December 15th, 2007

A school in Idaho that was supposed to be demolished to make way for a new school building was found to contain asbestos last week. The discovery stopped work being done on the old building, and has bumped back the opening of the new school.

Jackson Elementary School was supposed to have a new look this fall for its students. The old building in Idaho was found to be unsafe, so it was scheduled to be demolished and a new building was slated to occupy the site. But when crews tested the site, they found deadly asbestos within the old building. The findings will now increase the more than $17 million budget for the project, and may postpone the opening of the new school building.

The asbestos in the building is not airborne, so it does not pose a threat at this time. But demolishing the building could cause the unstable substance to become airborne, when it could be inhaled. Breathing in asbestos fibers is known to lead to respiratory illnesses like emphysema and mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is a form of deadly lung cancer that occurs when asbestos fibers get caught in the lungs and keeps the tissue there from absorbing oxygen.