A meeting scheduled this week for the Montpelier school district in Vermont will finally provide members of the public the opportunity to learn about the district’s ongoing asbestos exposure problems.

Schools within the district have been battling asbestos issues for several weeks, and instead of opening on August 28 as planned, all schools will open several days later on September 2. Repeated asbestos-related issues at Main Street Middle School are at the root of the problems, and the delay of the new school year will allow the complete removal of the contamination.

The problems began around three weeks ago, when Main Street Middle School was closed by the state Department of Health (DOH) due to possible asbestos contamination. The closure was enforced on July 28 after a DOH safety inspector found workers at the school using improper practices to remove asbestos-containing floor tiles.

Employees of the contracting company were chipping asbestos tiles off the floor in preparation for laying new tiles. This method of removal is exactly what causes toxic asbestos fibers to be released into the air. If these fibers are inhaled, the risks of contracting mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases increase dramatically. In addition, the workers on site were not wearing face masks or using air-sampling pumps to monitor air quality.

To make matters worse, classroom doors were left open, and there were no barriers around the work area to prevent other workers from being exposed. The project was subsequently shut down, and all contractors, employees, and other workers using the building were asked to vacate.

Following this incident, two other district schools were temporarily closed because they were using the same contractor to have work completed. In addition to asking all workers to leave the premises, several tests were conducted to check for possible asbestos contamination at the schools.

According to Superintendent Steve Metcalf, test results carried out on the school’s air ducts will soon be available, and district officials are hoping these tests will show there has been no contamination of the ventilation ducts. The meeting will give officials the opportunity to instill confidence back into the parents and ensure the chance of contracting asbestos cancer is no longer a threat.

With cleanup projects already in progress at two of the three schools, district officials are confident that the problems will be taken care of in time for schools to open on the new date of September 2.

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 21st, 2008 at 3:08 pm and is filed under Asbestos Exposure. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS feed. Responses are currently closed, but you trackback from your own site.