March 31st, 2008

A Wyoming car plant is testing window enclosures after samples of caulking tested positive for asbestos. Some shift workers were sent home to allow crews to contain the asbestos.

Recent bad weather in Wyoming has shaken lose asbestos in the window enclosures at a car plant. A spokesman for the plant said that some air test samples came back with unsafe levels of asbestos, and some shift workers were sent home to allow clean up crews to seal the affected areas. The caulking around the old windows showed high levels of asbestos, leading to the air samples that confirmed the danger. More tests were scheduled this week to cover all the windows in the plant, and further work may need to be done to secure the whole plant from airborne asbestos.

Asbestos is a normally safe material used in many items including fire resistant materials and sealants. The substance does not usually pose a health risk until it starts to deteriorate or is disturbed, such as during the high winds of recent snowstorms. Asbestos becomes airborne when it breaks apart, and the fibers can be inhaled into the body, leading to respiratory diseases like mesothelioma. The spokesman stated that no immediate danger was seen to workers, but that the sealing was conducted to keep everyone out of danger.