State workers fall ill during asbestos work
By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Kaua'i Bureau
LIHU'E, Kaua'i — Employees in the State Office Building in Lihu'e are concerned after learning that an asbestos-removal project is coinciding with several workers' complaints of respiratory symptoms.
"We've been noticing a lot of people getting sick around here. Eleven people I'm aware of had problems, including headaches, nasal symptoms and teary eyes," said Lei Sullivan, a volunteer in the Office of the Public Defender on Kaua'i, which is in the building.
She said some employees grew worried when they learned that the weekend and night work on the third floor of the building included the removal of asbestos.
State officials say it is unlikely that any asbestos has been released into the environment, but the work may have kicked up some dust, which could be a problem for some.
A contractor for the state Department of Accounting and General Services is replacing the three-story building's air-conditioning system, including the replacement of a number of fittings that have coatings containing asbestos, said Stanley Doi, the DAGS district engineer for Kaua'i.
Doi said the amounts of asbestos are quite small, and they are being removed using a process that seals the immediate environment entirely.
A Department of Health assessment of the project found that the asbestos is in a form that is unlikely to become airborne, and that the removal is being performed by a properly licensed asbestos removal contractor.
"I believe 75 fittings had asbestos in them, but it is in a non-friable form, and it is very hard to create airborne fibers from that," said Tom Lileikis, environmental health specialist on asbestos with the state Department of Health's noise, radiation and indoor air quality branch.
"There shouldn't be any issue of asbestos contamination," he said.
Doi said he has received several calls about the project, and he feels dust could be a contributing factor to workers' discomfort.
"What's probably happening is that we're dropping the ceilings, which have four or five years of dust up there. But I'm real allergic, and I've been up there with no problem," he said.
Reach Jan TenBruggencate at jant@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808)245-3074.
