March 27th, 2008

Inmates suing a prison in Ohio are saying that officials are lying about the removal of asbestos they were forced to conduct. Prison officials said that the material being removed from the buildings was not asbestos.

After a group of 33 current and former prison inmates of an Ohio facility began a lawsuit against the facility and some of the head officials, the prison officials defended the work. Officials said that all asbestos was previously removed from the prison before the prisoners were instructed to work on the buildings. The inmates state that they were ordered to remove the deadly material without protective gear or any training. To prove that asbestos was present, dust from a dormitory floor and pipe insulation were tested, and proved positive, for asbestos.

The presence of asbestos is a concern to those inmates still living in the prison. Asbestos that is incorrectly removed can become airborne, posing health risks to people inhaling the material. The dust found on the floor shows that some asbestos is airborne, and some inmates are already complaining of respiratory problems. Asbestos exposure has been linked to mesothelioma, a type of lung cancer. Mesothelioma can take decades to manifest, but often leaves the victim with just a year or two of life after diagnosis.