Asbestos Insulation Sickens Employees

January 3, 2007 - Three town employees in West Tisbury, near Martha’s Vineyard, report that they’ve been sickened with respiratory ailments for the last several months at the local Town Hall Annex, possibly due to airborne fibers from old asbestos insulation.

The Martha’s Vineyard Times reports that Health agent John Powers and building inspector Ernie Mendenhall have reported to town officials that they’ve had persistent upper respiratory problems for the last several months, especially while working in the annex with the windows closed.  The men reported that others who come into the building for occasional meetings have identified similar symptoms.  Mr. Powers told the newspaper that the employees also noticed a spike in their physical ailments after cleaning people vacuumed the building.

Experts suggested that the removal of asbestos insulation in the crawl space under the building may alleviate the problem.  A local builder suggested new materials that could be used in the crawl space that are less hazardous than asbestos.  The insulation currently under the building was installed initially to protect electrical and computer wires.