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Asbury Park, New Jersey was closed by the end of Thursday after asbestos was discovered in a classroom. The entire school will be closed on Friday as well.
The decision was taken after a consultant's report revealed that a material that fell from a third-grade classroom ceiling in room 320 last week contained a small amount of asbestos.
"Ahera Consultants of Oceanville will do a further investigation of the entire building to see if there are other beams coated with asbestos," School Board Attorney Alan J. Schnirman said.
Schnirman said that they had spoken to the county superintendent to see if there were other buildings to transfer the staff and students to. However, there were none available at that moment.
"Results from today's inspection may not be available until Monday or Tuesday, so everything is up in the air as to whether the students will return to Bangs Avenue at some point next week because the contaminated area is contained, or if school will be over for the year. The last day of school is June 15," Schnirman said.
The school building was built in 1900s and there 450 pupils and 90 staff. Though hundreds of new schools have been built in recent years, still many older buildings are there which were constructed when the danger of asbestos was not fully known. Asbestos was a common building material from 1945 until 1975 and was used in wall and ceiling panels, insulation and lagging. Even the use of drawing pins in asbestos cement walls could release deadly fibres into the air. Asbestos can cause severe health hazards once the fibres has been inhaled. Asbestosis and Mesothelioma are two deadly diseases caused by asbestos exposure.
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