Asbestos? Should I be worried?
Discussion
Sorry if this is a lengthy OP, but I'm a little worried!
My company moved to a new, larger, building at the beginning of the year.
Ever since moving in we've been plagued with leaks from the roof. The landlord sent a guy out on numerous occasions to patch up the leaks which generally resulted in one leak being patched up and two more appearing!
In great danger of losing equipment and paperwork we insisted that the problem was resolved correctly and the landlord called in a building inspector for advice! Their recommendation was to have a secondary roof fitted above the first and the gap filled with insulation. They've decided to do this and we have roofers in to carry out this mammoth task in between rain showers.
Unfortunately, as the old roof was so brittle, we've had a few breakages of the original roofing and bits of broken tile and, more importantly, dust which has been showering us.
This, coupled with a notice on the wall, has us a little concerned!
The notice:-
An hole:-
Dust:-
Bit of the roof which hasn't quite crumbled to dust yet:-
So, thoughts from those who 'know' would be welcome!
Should we evacuate, ignore, wear masks?
Are we doomed to die from asbestosis or paranoia?
My company moved to a new, larger, building at the beginning of the year.
Ever since moving in we've been plagued with leaks from the roof. The landlord sent a guy out on numerous occasions to patch up the leaks which generally resulted in one leak being patched up and two more appearing!
In great danger of losing equipment and paperwork we insisted that the problem was resolved correctly and the landlord called in a building inspector for advice! Their recommendation was to have a secondary roof fitted above the first and the gap filled with insulation. They've decided to do this and we have roofers in to carry out this mammoth task in between rain showers.
Unfortunately, as the old roof was so brittle, we've had a few breakages of the original roofing and bits of broken tile and, more importantly, dust which has been showering us.
This, coupled with a notice on the wall, has us a little concerned!
The notice:-
An hole:-
Dust:-
Bit of the roof which hasn't quite crumbled to dust yet:-
So, thoughts from those who 'know' would be welcome!
Should we evacuate, ignore, wear masks?
Are we doomed to die from asbestosis or paranoia?
Update!
We've been out to get some masks and have refused to move out into the workshop area until sorted.
The landlord has contacted the contractors who have been in to tell us that we should not be worried. They have sprayed the roof with PVA in all areas (on the outside) where they are working in order to prevent the roof panels from shedding dust.
I pointed out to them that our concern was not with the outside surface of the panels but with the inside. When disturbed or broken the inside of the roofing panels distributed dust everywhere.
I was told not to worry, there was no danger as they do this all the time!
The Landlord called and said that we should not worry and the contractors will be cleaning all the debris immediately, 'just in case'!
The contractors came in with their cherry picker and went up to clear the loose parts under the roof.
Bear in mind that, prior to this, they were wearing shorts and tee-shirts!!
They went up to the roof, came straight down and went to their van and came back wearing face masks!
They didn't inspire us with much confidence!
We've been out to get some masks and have refused to move out into the workshop area until sorted.
The landlord has contacted the contractors who have been in to tell us that we should not be worried. They have sprayed the roof with PVA in all areas (on the outside) where they are working in order to prevent the roof panels from shedding dust.
I pointed out to them that our concern was not with the outside surface of the panels but with the inside. When disturbed or broken the inside of the roofing panels distributed dust everywhere.
I was told not to worry, there was no danger as they do this all the time!
The Landlord called and said that we should not worry and the contractors will be cleaning all the debris immediately, 'just in case'!
The contractors came in with their cherry picker and went up to clear the loose parts under the roof.
Bear in mind that, prior to this, they were wearing shorts and tee-shirts!!
They went up to the roof, came straight down and went to their van and came back wearing face masks!
They didn't inspire us with much confidence!
hyphen said:
In terms of case law, there was a famous case of Dr Chapman who worked at Middlesex hospital which had asbestos dust and died from it. Awarded £1.15 Million.
OP just think of those last few days driving a supercar
I'm not seeking compensation, I'm after peace of mind! Could we have a potential health problem or not? OP just think of those last few days driving a supercar
If we haven't, at least we'll all sleep peacefully. If we do have a problem I want to see it rectified and the persons who buried their heads in the sand should be sacked!
I'm sending a strongly worded email to directors and HR first thing in the morning, that'll get things sorted!
(We, the staff, are actually keeping out of the main working area where possible and wearing masks if we do need to go there)
Someone "thinks" a survey has been carried out which stated that there was asbestos present in the roof but there was no hazard as the roof panels were separated from the interior of the building by insulation and plasterboard/hardboard interior ceiling panels. Basically safe unless disturbed.
Until someone started dancing on the roof in safety boots, breaking numerous roof panels and falling through a couple (there were safety nets) causing parts of the broken panels (and dust) to fall into the building! This is when we started to worry!
Until someone started dancing on the roof in safety boots, breaking numerous roof panels and falling through a couple (there were safety nets) causing parts of the broken panels (and dust) to fall into the building! This is when we started to worry!
Well, we've just been forwarded an email by our landlord from an 'asbestos specialist'.
Apparently there is less than .01% asbestos detected in the air! All is safe to work.
A certificate to confirm this is on its way!
Now we are suspicious that we saw nobody cleaning the dust up (as they reportedly did) and nobody came to any of us and said " this is an air quality meter and I'm going to measure here"!
However, it would take a pretty foolish company/individual to lie about this so it's back to work time!
Apparently there is less than .01% asbestos detected in the air! All is safe to work.
A certificate to confirm this is on its way!
Now we are suspicious that we saw nobody cleaning the dust up (as they reportedly did) and nobody came to any of us and said " this is an air quality meter and I'm going to measure here"!
However, it would take a pretty foolish company/individual to lie about this so it's back to work time!
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