Worker exposed to dangerously high levels of asbestos

Date:

13 September 2011

Release No:

HSE/SW/5

A company in Bath has been fined after a builder was exposed to high levels of a type of asbestos linked to malignant and incurable cancer.

Jonathan Arnold, 49, of Castle Cary was fitting pipework for a new central heating system at Oxford House, in Combe Down, Bath when he was exposed to high levels of blue asbestos (crocidolite).

Loose fill blue asbestos insulation material was found in the area where Mr Arnold had been working

In a prosecution brought by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) against the building's owners, Formac Electronics Ltd, Bath Magistrates' Court heard the airborne substance was disturbed and spread within the building during refurbishment.

The court was told that, for a five-hour period on 4 August, Mr Arnold was estimated to have been exposed to a high concentration of airborne asbestos fibres many times over the control limit.

HSE investigated the incident and found Formac Electronics Ltd had failed to carry out a refurbishment and demolition survey, to establish the presence and condition of asbestos in the building.

It also failed to provide suitable information to contractors prior to the start of the refurbishment works which resulted in uncontrolled disturbance of the loose fill blue asbestos located within the fabric of the building.

When an HSE Specialist Inspector visited Oxford House under controlled conditions, loose fill blue asbestos insulation material could be clearly seen in the area where Mr Arnold had spent a long time on his hands and knees fitting pipework on the 3 and 4 August 2010.

Asbestos exposure is linked to a range of serious diseases including lung cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma, a malignant, incurable cancer. Of the three main asbestos types, crocidolite is associated with the highest risk of developing mesothelioma.

HSE inspector Helena Tinton said:

"Asbestos is a potent carcinogen and is especially common in buildings constructed between 1950 and 1980. As Oxford House was built in the 1960s, Formac Electronics Ltd should have been aware of the risk of asbestos being present in the building and should have carried out an appropriate level of investigation to prevent any workers from being exposed to the substance.

"The damage to Mr Arnold's health after being exposed to such a high concentration of this potent carcinogen could be very serious and he now has to wait to find out what the long-term effects of this exposure will be."

Formac Electronics Ltd, of Oxford House, Combe Down, Bath, admitted breaching Regulation 10 of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 and was fined £600 with £6,013.45 in costs.

Asbestos is the single greatest cause of work-related deaths in the UK. For health and safety advice and guidance on working with asbestos, go to www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos. This month, HSE has called on the training industry to help them reach a target of 4,000 hours of free asbestos awareness training for workers across the UK in September. For more information, go to http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2011/hse-asbestospledge.htm

Notes to editors

1. The Health and Safety Executive is Britain's national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims to reduce work-related death, injury and ill health. It does so through research, information and advice; promoting training; new or revised regulations and codes of practice; and working with local authority partners by inspection, investigation and enforcement. www.hse.gov.uk
2. Regulation 10 of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 states: "Clients for whom construction work is carried out have a duty to ensure that pre- construction information in relation to hazards and risks associated with the construction site is provided to contractors prior to the commencement of work to ensure so far as reasonably practicable the health and safety of persons engaged in the construction work and those liable to be affected by the way the construction work is carried out. This includes information related to hazards to health including asbestos"
3. The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 establishes a Control Limit for all forms of asbestos fibres in air. The Control Limit is the maximum concentration of fibres, above which anyone working with asbestos must not be exposed. All forms of asbestos are potent carcinogens and as such, an exposure limit where there will be no adverse effect to health cannot be established, therefore exposure should be reduced as far below the Control Limit as reasonably practicable.
4. The court also ordered the defendant to pay a separate £15 victim surcharge, the proceeds of which will be spent on services for victims and witnesses.

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