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Feb 24 2007
The demolition of the vacant Younkers Department Store building has been postponed due to the presence of asbestos. The building was supposed to be ripped down in January in order to make way for a large-scale riverfront project. The project which includes the construction of apartments, condominiums, shops, and a children's museum is onhold for another few months at the moment. If the former Younkers Department Store building is demolished as it is, there is a chance for some potentially hazardous contaminants to be released into the air which can be inhaled by many. Inhaling of asbestos fibers can cause health problems, such as facilitating development of cancer or causing asbestosis, scarring of the lungs that could lead to shortness of breath and chest pain. The only known reason for the deadly cancer mesothelioma is asbestos exposure. The department store building was inspected thoroughly and asbestos was found in many areas. "It can be found in just about anything. Most building materials are considered suspect materials that should be sampled and determined whether or not there is asbestos within that material, and then identify whether that material needs to be removed from the building," said Jerry Hinke, an environmental inspector with American Air Environmental. According to Hinke, the asbestos removal process for this particular building will be time consuming due to the size and age of the building. "That could take several months if it's tens of thousands of square feet of that material, and a lot of times in commercial buildings like that, you would find that type of material," he said. The asbestos clean-up process has not been started yet. According to the city, it is likely to be started in late next month. The demolition is expected to begin in early April however, this will be a gradual process as each segment of the building becomes free of asbestos.
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