October 14th, 2007

Students at a community college were living on campus in trailers while participating in a work-study program. The trailers are dilapidated, with some of them showing asbestos in the walls and ceilings.

Students at the Modesto Junior College have been roughing it over the last year when it comes to on-campus living. Students enrolled in the work-study agricultural program have been living in trailers that barely provide a roof over their head. The roof that is provided is usually worse than none at all. The old trailers contain asbestos, and as the trailers become more decrepit, the asbestos becomes more obvious. That will all change this school year after a bill was passed to supply new housing to the community college program.

The asbestos in the trailers is an issue, since the health concern over the deadly material gets worse as the trailers fall into further disrepair. When asbestos is left to decompose exposed to the environment, particles of the substance become airborne. Breathing in these particles can lead to respiratory illnesses like emphysema and mesothelioma, a form of deadly lung cancer. Mesothelioma is the result of asbestos particles becoming stuck in the lungs, keeping the tissue there from absorbing oxygen.