Bel air elementary school closed for asbestos contamination

BALTIMORE, Maryland â€" School officials closed a Bel Air elementary school last week after elevated levels of airborne asbestos were found in one of the school’s two buildings. The school was closed for decontamination overnight and reopened Thursday. Workers at Homestead-Wakefield Elementary School removed ceiling tiles Monday night in order to install an air conditioning system, according to Dan Morrison, a spokesman for the Harford County public schools. The pipes above the ceiling tiles were lined with asbestos. This is not uncommon in buildings of the school’s age. Morrison said that when the tiles were removed, asbestos dust was disturbed. The school department immediately brought in an industrial hygienist to check the air quality. The air quality tests showed levels of asbestos above the legal limit prescribed by the Department of Environmental Protection. Federal guidelines allow up to 70 asbestos “structures” per square millimeter. Two of three of the air quality tests conducted in the area of the asbestos leak showed levels of 82 and 104 structures per millimeter. Patrick Breysse, a professor at the Bloomsburg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University says that short-term exposure to asbestos is not something to be worried about, though it is something to avoid and no one should be happy about it. He also said that it’s unusual to close a school because of asbestos. In general, every school knows where the asbestos is, and there is an asbestos management plan in place to avoid disturbing it during renovations. Tuesday night, workers decontaminated the school, and additional air quality tests were done on Wednesday to be sure that all fibers were cleared from the air. Morrison said that workers were also wiping down all surfaces to be sure that there was no leftover contamination to become airborne again when students are in the school. Exposure to asbestos has been linked to a number of different types of cancer, including mesothelioma, a rare cancer that destroys the lining of the lungs, heart or abdominal cavity. The Environmental Protection agency does not require schools to remove asbestos, preferring that it be ‘managed in place’ by either encapsulating or enclosing it. The agency also requires that all schools carry out a full asbestos inspection every three years. In most cases, removing the asbestos can present more of a health hazard than leaving it alone. It’s also an expensive process that requires a licensed and specially trained work crew to manage. The pipes at Wakefield were lined with heavy plastic to enclose the asbestos and additional air quality tests will be done before students are allowed back in the building. The school was constructed in 1958, and most school buildings built in that era contain asbestos. (Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News)