Asbestos released at a Toledo shopping center

Toledo, OH - Asbestos was released at the former Montgomery Ward building at the Southwyck Shopping Center, and there's potential that the public may become exposed as a result of maintenance workers transferring it to common areas.

Commissioner of Environmental Services Tim Murphy reported that inspectors said the cause of the asbestos problem was the collapse of the asbestos insulation-containing roof, which finally gave in after years of water leaking damage. Fortunately, no one was hurt because business operations no longer are conducted there, and the building is closed off to the public.

However, maintenance workers had to go in to clean up the mess, which causes concern among the inspectors. Although they have no evidence of it, inspectors are worried the workers may have unintentionally transferred the deadly fibers to the public areas.

Black mold was also found on the ceiling in the main concourse of Southwyck.

The city has ordered the owners of the six-store shopping center and the former Montgomery Ward to address the matter within 30 days.

The current owners are in talks of what to do with the once-popular center which has been seeing decreasing traffic for a long time. They are considering selling the property to a developer who has expressed interest in buying the site and redeveloping it. The situation is complicated because three companies owned separate parts of the shopping center.

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