February 15th, 2005

A contracting company from San Antonio has won a contract to carry out an inspection for asbestos and lead-based paints. The engineering firm will be contracted to carry out the inspection at Comal County Courthouse. The announcement was made earlier this week, where it was announced that Bexar Engineering had won the $5900 contract.

The courthouse inspection are part of a restoration project for the building, and if any asbestos is found plans and arrangements will be made under the contract for this to be dealt with by the contracted engineers. County engineer, Tom Hornseth, stated: “We know some of the floor tiles are made from asbestos, so we’ll have to estimate the cost of their removal and remediation.”

It was discussed as to whether the courthouse would have to be evacuated if asbestos was found in the court. The county engineer confirmed that no evacuation would be necessary even if asbestos was found, providing that the asbestos was in now way disturbed. This is because when asbestos is disturbed particles and dust from the asbestos can become airborne, and if ingested can result in cancer and other illnesses.