Missouri fire department cited for asbestos violations
Hannibal Fire Department has been cited by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) for failing to have adequate asbestos inspections prior to beginning work on two separate building renovation projects this year.
The fire department was not fined for either of the citations, but their contractor Bleigh Construction was fined $7,000 for their asbestos violations. Bleigh Construction had 15 working days to contest the citations or meet with Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) officials to otherwise resolve the issue, but they had not yet indicated a course of action at the time of this writing.
One of the serious violations Bleigh was charged was related to removal of 500 square feet of asbestos-containing floor tile from the fire station’s kitchen area. The floor tiles were not originally part of the renovation project, but they were discovered to be loose, and construction workers removed them at that time. The work area was sealed off when they realized an asbestos inspection hadn’t taken place, and Klingner and Associates was hired to complete asbestos testing. The floor tile and mastic were found to contain Chrysotile asbestos, and an asbestos contractor was hired to come in. Air samples were found to be within OSHA exposure limits. Firefighters were concerned, though, about their possible exposure to the toxoc substance during this time.
The other violation involved the removal of 16 linear feet of asbestos air cell insulation by firefighters without a sufficient asbestos inspection. The initial asbestos inspection hadn’t identified or sampled the pipe insulation because it had been hidden by walls and equipment on either side. Once the asbestos was identified, the fire department hired asbestos contractors to come in and clean up.
For the full story, go to Hannibal Courier-Post.
