ASBESTOS NEWS UPDATE
Long Island school reopens after asbestos-removal project

November 6, 2008 – The Long Island, NY, town of Mineola reopened its middle school to students yesterday after closing the building for two days to remove asbestos from the ceiling of the building’s shop-technology rooms in the basement.

In a letter sent to parents, the district superintendent reported that the latest testing had found no airborne asbestos, and that the building was safe for students and staff. Some parents asked to see inspection reports from the Nassau County Health Department.

Follow-up tests found no airborne contamination, but district officials had reported that the Health Department conducted tests of its own and found “slight” surface contamination, but no airborne contamination.

Officials said they will now expand asbestos removal to include the ceilings in two more classrooms, and projected that all asbestos in the school will be removed by the end of February’s winter break.

“A” is for Asbestos

Most school buildings in the nation were built in the last century, before asbestos was monitored for health safety. The EPA reports that, “there are asbestos-containing materials in most of the nation’s primary, secondary and charter schools.”

Mesothelioma, for example, is the deadliest of asbestos-related cancers. Government health statistics indicate an elevated mesothelioma mortality rate among school teachers, of all people. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) confirms the situation in a 2003 study on work-related health hazards titled “Section 7, Malignant Mesothelioma.” The report identified “Elementary and Secondary Schools” as the No. 3 industry in 1999 that most frequently cited mesothelioma as the cause of death on death certificates.

Time to seek justice!

Government sources estimate that in the next decade more than 35,000 people nationwide will be diagnosed with the deadliest form of asbestos-related cancer, mesothelioma. This disease is most often the result of industrial workplace exposure to asbestos – and usually contracted through employers’ blatant disregard for the health and safety of their workers.

That’s why people diagnosed with mesothelioma and their family members have strong cases in court. Weitz & Luxenberg has protected the legal rights of workers for 25 years – longer than most law firms in the nation. And in that time its attorneys have won several billion dollars in verdicts and settlements for its clients.

If you have a mesothelioma injury, please complete the form on this page for a free evaluation of your legal rights. There is no cost to you until we win a settlement or a verdict.