Maxham Elementary Closed for Potential Asbestos Exposure

Maxham Elementary School, closed on April 30 and May 1, is only one in a long list of schools and public buildings in the Taunton, Massachusetts area that has Mayor Charles Crowley awake at night.

Maxham, closed for two days when asbestos insulation was found peeling off pipes in a basement crawl space, underwent two days of inspections, with workers from an outside asbestos remediation contractor determining if the school was, indeed, safe to reopen.

It was, but not until the following week, after letters had gone out to parents and daycare provided for working families at the former Elizabeth Pole School. Crowley, who described the closure as "erring on the side of caution", closed the 55-year-old school after an emergency meeting with various officials.

The potential asbestos issue at Maxham Elementary is the latest in a rash of recent concerns about Taunton school buildings in particular. Earlier this year, Crowley ordered a comprehensive inspection of all public buildings, including schools - a project which hasn't been undertaken in 25 years. Crowley's reasoning was his desire to create a capital improvements bond to fund all needed repairs to all facilities as rapidly as possible.

So far, the Taunton Building Department has inspected Bennett, Friedman, Chamberlain, Mulcahey, Pole, Walker and Leonard schools. Crowley also attempted to dash rumors that the inspections were used as a ploy to close schools - rumors which arose after the District announced the likely closure of Leonard school for either remodeling or demolition.

In the case of Leonard, where numerous violations were discovered, making the building safe would require gutting the interior, according to Crowley. The city has yet to make a decision whether renovation or deconstruction would be the most effective solution.

Crowley said preliminary air quality tests indicated Maxham was not a danger to students or staff, and reopened the school on Monday after a written report from the asbestos remediation firm confirmed that initial testing.

The School Department set Saturday, May 9 and Wednesday, June 24 as make-up days for the closure, even though the additional days will cost the school district more in teacher's salaries and transportation.

Even though some parents were upset by the two-day closure, which required rethinking travel and pickup arrangements for students, Crowley and school officials acted responsibly in closing Maxham School. As tests from the World Trade Center debris demonstrate, asbestos is virtually indestructible and at its most dangerous when disturbed or broken up.

At that stage, the miniscule fibers of asbestos can be inhaled or ingested, resulting in persistent, inflammatory lesions in the mesothelial tissue of the lung and abdomen - an irritation which gives rise to a number of diseases, including asbestos and cancers of the lung and digestive tract.

The most dangerous disease, whose only known cause is asbestos, is malignant mesothelioma, which lies dormant for several decades before producing symptoms. By the time it is diagnosed, most patients are given between a year and 18 months to live.

Asbestos exposure as low as 2 parts-per-million (ppm) can trigger lesions, and none of the relevant health agencies - OSHA, the CDC or the American Cancer Society - has ever established a minimum safe exposure for asbestos.

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