Indiana Worker Safety Alert Asbestos

May 30th, 2007 Posted by Amelia

You have heard about the latest Indiana worker safety alert about asbestos, right?  If not, you are reading the right article.  While it is true that asbestos has been banned in buildings and removed, the hazard still lurks.  The brakes and clutches or older vehicles often contain asbestos.  Mechanics on those in the car repair industry should be particularly concerned.

Thankfully, a majority of newer model cars and trucks don’t have clutches or brakes that contain asbestos.  If you are the handy type who likes to fix things yourself and you have an older vehicle, you should have a professional take care of this one.  The OSHA highly recommends brake and clutch repairs be done by someone specially trained, to avoid excessive asbestos exposure.  It is very hard to tell if a brake or clutch does in fact have asbestos, so handling these parts should be done as if they all contain it.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) require that all employers in affected industries have written procedures available to decrease asbestos dangers.  It is the responsibility of the employer to make sure employees are properly trained in handling asbestos.  Employers should also make sure that procedures are followed.  One of the main ways to minimize the asbestos traveling through the air is to wet the substance.

In case you are unfamiliar with the different effects of asbestos exposure, they are deadly.  Asbestos related diseases include lung cancer, mesothelioma, and asbestosis.  Asbestos breaks down into very small fibers.  These tiny particles are too small for the human eye to see without magnification, which explains that they are tiny enough for someone to breathe in.  After frequent exposure to asbestos, many people become ill because the little pieces of this hazardous material collect in the lungs.  Annually, nearly 10,000 people in the United States become who are ill with asbestos-related sickness die. 

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