Asbestos exposure now a concern for students who survived a fire

Kampala, Uganda – Over a dozen students lost their lives after flames engulfed a Budo Junior School dormitory just a few days, but the full impact has yet to been seen.

Budo Junior, one of the oldest and most popular schools in Uganda, lost at least 18 of its female students along with two adults during the fire tragedy. However, an alarming concern has been discussed which involves the possibility of asbestos exposure.

The roofs of the burnt dorm were made of asbestos sheets, a product denounced by the World Health Organization as a health hazard. There is worry that the survivors of the inferno very likely may have breathed in the deadly fibers released from the sheets as a result of the fire.

Laboratory tests will need to be run on these individuals to assess the amount of asbestos fibers that they inhaled which will determine the risk each individual faces. According to the school’s headmaster, 42 girls survived.

Research has shown that exposure to asbestos can lead to serious illnesses such as mesothelioma and asbestosis. Use of the substance has been banned in the country for years.

The community is outraged that the school had not replaced the sheets with uncontaminated ones, and they also say the government and ministry of education were responsible for ensuring that all schools complied with the law.

Also of note, there is a possibility that school children have gathered and drank rain water dripping off of the asbestos roof, which scientists proved can cause cancer because the asbestos fibers attached themselves to the liquid.

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