Asbestos dangers after the Port-au-Prince earthquake
Posted by
JAC on 1/13/2010, 4:07 pm
One of the biggest issues that rescue crews and the surviving victims will encounter is the presence of asbestos.
Asbestos exists in old structures and due to the collapse of many old structures in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, asbestos is probably in a very high concentration.
Clean up efforts are underway where most of the rescue crew members will be wearing face masks to protect themselves from inhaling asbestos and potentially contracting deadly mesothelioma cancer.
Unfortunately some of the rescuers,survivors and even visitors to the site of the earthquake in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, may not be aware of the dangers of asbestos. Thus causing them to inhale a large quantity of asbestos putting them at risk for mesothelioma or asbestosis which may arise many years after this exposure.
A similar situation occurred after the 9/11 attacks in New York city. Due to all of the Asbestos left behind in the ground zero many of the rescuers became ill with respiratory illnesses, and some have even been diagnosed with mesothelioma cancer or asbestosis.
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