Asbestos Removed From School without Precautions
Caningeraba State School in Australia removed asbestos without giving any warning to parents or students and without taking mandated safety precautions. Simon Smith, whose daughter attends the city school, noticed that Qbuild workers were removing bag racks from the school and suspected they contained asbestos even though there were no warnings posted or notification given to parents. Mr. Smith was concerned since he is a long time asbestos abatement professional and knows the hazard of asbestos exposure to public health.
Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral fiber that was commonly used in a variety of building materials. Asbestos fibers are too small to be visible to the naked eye. When asbestos containing products are disturbed, damaged, or improperly removed, carcinogenic fibers can become airborne. When inhaled, the fibers lodge in the lungs and cause several serious diseases:
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Mesothelioma – a cancer of the lining of the lungs or abdomen
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Asbestosis – an irreversible scarring of the lungs that causes difficulty in breathing, and
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Lung cancer
Symptoms of these diseases do not show up until decades after initial exposure and prognosis is often poor.
Students and staff are at increased risk of exposure to asbestos when school buildings built before the mid-1980’s are being renovated or repaired.
Mr. Smith called the school office to find out if the racks being removed contained asbestos but was told they did not. Not satisfied with the answer, Mr. Smith had a worker investigate further, and procured a sample to test. The material was sent to an accredited laboratory and results were positive for asbestos.
Public Works Minister Robert Schwarten is following up the incident by asking anyone with details about the issue to contact him. He is particularly aware of the dangers of asbestos as he has lost a family member to asbestosis. It seems that Qbuild did inform the school that the racks may contain asbestos and did in fact indicate at the disposal site that the material being dumped in bags contained the toxic substance.
An environmental hygienist was called in and later confirmed that the school site did not show any signs of contamination. The school did not close and attendance continues.
