Some people may have worked with asbestos up to 50 years ago and may not have realised what it was at the time or completely forgotten about it. I.e. you may have been a plumber, carpenter, or electrician during the time when asbestos was widely used (up until the mid 1980’s). If you were employed in any of the professions below – Some of the most likely times you would come across it is during:
- Stripping/ working with wiring (used as an insulator)
- Working on pipes/plumbing (used as pipe lagging)
- Woodworking (used as a floor covering, behind fire doors, paneling)
Employees of businesses that have mined asbestos minerals, or employees that have made asbestos products have a far greater risk of asbestos inhalation than the average person.
Asbestos covering wires
Asbestos Pipe Lagging
Asbestos In Door Cavity
Asbestos covering wires
Asbestos Pipe Lagging
Asbestos In Door Cavity
What is asbestos?
Asbestos is a naturally occurring rock made of six different fibrous minerals: chrysotile, crocidolite, amosite, tremolite, anthophyllite, and actinolite. The asbestos minerals came from numerous mines throughout the world. The fibres were mixed with cement or woven into fabrics, mats, boards etc.
Asbestos Rock Mineral
How can asbestos fibres cause cancer?
The long thin shape of an asbestos fibre may enhance its entry deep into the lung. Following inhalation, fibres of several micrometres in length can enter the respiratory airways, whereas other particles larger than 5 micrometres could not penetrate. Once in the lung – the long fibres may not be cleared by the bodies natural defence mechanism such as ‘macrophage clearance’ macrophages generally mop up foreign bodies, but scientists have discovered that certain stubborn asbestos fibres (such as needle-like shapes of blue asbestos) cannot be cleared by macrophages. These fibres may more easily migrate along tissue planes, lymphatic channels and make their way into the pleural space.
Uncleared fibres can have an inflammatory effect and disrupt normal cell growth –hence leading to cancer, such as ‘mesothelioma’ Mesothelioma is predominantly associated with asbestos exposure. Malignant cells develop within the ‘mesothelium’, a protective lining that covers most of the human body’s internal organs. Mesothelioma can be detected more commonly in the ‘pleura’, the outer lining of the lungs and internal chest wall. Mesothelioma has a long latency period – which means that development of the disease may not manifest itself until 20-50 years later.
When is asbestos harmful?
Asbestos is generally more harmful when it is damaged or deteriorating with age. This is when it is referred to as being ‘friable’ – friable means that it has become brittle and starts flaking. In this deteriorating condition – the asbestos material can release more fibres into the air, increasing the risk of fibre inhalation. Asbestos that is hidden away, i.e. behind a wall cavity and it is 100% intact and not friable will not pose any threat to health. To be completely safe though – any asbestos should be assessed and monitored by an asbestos abatement professional.
Damaged Asbestos Lagging
What is the likelihood of what will happen if I have been exposed to asbestos?
Being exposed to asbestos does not necessarily mean that you will definitely develop an asbestos-related disease such as mesothelioma or asbestosis. As this depends on how long you have been exposed to asbestos, how many fibres you have inhaled, and what type of asbestos fibres they were.
What are the symptoms of an asbestos related disease?
The symptoms of mesothelioma can be vague and mistaken for other illnesses such as asthma and COPD. Symptoms that have been reported include shortness of breath, due to ‘pleural effusion’ (fluid between the lung and the chest wall), chest pain or discomfort, fatigue, and weight loss.
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I have been unwittingly exposed to asbestos, as an electrician I am routinely sericing cleaning replacing
storage heaters, we have never been issued ppe or advised in any way as to the presence of asbestos, I have recently accessed information about this and have given this information, when asked at meetings to declare any safety issues we reraised the issue, the managers said they will note this 3 times 3 seperate meetings. it never happened, instead they have worked hard at singling the electricians out and taking action against us they are negligent what can you do about that obviously qualified electricians are disposable.
In the UK – The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is warning that electrical contracting companies and other building and refurbishment trades must provide suitable asbestos awareness training to employees or face prosecution. Failing to adhere to the guidelines breaches Regulation 10(1)(a) of the ‘Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006′. All companies should be following asbestos regulations and training staff regarding the health risks involved. All electricians, plasterers, plumbers and carpenters are at risk of exposure to asbestos in buildings erected or refurbished before the year 2000. Recently – an electrical contractor was fined £3,000 and ordered to pay £2,757 in costs when he failed to give out asbestos awareness training to his employee prior to commencement of the work, despite it being a legal requirement.
Please read more information on asbestos regulations here: http://www.amencon.co.uk/news.html
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