Oregon Hospital Fined Over Asbestos

Article Added August 15th, 2006 - Print This Story - Bookmark This Story

After an Oregon hospital failed to warn a general contractor about the presence of asbestos, they were slapped with more than $10,000 worth of fines. Work on the building has been completed, but the asbestos problem remains.

When the Oregon State Hospital contracted a company to replace some piping, they failed to mention that the previous pipes were insulated with asbestos. The hospital has now been handed more than $10,000 worth of civil fines due to the January mishap. The hospital is being held responsible for the entire issue, due to the fact that a 1990 survey showed that the pipes were insulated with asbestos-containing material. Asbestos was found when members of the contracting company saw the insulation in a pile of debris from the digging.

Disturbing the insulation turned a stable material into a potentially deadly one, not only to the staff and patients at the psychiatric hospital, but to the contracted workers as well. When asbestos is disturbed, it breaks into airborne fibers, which can be breathed in. Once breathing in the material, the fibers work into the tissue of the lungs and inhibit it from absorbing oxygen. The lung tissue begins to die due to the cancer, a condition known as mesothelioma. The condition can take year to be detected, and is often fatal at the time of detection.

Article Added August 15th, 2006 - Print This Story - Bookmark This Story