Residents can’t return to burned boulder apartments for weeks

Boulder, Colorado â€" Residents of the Boulder, Colorado apartment complex which burned in a Monday morning fire won’t be able to return to their homes for between twelve and fifteen weeks. The building’s property managers, Matrix Real Estate, say that tenants who don’t wish to return to the building will be able to terminate their leases early. On Tuesday, authorities learned that the results of air samples taken from the burned apartment complex indicated high levels of airborne asbestos are present in the building. During the decades of asbestos use in the twentieth century the substance was often used as a fire proofing and flame retardant material and was added to many different types of construction materials up until the mid 1980s. However, inhalation of asbestos fibers can cause cancer and other serious diseases, causing health and safety issues that prevent former residents of the Boulder complex from retrieving their possessions. The hazards of asbestos made it necessary for firefighters to protect themselves from exposure while fighting the blaze. During a fire, asbestos fibers can easily become airborne as they can be spread around by high-pressure water blasts. Boulder Fire Marshall Dave Lowrey says the results of the tests aren’t surprising, as a property manager at the scene told firefighting crews that he thought asbestos was present in the building. Subsequently a new round of tests was carried out, in all 31 of the apartments in the complex, to determine whether airborne asbestos has contaminated the entire building. Matrix owner Chris Condrey says the results of those tests are due today, and if the follow-up tests are negative residents will be allowed to enter their apartments to retrieve personal possessions this weekend. However, Condrey said that if residents don’t retrieve their possessions this weekend they risk losing access to them for between four and six weeks, as work crews will spent this time removing the asbestos from the complex, and the area will be isolated while this work is carried out. Many tenants are angry about the way the company has managed the situation, and just one tenant has so far committed to returning to the complex after the asbestos abatement and renovation project has been completed. Some tenants have even met to discuss the possibility of filing a lawsuit, due to confusion over whether Matrix will allow people out of their leases and refund deposits, and because some people have complained that the building’s fire alarms are not operational. Condrey, however, said that when the fire broke out, a third floor resident activated a fire alarm and alerted the Boulder Fire Department. (Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News)