said.

"And it's an exciting time for the public and the community. They have waited a long time. . . . I have sensed the anticipation."

He said residents should not even notice when the agent destruction begins. Startup will be slow for the first six months; initially, a container or two will be destroyed each day.

Many Newport-area residents say they're not worried at all but will be glad when this chapter in the town's history is over.

Juanita Julick, 80, listened intently as a depot worker explained how a rubber suit and air tank would protect workers from VX exposure, exclaiming, "Isn't that something?"

"We just take it in stride," she said.

Added Harold Ratliff, 65, Cayuga: "I'm too old to worry about it."

Call Tammy Webber at (317) 444-6212