December 28th, 2007

After Hurricane Katrina ripped through New Orleans in 2005, the devastation was unbelievable. But volunteers and workers within the community may have been at risk of a deadly agent: asbestos.

When volunteers, church groups, students and day laborers came to New Orleans to help restore the city after Hurricane Katrina, many of the people came away with feelings of helping one another. Some of those workers may have come away with more than just that. A new report shows that a government agency did not consistently monitor levels of asbestos in ravaged buildings and homes, putting some of those workers at risk of exposure. The reports state that, while initial findings said sites were safe from asbestos, new reports show that the safety level was for inspection over short periods of time only. Some volunteers and workers spent months, not minutes, among the damaged buildings.

Asbestos exposure has been known to cause many types of diseases, including asbestosis, emphysema and a type of lung cancer called mesothelioma. Most of these diseases can take decades to be diagnosed, and mesothelioma is often beyond treatment at the time of discovery. Mesothelioma occurs when asbestos particles become trapped in the lungs, keeping the tissue from absorbing oxygen.